Visiting Communities in the US

In November, International Communications Director Noa Yammer, and Hand in Hand alumni Tala, Noga, and Emanuel went to the States to visit cities and towns all around the country. They visited Boston, New York, Dallas, Bloomington, and Los Angeles. Thank you to the countless communities, synagogues, and individuals for hosting us and giving us the opportunity to talk about the work we do here at Hand in Hand, and the new reality our students and alumni are shaping for a more equal and peaceful Israel.

From one of Tala’s speeches:
“So we have conflicting stories and two students sharing their own opinions, and it’s a hard thing to do. And we’re doing it. It’s not just a dialogue where someone says ‘okay I put it out there,’ but rather ‘what do we do next?’ And things can get really heated, some kids cry and can’t handle it. And that’s why we have the teachers. We have an Arab teacher and a Jewish teacher who each know each student’s pain. They are trained to handle these conversations. So they bring in tools for a dialogue to be more than just ‘I’ll say my opinion and you say yours and then what? The teachers make it work. But our society is built in a way where so many Jewish and arab kids just like us are not talking to each other they are living apart. So if they have all these emotions and experiences, what are they doing with it? It’s channeled to hate and fear. But at Hand in Hand, we don’t let that happen.”

Check out these photos from our visit: