At the beginning of October, Clarkies Helping and Advocating for Israel (CHAI), the pro-Israel group at Clark University, hosted Noam Bedein for their Less Hamas More Hummus event. Bedein is the founder and director of the Sderot Media Center, a media advocacy center which portrays the human face of Sderot and Southern Israel under siege, to the international media and public. He came to Clark University to discuss the reality of Israelis consistently living under rocket fire and how this contributed to the continued stress and trauma of Israeli society. He also discussed what life is like for children in kindergartens that are systematically targeted and the hope that these children continue to cling on to.
CAMERA Fellow and member of CHAI, Seth Greenwald, stated that “we wanted to show people a narrative that is too often ignored, the reality of Israelis underfire. If it doesn’t bleed, it doesn’t lead, so Sderot is often ignored due to the lack of casualties.”
An incredibly diverse audience consisting of over 40 people and many international students attended this event. Greenwald admitted that “It [the event] exceeded my expectations. The audience that we had was not only larger than at all previous events, but it was significantly more diverse. Also all participants seemed to have a genuine interest and respect for both Noam’s story and the people of Sderot.”