Hello dear friends,
I am in Egypt.
It is a lovely place.
Some similarities to the West Bank (similar language, crazy driving, desert vistas) but also lots of differences (no checkpoints, freedom of mobility, somewhat certainty that you will arrive where you said you would arrive, trees, no fear of IDF).
I am here on vacation for a week. As soon as I left Ramallah, and started the journey towards Amman, and then Cairo, I was struck by an odd sensation.
I felt free. like I had taken off a heavy wool jacket or removed uncomfortable shoes.
It seemed I could run forever and not have to look left and right, worry about encountering a wall, or worse.
It hit me again that truly the West Bank has become a prison.
a large psychological, and physical holding cell.
and for most people living there, a permanent daily reality.
I have the luxury of leaving.
But I don't want to dampen the mood so much right now.
In the fall, I will find myself again in Toronto, working (and completing!) my Masters in Public Health at the University of Toronto.
One of the best parts of my first year was my introduction to Interchange, which is an international organization of peacebuilders, based at OISE, University of Toronto.
For a long time, I have seen the similarities between health promotion and peace promotion.
I have always believed health is a vehicle to peace. My experiences in Palestine so far have both re-affirmed and further confused my feelings on this, but nonetheless I think it is important to make these linkages and build better programs and policies that recognize the interconnectedness of people's health to their community participation and functioning.
So, I've been writing for the Interchange blog and interviewing organizations around the West Bank that I feel exemplify how we can bridge the two sectors.
Here is the link to the blog: http://interchange4peace.org/?page_id=2185
I hope to be putting up my interview with Physicians for Human Rights, an Israeli medical organization that works for non-status and Palestinian refugees, within and outside the 1967 borders.
Let me know what you think!
I am in Egypt.
It is a lovely place.
Some similarities to the West Bank (similar language, crazy driving, desert vistas) but also lots of differences (no checkpoints, freedom of mobility, somewhat certainty that you will arrive where you said you would arrive, trees, no fear of IDF).
I am here on vacation for a week. As soon as I left Ramallah, and started the journey towards Amman, and then Cairo, I was struck by an odd sensation.
I felt free. like I had taken off a heavy wool jacket or removed uncomfortable shoes.
It seemed I could run forever and not have to look left and right, worry about encountering a wall, or worse.
It hit me again that truly the West Bank has become a prison.
a large psychological, and physical holding cell.
and for most people living there, a permanent daily reality.
I have the luxury of leaving.
But I don't want to dampen the mood so much right now.
In the fall, I will find myself again in Toronto, working (and completing!) my Masters in Public Health at the University of Toronto.
One of the best parts of my first year was my introduction to Interchange, which is an international organization of peacebuilders, based at OISE, University of Toronto.
For a long time, I have seen the similarities between health promotion and peace promotion.
I have always believed health is a vehicle to peace. My experiences in Palestine so far have both re-affirmed and further confused my feelings on this, but nonetheless I think it is important to make these linkages and build better programs and policies that recognize the interconnectedness of people's health to their community participation and functioning.
So, I've been writing for the Interchange blog and interviewing organizations around the West Bank that I feel exemplify how we can bridge the two sectors.
Here is the link to the blog: http://interchange4peace.org/?page_id=2185
I hope to be putting up my interview with Physicians for Human Rights, an Israeli medical organization that works for non-status and Palestinian refugees, within and outside the 1967 borders.
Let me know what you think!
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