Too often, conversation about Israel ends up focusing exclusively on the Israeli – Palestinian conflict. While this is obviously a vital element of Israel’s story, the leaders of CAMERA-supported group UWindsor Jewish Students Association feel that this leaves people with a one-dimensional view of the country – so they decided to organize Israel Education Week, to give people a better understanding of the multi-faceted nature of Israel.
At the first day of Israel Education Week, the students set up an information table, where among other things, they showed videos on a tablet about different organizations, including CAMERA, Save a Child’s Heart and One Family. The organizers also engaged people in conversation, and people were interested in hearing all about Israeli technology and innovation.
There was also a screening of popular Israel TV series Fauda. Fauda is a TV drama depicting the work of undercover Israeli soldiers in Arab villages, and has received critical acclaim, and it has also now been made available online with English subtitles. Students who viewed the screening both enjoyed the incredible show, as well as noting how much it taught them about the complexities of the Arab-Israeli conflict.
For the final event of Israel Education Week, there was a “Jerusalem Shuk” set up outside the law school, featuring Israeli style Hummus and Techina, Israeli music, and an Israeli trivia game. Over the course of the week, well over one hundred students engaged with Israel Education Week – and a new and more wholesome conversation about Israel began!
Contributed by Aron White, CAMERA intern