My friends. In the height of this sensitive time, I want to make it very clear how unfortunately sad the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is. My position on the current conflict in Gaza is very simple. I am pro-life and support a peaceful resolution. Period. I am an American woman of Palestinian descent and I am proud of my roots. But I am even more proud of being an American and the fundamental freedom, justice, and human right principals that it stands for. I have close, loving friends of every faith. All of us have value as human beings and that all people are worthy of respect. There is no place in the world for hate and violence, and the fact that some are misinterpreting my views as anti-Semitism is especially hurtful. I recently supported an appeal from a charitable organization, Playgrounds for Palestine, for donations to build play areas for children. While the appeal contained some language that some found inflammatory, my support is entirely for peaceful activities that benefit children. My goal in supporting Playgrounds for Palestine was and remains a desire for children everywhere to have the same opportunities my children have here in the U.S. Reasonable minds can disagree on any conflict or issue and I do not expect everyone to agree with my views. But I can say without hesitation that my feelings on the current conflict are purely political. I love my Jewish friends just as I love my Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, and Atheists friends. And it is my hope that all of you who know me, and who are my dear friends realize this and that we can all move forward together. I pray that God teaches us how to live with one another peacefully. That He teaches us to speak the right words at the right time and the right tone. I pray that everyone lives peacefully with their neighbor. I pray for peace. As the saying goes, an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind. May we all see the beauty of this world and each other.
Posted on: Wed, 30 Jul 2014 15:27:59 +0000