I experienced quite a protest from my students when it was revealed that I was traveling to Israel for the eid al-Adha holiday. "Killers!! They're all killers!! Why would you ever want to go to a horrible place like that??!" I didn't feel the need to explain myself then and I don't now. Upon my return, I did, however, brag on the country's cleanliness, the work ethic of the people, and the sheer beauty of the nation. What's more amazing are some of the technological and agricultural advances by the Israelis. The once barren Negev now yields life, crops of all varieties. My students didn't have much of a retort. What can one say? What has Egypt done for itself in it's 55-year history? The country has been in existence nearly the same amount of time as Israel, but there is no comparison. Egypt is still crippled by poverty, waste, pollution, c-rruption. It is truly a third world nation.
My students blame many of the ills besetting their country on Israel and the Israelis. So many times I've reminded them that no one culture or nation is perfect. The other cultures and countries they seem to despise are full of children their own age who like to play soccer and go to the mall just as they do; children who have nothing to do with very adult-problems of Iraq and Gaza.
I find myself constantly steering my students away from bigotry and encouraging them to be open-minded. Rebutting their ignorance is fighting a losing battle. One student lauded the progress made by President Sadat, then lamented that "he was murdered by that Israeli!" Well, I know Egyptian history better than the students do, or at least well enough to recognize this fairy tale. When I had this student look and see for himself, he was shocked by the truth. It is a steady diet of this sort of misinformation and downright hatred of which my students are fed by their parents, family members, media, government, and some teachers. This point is underscored in the following article by Nonie Darwish. It is a few years old, but still pertinent today.
WE WERE BROUGHT UP TO HATE
My students blame many of the ills besetting their country on Israel and the Israelis. So many times I've reminded them that no one culture or nation is perfect. The other cultures and countries they seem to despise are full of children their own age who like to play soccer and go to the mall just as they do; children who have nothing to do with very adult-problems of Iraq and Gaza.
I find myself constantly steering my students away from bigotry and encouraging them to be open-minded. Rebutting their ignorance is fighting a losing battle. One student lauded the progress made by President Sadat, then lamented that "he was murdered by that Israeli!" Well, I know Egyptian history better than the students do, or at least well enough to recognize this fairy tale. When I had this student look and see for himself, he was shocked by the truth. It is a steady diet of this sort of misinformation and downright hatred of which my students are fed by their parents, family members, media, government, and some teachers. This point is underscored in the following article by Nonie Darwish. It is a few years old, but still pertinent today.
WE WERE BROUGHT UP TO HATE
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