Sharaka delegation practices partnership in pursuit of replication
'There's a lot we do agree on. And when we need to, let's come together. Let's roll up our sleeves and let's find a way to get things done'
An organization founded on partnership will model that behavior in Pittsburgh. Between Feb. 26-March 2, Sharaka, a group including Israelis and Arabs, Jews, Muslims, Christians and Druze from across the Middle East will visit private classrooms and public fora to demonstrate the possibility of peace and mutual understanding despite historic and religious disparities.
Carnegie Mellon University student Eli Half worked with members of Pittsburgh’s Jewish community, including representatives of StandWithUs, the Beacon Coalition and the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, to arrange Sharaka’s visit.
A five-member delegation of the nongovernmental organization is traveling from Bahrain, Israel and Morocco. Between flights, lodging and food, schlepping a quintet of Middle Easterners to Pittsburgh is no small feat.
Half, who as a member of CMU’s Charpie Leadership Institute had access to a $5,000 budget, said he joined the effort to bring Sharaka here because he wanted “to make an impact on something,” he said.
Since Oct. 7, 2023, it’s been difficult on campus to hold meaningful and respectful conversations about the region, he continued. “I wanted to bring awareness to what’s been going on for the last year-and-a-half.”
Pittsburghers Julie Paris, Mid-Atlantic regional director of StandWithUs, and Rebecca Elhassid, a volunteer with Beacon Coalition, partnered with Half on Sharaka’s upcoming visit.
“They are amazing,” Paris said of Sharaka. “Among the organizations and individuals we work with, Sharaka brings a unique perspective. They’re able to facilitate conversation on what a better, brighter, more peaceful Middle East can look like.”
“Sharaka is doing the work that so many only talk about,” Elhassid said. “This delegation of Muslims, Christians and Jews from Bahrain, Israel and Morocco is not just another panel discussion. It is a living model of what is possible when people choose engagement over isolation, relationships over rhetoric.”
Sharaka, which means partnership in Arabic, developed in 2020 following the signing of the Abraham Accords, a series of agreements between Israel, Morocco, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.
Young leaders from those countries looked at relations between Egypt, Jordan and Israel and said, “On its warmest day, it’s a cold peace. How can we make real, meaningful, warm peace between our countries,” Sara Rips told the Chronicle.
Speaking by phone from Omaha, Nebraska, Rips, Sharaka’s U.S. affairs coordinator, said 80% of the group’s work occurs in the Middle East.
Traveling delegations largely meet and study together in the region, but Sharaka also supports trips to Germany and Poland, where participants “visit the camps and learn and meet with survivors,” she said.
The remaining portion of Sharaka’s affairs involve U.S. speaking tours.
“We believe that part of our mission and our work is to educate Americans on the Middle East, and give them a very unique opportunity to listen and meet and hear from Arabs who believe that Israel is a legitimate state, that Israel has a seat at the table, that they believe in peace with Israel, and have them explain why they feel this way, which is not something that American audiences get the opportunity to experience very often,” Rips said.
Countless Americans feel invested in activities occurring thousands of miles from U.S. soil. Taking the time to listen to people who “actually live, work and return to the Middle East is very important to understanding the conflict,” she continued. “What our speakers really promote is the value of being able to come together, of moderacy.” Given today’s polarizing climate, there’s a value in having people say, “Look, there’s 10,000 things we might disagree on, but there’s a lot we do agree on. And when we need to, let’s come together. Let’s roll up our sleeves and let’s find a way to get things done.”
Paris called Sharaka’s message one of “optimism” and said she hopes many Pittsburghers are able to hear the group.
The delegation’s itinerary is still being finalized. One public event is scheduled for March 2 at 7 p.m. at the Jewish Community Center in Squirrel Hill. Another event is planned for Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. at Adat Shalom.
Half called Sharaka’s Feb. 27 visit to CMU a “neutral” way for students to “understand and discuss what’s going on.”
Sharaka’s intention is not to focus on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict or even the events of Oct. 7, Rips said. “There are 1,000, 10,000, a million charities that handle it from a million different angles. We are focused on Israel’s relationship within the larger relationship of the Middle East and North Africa.”
Each of Sharaka’s speakers has their own views on the conflict and Oct. 7, Rips continued. “Some are strong one way, and some are strong another way. Our main focus is this larger relationship. And I think that in many ways that’s helpful for people, because we tend to only get this very myopic view of it’s just Israel and the immediate surrounding countries, but there’s a whole region that Israel engages with, and interacts with, that is often not spoken about.”
Adopting a wider outlook is about increasing opportunities for peace, she explained.
“For a long time in Israel’s history, there have been neighboring countries who have not recognized the state of Israel. So to have Israel’s neighbors in the region say, ‘We recognize Israel, we recognize the value of tourism, trade, business with each other,’ helps create regional stability. And stability helps create peace,” she said. “That’s really why our focus is on this larger picture: Growing support and normalization helps ensure that Israel’s security strengthens, and hopefully that can lead to other forms of peace in the region as well.”
Sharaka’s visit represents a “challenge” for people to not only abandon their comfort zones but engage with individuals living “an alternate vision,” Elhassid said.
“At a time when the world insists on seeing the Middle East through the lens of perpetual conflict, these leaders are forging something radical: friendship, mutual respect and a shared commitment to building a better future,” she added. The hope is Pittsburghers join the charge and contribute to a “future grounded not in ideology but in the lived reality of coexistence.” PJC
Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.
comments