The news from the Middle East has long painted a stark picture of unrelenting violence between Israelis and Palestinians well before October 7, 2023. Since 1998, the Parents Circle-Families Forum: Bereaved Palestinians and Israelis has provided rays of hope for the future by connecting Israelis and Palestinians through an understanding of the "other side," a first step toward reconciliation and peace.
October 7th has made goals of peace and reconciliation feel like a distant dream. “Israel still lives in October 7th,” says Oren Balaban, a bereaved Israeli whose father, a member of the Israeli army, was killed when Oren was just two years old. "Since October 7th, the narratives became even more different, and actually, it's hard to talk, Israelis and Palestinians, nowadays.”
What’s left of the reconciliation efforts that the Parents Circle-Families Forum and other peace organizations have painstakingly nurtured for decades? How do Palestinians, Israelis and Americans heal? What hope is there for a sustainable and peaceful future?
To discuss the power of their shared pain, the power of holding onto our humanity during this incredibly difficult time and the impact of October 7th on peacebuilding and for an Israeli and Palestinian future, we will be joined by:
Robi Damelin, bereaved Israeli mother and Director of International Relations, whose son was killed by a Palestinian sniper in 2002.
Layla Alsheikh, bereaved Palestinian mother, whose 6-month-old son died after she was prevented by Israeli soldiers to get to the hospital.
Yonatan Zeigen, bereaved Israeli son, whose mother, peace activist Vivian Silver, was killed on October 7th.
Arab Aramin, bereaved Palestinian brother, whose sister was killed when she was only 10 years old.
How do they hold onto their humanity despite having paid the highest price? And if they can hold onto a shared humanity, then so can we.