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YesMEP members speak on panel discussion at Theater J at the DC Jewish Community Center: Cameri Theatre Production of Return to Haifa
Return to Haifa: A cross-cultural collaboration from the Israeli company that brought their kinetic Hamlet to DC in 2007, this heart-rending saga tells the story of Sa’id and Saffiyeh, who return to the home they fled and learn the fate of the baby they left behind 1948. Now a young soldier, Dov meets his birth parents while cleaving to the Holocaust survivors who raised him. Performed in Hebrew with English sub-titles. Tuesday, January 25 – Creating a Cross Cultural Dialogue, in partnership with Yes We Can Middle East Peace, featuring Aziz Fahmy Farag (Yesmep, Bureau Chief/Senior Correspondent, Saudi TV); Kay Halpern (Yesmep, member of Adat Shalom Reconstructionist Congregation, active in Middle East peace and interfaith efforts); Dan Spiro (Yesmep, author and essayist and cofounder of the Jewish Islamic Dialogue Society); Jim Vitarello (Co-founder YesMEP and Sharing Jerusalem); Elliott Colla (Chair of the Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies at Georgetown University) Next YesMEP Meeting on Sunday, March 27th at 2 pm Become a member of YesMEP If you are interested in joining YesMEP or learning more about our organization, please contact us at bethechange@yesmep.org. Donate to YesMEP Donations are tax-deductible through our fiscal agent, Am-Kolel. Make checks payable to Am Kolel YesMEP Fund and send checks to:
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Take a look at videos and articles about our unique performing arts event ! !
On December 6th, 2009, YesMEP held its first major event - a unique performing arts event featuring interfaith prayers, music, theatre, and pleas for peace - at the Sixth & I Historic Synagogue in Washington, DC. Nearly 250 people turned out to hear opening prayers from a prominent rabbi, imam and Episcopal priest, performances by renowned actors, and entertainment by Jewish-American and Palestinian-American musicians and by White Flag, a Palestinian-Israeli rock band. The highlights of the evening were the personal stories given by members of the Parents Circle-Families Forum, a group of Israelis and Palestinians whose close relatives have been killed by the other side. Robi Damelin’s son was killed by a Palestinian sniper while guarding a checkpoint in the West Bank; Mazen Faraj’s father was shot by an Israeli soldier carrying a bag of groceries. Paul Monteiro, associate director of the White House Office of Public Engagement, represented the Obama administration at the event. He stated that the Israeli-Palestinian peace process is a “critical” issue for President Obama, who is “serious about making real progress” on this difficult issue.
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YesMEP is a Washington, DC-based interfaith and secular coalition formed to promote peace in the Middle East by supporting a just and secure peace between Israelis and Palestinians based on a two-state solution.
MISSION STATEMENT
Yes We Can: Middle East Peace (YesMEP) is a partnership of diverse religious and secular Americans in the Washington, DC metropolitan area who have come together to support a just and secure peace between Israelis and Palestinians based on a two-state solution. We believe that the establishment of a Palestinian state next to Israel, and a mutually satisfactory agreement regarding Jerusalem, a cornerstone of any peace agreement, will not only advance the interests of the United States, but will also provide security for Israelis, dignity and prosperity for Palestinians and a lasting peace for both nations.
We strive to inspire mutual understanding and respect for both Israelis and Palestinians by fostering inclusiveness and inviting collaboration with other community organizations, as well as tapping the creative talents of young adults. We are working to create a safe space for honest dialogue, personal narratives, cultural and artistic expression, collaborative education, and celebrating our common roots and values. In keeping with our shared principles of justice and preserving the dignity of all human beings, we are dedicated to working for a world where all can live with the assurance of mutual security, freedom and respect.