BY IRIS BURKE | Last Monday, Seeds of Peace finished up the first session of a new program called Beyond Borders, a summer camp where Arab and American teens come together to learn about each other.
The new Seeds of Peace President Aaron David Miller, who worked on the Middle East conflict for the State Department for 25 years, created the program.
Founded in 1993 by John Wallach, an author and journalist, Seeds of Peace is a place where young Israelis and Palestinians, Indians and Pakistanis, and other conflicting groups live, work, and play together. The idea is that eventually they will learn to look beyond their conflicts and understand each other.
According to Rebecca Hankin, Seeds of Peace director of communications, the organization noticed the misconceptions being created after 9/11 about Arabs and Americans, and decided to apply the philosophy of Seeds of Peace to this new problem, and Beyond Borders was born.
The new program follows the same basic model as the other camps, with a month-long summer session and then later in the year a conference where the participants, known as “seeds,” reconnect.
Beyond Border Seeds are chosen in much the same way as the participants for Seeds of Peace. They go through a series of tests and interviews and are chosen by their academic and leadership abilities.
The camp is much like any other summer camp with the exception that Seeds meet daily to discuss issues specific to their conflicts with professional mediators on hand. Those same groups rotate together through the rest of the day.
Hankin said that through activities like sports, bonds are formed between traditional enemies. Participants learn tolerance and respect in the daily dialogue sessions, and later to trust each other through games and everyday living situations.
Many wonder if this is necessary, if there is really that much of a cultural rift between the United States and Arab worlds.
Tamer Omari and Amer Kamal, two USM students who have participated in the Israeli/Palestinian camps, said yes, there has to be something out there to help people understand each other.
Since 9/11, many Arab-Americans say, they have suffered from a steretype that casts them all as Islamic extremists. At the same time, many in the Middle East see Americans as gluttonous and selfish.
Both Omari and Kamal pointed out that the media is partially to blame, saying that it has blinded people on both sides of the conflict.
Seeds of Peace says they are a-political, but some activists accuse the organization of being biased, based in America and Jerusalem, and influenced by Jewish-Americans.
Burke points out that there are no offices in Hebron, Gaza, or other Palestinian territories and that it is extremely difficult for Jews to go to the Palestinian areas.
When asked about these complaints, Kamal, a senior business and international relations student, said the organization used to be strongly influenced by Jewish-Americans, but after Miller took over in 2003 things became more balanced with more Arab counselors.
He said that one of the ways that the program avoids being biased is by allowing people to talk about anything they want during the dialogue sessions.
Kamal, who didn’t speak to the Israelis at the camp for the first two weeks, said, “You grow up knowing that person is an enemy and when you go to the camp it helps break the ice, and you realize that person is human like you … It made me able to listen to them … I wouldn’t say its always successful because even though I understand them, I’m still angry. My country is still occupied.”
For Michael Garber, a 15-year-old from Massachusetts, the Beyond Borders program was a great experience. Before he participated in the camp he thought that most Arabs agreed with the extremists.
After spending time with them, he learned that Arabs are not all extremists and he now believes their religion is very peaceful. He was also able to teach them about American culture. He said that a lot of the Arab kids didn’t understand that what the government does in America is not necessarily what all Americans want or believe.
Since he is Jewish a lot of the Arabs asked about his views on Israel, and he was able to help them understand his point of view.
Many of the activities were geared toward helping the Seeds understand themselves while also looking through each other’s eyes. One activity Garber said was especially challenging was one where he was asked to list the 10 most important parts of himself. Then he was asked to cut seven of those things, forcing him to decide on the top three. When the lists were made, Seeds switched chairs and were told to read each other’s lists and try to imagine themselves as that person.
Garber said, “Its hard to cut out pieces of yourself. It’s hard to think of yourself without your family … but it taught us a lot about ourselves and each other.” Garber said that his time at Beyond Borders will be useful as he plans to go into international relations and now he has a better understanding of Middle Eastern cultures.
He said perhaps one day, some of the participants will become leaders for their countries and these experiences will help them communicate and understand each other’s side.
Garber plans to continue the friendships he built at Beyond Borders, saying “there is a second session in Jordan later this year and I can’t wait to see everyone again.”