Celebrating Israel’s 60th

Between 250 and 300 students gathered on the William Pitt Union lawn to wish Israel a happy… Between 250 and 300 students gathered on the William Pitt Union lawn to wish Israel a happy 60th birthday yesterday.

“Sixty is so young for a country,” said Leah Snyder, co-chair of iFest, the event celebrating Israel. “Even though Israel became independent in 1948, it’s still fighting for its independence. And we’re coming together to celebrate it.”

IFest featured a performance by the VoKols, an a cappella group, and a Hebrew Twister tournament.

It was meant not only to celebrate the country’s founding, but also to help give it a new image.

“I want people to realize that Israel is more than just a country you hear a lot about on CNN with terrorists,” said Carly Adelmann, a member of Hillel and the VoKols. “It’s got art and culture.”

Most students at the event attributed Israel’s violent image to media coverage of the Israeli conflicts with Palestine and Hezbollah. However, one member of Panthers for Israel insists that Israel is the victim of a double standard.

“They’re constantly condemned,” said Jackie Rosen. “But we can’t imagine something like that happening in the United States.”

Rosen said Sderot, a small town located less than one mile away from the Gaza Strip, is constantly bombarded with rocket fire. Israeli authorities send out a “code red” signal when they detect rocket fire, and the town’s citizens have about 15 seconds to take cover. Some, she said, run to bomb shelters. Others are forced to take shelter under desks or in corners.

This climate of fear dominates every aspect of life in Sderot.

“You will have children who will take a path to school that is an hour and a half when it could be 10 minutes away because they know they can hide,” Rosen said. “It’s unimaginable.”

Several organizations at the event dedicate their time to promoting better relations between Israel and its neighbors.

The Avara Institute for Environmental Studies seeks to exploit a common thread between all Middle Eastern countries.

“The Middle East is so small a place that Israel’s environmental problems are not only Israel’s environmental problems,” said David Weisberg, the institute’s executive director.

He said that many Middle Eastern countries are struggling with water-management issues, air pollution and global warming. The students, he said, work to find solutions to these problems, and doing so can help them overcome their prejudices. One-third of the institute’s students are Jewish, one-third Arabs and one-third from other ethnic groups.

“When there are problems, while students do have differences, they also have a bond that holds them together. That’s the environmental work,” Weisberg said.

Another operation, Save a Child’s Heart, seeks to help disadvantaged Palestinians.

The Israel-based program provides cardiac surgery for children from developing countries.

Every Tuesday, Save a Child’s Heart holds an open cardiology clinic for Palestinian children from Gaza and the West Bank.

Pitt senior Solomon Horvitz, who ran the booth for Save a Child’s Heart, said he isn’t sure if the organization really alleviates the tension between the Israelis and the Palestinians. But, he said, the Israelis try anyway.

Members of the Zionist Organization of America focused their attention on those who face death every day: the Israeli soldiers.

People who visited their booth could write letters to send to soldiers on active duty.

“American support of Israel is extremely important,” said Rebecca Fuhrman, a ZOA campus fellow. “I love Israel. It’s my country because I’m a Jew.”

IFest was co-sponsored by Aish on Campus, Alpha Epsilon Phi, Alpha Epsilon Pi, Chabad House, an organization that provides the materials for religious services, Free the Planet, Hasbara Fellowships, Hillel JUC, Panthers for Israel, Spanish Club and Tartans for Israel.