Did you hear the one about the Jew and the Muslim who went in to talk and came out firm friends?
Israelis and Palestinians could learn a lesson from ordinary Brooklynites on promoting racial harmony, judging from the friendly meeting of the mouths and minds at the East Midwood Jewish Center, organized by an international Jewish group, and attended by a notable local Arab American.
The chat billed, “Dialogue Not Debate: Learning How to Speak Across Differences with Jewish⁄Israeli and Palestinian⁄Muslin New Yorkers,” was presented by the Brooklyn chapter of the National Council of Jewish Women and featured guest speakers Marcia Kannry and Linda Sarsour.
Kannry, a former executive director of the Jewish National Fund, lived in Israel for six years and established the Dialogue Project after traveling to the occupied territories during the first intifada. She has been a pioneer in creating inter−group and interfaith organizations for 20 years.
Sarsour is acting director of the Arab American Association and a liaison for the Third Avenue Y in Bay Ridge, who came to her first Dialogue Interfaith Teach−In with a Palestinian dance group, and decided to stay on the Interfaith Committee.