Kathleen & Bill Christison: Meeting the Other in Israel and Palestine

Teaching Israeli and Palestinian Children to "Get Along" at Best Only Buries the Real Problems
Meeting the Other in Israel and Palestine

By KATHLEEN and BILL CHRISTISON
Former CIA Analysts

One hesitates to criticize these enterprises. They're so well meaning, and it seems so curmudgeonly. But the myriad efforts around the world to bring the children of political conflicts, most notably the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, together in some kind of forced intimacy -- schools or camps or the like -- so that they can get to know each other and learn that each is human, can and often do actually perpetuate the conflict. These well intentioned efforts ultimately divert attention from real problems, real grievances, and lull people into thinking that all this sweetness and light is some kind of progress toward resolving the conflict.

Powered by ScribeFire.