The goal behind Palestine Week is To provide a comprehensive illustratio n of political issues in the Middle East as experienced by Palestinians in Palestine/Israel, the Arab world, and the Diaspora; to provide a comprehensive illustration of Palestinian cultural life in the aforementioned regions; to educate Americans about aspects of Palestinian life often ignored in the United States; to create a diverse community of students and scholars who will confront the most difficult aspects of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and discuss solutions; to create productive dialogue among the various antagonists involved in the conflict; to engage various possibilities regarding grassroots activism; to raise money and other items for reputable charities that assist underprivileged Palestinians; to bring to campus well-known experts on the conflict; to bring to campus a band specializing in Palestinian folk and pop music; to show on campus films that will generate better understanding of Palestinian politics and history; and to link the ASA with both student and professional organizations across the country that focus on various types of Palestinian activism.
The Palestine Week consists of three main events; a film, a dinner and a speech given by our distinguished speaker Dr. Norman Finkelstein. The week started on Tuesday, October 15th and lasted until Tuesday October 22nd. Information booth was set up every day during the week in order to handout fliers and show posters announcing for the variuos events of the week. Arab Student Association was not alone in this campaign, Amnesty Internatioan chapter at OU was of great help to us. We are also thankful to Islamic Assocaition for Palestine , Dallas TX, for all the help and the useful material they provided us.
In order to ensure the continouity of the efforts of the Arab Student Association at OU, as well as any other organization that is interested in holding such events, we decided to provide more details about the week, as well as some documents designed by our members during the week. Please feel free to use the material presented here for any activity that aims to educate the Americans about the real situation in Palestine.
Film Screening: People and the Land
The purpose of film screening is showing a documentary film about the situation in the Middle East. The film contains interviews with Palestinian and Israeli citizens and personnel. A brief discussion was held after the screening.
People and the Land takes viewers into the universe of the occupied people of Palestine, unreeling images of a new form of apartheid based on ethnicity. Challenging US foreign policy, this film examines the concrete realities of Israel's conduct in the West Bank and Gaza, the level of US support for that conduct through foreign aid, and the human cost of that aid in Palestine and the US. The result is a powerful and compelling portrayal of the situation that highlights the human rights violations against the Palestinian community. (1997, 57 minutes) People and the Land produced by Tom Hayes.
Washington Report on Middle East Affairs Film Review .
Americans for Middle East Understanding: People and the Land By Tom Hayes (download text - 151kb) from "The Link" (volume 30, issue5)
For more information, visit Global Exchange's Palestine Campaign .
Middle Eastern Dinner
The second activity of the week was a dinner offered by the Arab community in Norman. The Arab Student Association feels very thankful to the families who donated their food and time for us. The dinner consisted of several dishes from variuos Arab countries, mainly Lebanon, Palestine, Egypt, Syria and Morocco.
The dinner achieved great success and created a tighter relation between the Arab community and OU community in the city of Norman.
Dr. Norman Finkelstein's Lecture
The closer of the week was with a speech given by our distinguished guest , Dr. Norman Finkelstein . Norman G. Finkelstein received his doctorate from the Department of Politics, Princeton University, for a thesis on the theory of Zionism. He is the author of four books: Image and Reality of the Israel-Palestine Conflict (Verso, 1995), The Rise and Fall of Palestine (University of Minnesota, 1996), with Ruth Bettina Birn, A Nation on Trial: The Goldhagen Thesis and Historical Truth (Henry Holt,1998) and The Holocaust Industry: Reflections on the Exploitation of Jewish Suffering (Verso, 2000). His writings have appeared in prestigous journals such as the London Review of Books, Index on Censorship, Journal of Palestine Studies, New Left Review, Middle East Report, Christian Science Monitor and Al Ahram Weekly. Currently he teaches political science at DePaul University in Chicago.
Dr. Finlelstein gave a lecture at OU titled "Whither the 'Peace Process'?" An analysis of the Intifada and the prospects of peace in the Middle East. The lecture was recorded on VHS.
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