This is one of this site’s entries for The Rachel Corrie Foundation’s 2006 Peace Works Conference.
Participants will come to these “Action Workshops” with resource materials, questions, problems, and ideas. We will discuss and exchange information and experiences related to specific kinds of work on the Israeli-Palestinian issue. We will share successes and obstacles, address the most urgent questions and opportunities posed by the work, and share and develop tools, strategies, and networking opportunities in order to be more effective. Participants with all levels of experience are welcome at all workshops.
Saturday Only – 12:30-1:45pm
Palestine for Beginners –
Presenters: Linda Bevis and Ed Mast
Location: North end of the Student Union Building
For several years, as the situation has changed, Linda Bevis and Ed Mast have developed, presented, and updated this fast-moving presentation of the roots of conflict, the key historical and current events, and the characters and motivations behind the ongoing crisis. An attorney and high school world history teacher, Linda Bevis lived for several years in the West Bank working with a human rights organization. Ed Mast is a playwright and performer whose play SAHMATAH, co-written with Hanna Eady, has played in the Middle East and Europe since 1998. Linda and Ed have done human rights work, together and separately, in Northern Ireland, Central America and the former Soviet Union, and in 2002 they jointly received the annual human rights award of the United Nations Association of Seattle. They are among the co-founders of Palestine Information Project, a Seattle organization which creates educational materials and presentations about human rights issues in Israel/Palestine and about the US role in the conflict.
Saturday/Sunday – Taking Action Workshops – 3:30-5:45pm
Art in the Service of Activism – Room 293
Facilitator: Jen Marlowe
Where do art and activism meet? We will explore how art can be used in addressing the issues of this conflict, for building awareness and cross cultural understanding, for promoting dialogue, and as a participatory tool for building solidarity.
Justice is Global: Connecting Solidarity Movements – Room 286
Organizer: Alex
Facilitator: Phan Nguyen
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”
How do we link the struggle for justice and human rights in Palestine-Israel to the struggles of other oppressed peoples around the world? We will examine other solidarity movements in the world and explore ways to work in conjunction with them.
The Faith Community Responds – Room 287
Organizer: Annamarie
Facilitator: Don Johnson
How have different religious communities responded to the Palestine-Israel conflict? We will discuss the spectrum of reactions from faith-based organizations, their relation to the core values of social justice that all our traditions uphold, and ways the solidarity movement can forge closer connections to the faith community.
Making Corporations Accountable – Room 106
Organizer: Annamarie
Facilitator: Ann Butler
How do we pursue justice from the businesses that choose to profit from war crimes and oppression? Corporations must be held responsible for their actions. Through consideration of divestment, corporate reinvestment campaigns, and other means, we will strategize on how to make human rights—and not only financial profit–the bottom line.
Nonviolent Direct Action – Room 130
Organizer: Phan Nguyen
Facilitator:
How can we make ourselves heard when our leaders ignore our concerns? We will share and learn strategies for direct action, address concerns about implementation, and compare training styles, philosophy, and strategy.
Outreach & Education: Framing the Message and Getting it Out – Room 294
Organizer: Dennis
Facilitator: Lori Blewett
When informing people about the Middle East, how do we determine what the message should be now, and then successfully deliver that message? We will strategize on framing the message and explore ideas about how to communicate it.
Creating Sister City Relationships – Room 252
Organizer: Cindy
Facilitator: Molly Gibbs
What are the possibilities, obstacles and methods in creating relationships between U.S. and Palestinian communities? What can existing sister city efforts with other countries teach us about sustaining these U.S.-Palestinian projects? We will learn from the work being done in Olympia, WA, Madison, WI, Atlanta, GA, and Rafah and Ramallah in Palestine.
Lobbying and Impacting Party Platforms – Room 253
Organizer: Bernie
Facilitator: Monica Peabody
How can we most effectively impact U.S. foreign policy and move from U.S. Government positions that support and sustain the occupation toward those that foster a just and enduring peace? How can we most effectively mobilize the American public for this effort? We will discuss how to communicate with members of Congress and other branches of government, how to raise this issue during election campaigns, how to locally impact party platforms, and more.
em>Media Monitoring & Advocacy – Room 120
Organizer: Phan Nguyen
Facilitator: Diane Schachter
How can we most effectively ensure that the media fairly and accurately report on the Palestine-Israel conflict? We will discuss writing op-eds and letters to the editor, meeting with editorial boards, providing media with alternative voices and points of view, responding to inaccuracies, and securing interviews—the techniques, successes and frustrations and new approaches.
Films Screening – Building 20, Room 217
Organizer and Facilitator: Alex Becker
Saturday, 3:30-5:45pm
Peace, Propaganda and the Promised Land-Bathsheba Ratzkoff & Sut Jhally (80 min.)
Dispatches: The Killing Zone-Jordan and Vasquez (52 min.)
Sunday, 11:00am-12:30pm
Arna’s Children-Juliano Mer Khamis (84 min.)
Sunday Only
Dances for Universal Peace – 8:15-9:15am – Black Box Theater
From the website: www.dancesofuniversalpeace.org
As in these timeless mystic traditions, the Dances use simple music, lyrics, and movements to touch the spiritual essence within ourselves and others. No musical or dance experience of any kind is required and everyone is welcomed to join in.
The movements and songs drawn from over 400 Dances include themes of peace (both inner and outer), healing (the Earth, individuals, and the global family), and the celebration of life’s great mystery. Dancers focus on peace and harmony creating a sense of solidarity and community while celebrating the underlying unity of all the spiritual traditions of the Earth. By experiencing these many traditions, a greater understanding and appreciation of other cultures, as well as one’s own heritage, is gained.
em>The mood of the Dances is infinitely variable, evoking feelings of love, joy, and compassion. Whether invoking the compassion of the Buddhist Qwan Yin, celebrating the playful energy of Krishna, or experiencing the related emotion of any other spiritual figure, dancers take part in a dynamic relationship between the group, individuals, and the self.
The Dances are an experience that all the world should be fortunate enough to enjoy. Hopefully as the Dances of Universal Peace continue to spread, the world will.
Expressions of Peace – 11:00am-12:30pm – Black Box Theater
Organizer: Cindy
Facilitator-Presenter: Mukti Khanna and students
This expressive arts experience explores the question of “How can we go beyond words for peace building?’ through the integration of touch drawing, image theatre and person centered psychology. Embodying perceptions and reactions to Self and Other through Image Theatre can deepen understanding of intrapsychic and cross-cultural perspectives. This awareness can be deepened through Touch Drawing, a simple yet profound process that allows many images to be drawn through the touch of fingertips on paper. The drawing of multiple images and reflective sharing can open creative energy, transformation and insight. Being witnessed and witnessing the Other through this visual record of one’s inner process can be a doorway for reconciliation, mediation and transformation. This workshop is of relevance to anyone interested in integrating creative arts and transpersonal languages in community dialogue.
Mukti Khanna, Ph.D. has worked with expressive arts therapies since 1983 in individual, group and community dialogues. She is a licensed clinical psychologist and listed in the National Registrar of Health Care Providers in Psychology. She has designed expressive arts dialogues for diverse communities including the Gandhi Institute, National Civil Rights Museum and Southern Ute Indian Reservation. She has received an Institute of Noetic Sciences Arts and Healing in Community Award. She is a Member of the Faculty of The Evergreen State College.
