Union of Progressive Zionists

= This page is now defunct as of 1/2009. Please see SPICI. =

Hampshire's Union of Progressive Zionists (UPZ) is part of a network of student activists organizing on campuses across North America for social justice and peace in Israel/Palestine. The UPZ was created to provide guidance, education and resources to students who seek to impart a progressive voice into the campus debate on Israel. Extremist voices pushing rigid “pro-Israel” and “pro-Palestinian” positions have come to dominate the discourse on many campuses, obscuring the issues and alienating significant numbers of Jewish and moderate students.

Because of our connection to Israel, we believe it is our duty to create a new vision for the Jewish state. As campus activists and members of the Jewish community, our strength lies in our ability to be active and critical leaders. We are committed to creating an alternative approach to Israel advocacy that embraces open dialogue and constructive activism, and that warrants critical analysis of policies, whether Israeli, Palestinian, American or other.

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Film Screening: Promises
Date: 10/5/08 Sunday

12:30 pm

FPH Rm 105

Several Jewish and Palestinian children are followed for three years and put in touch with each other, in this alternative look at the Jewish-Palestinian conflict. The three filmmakers followed a group of seven local children between 1995 and 1998. They all have a totally different background. These seven children tell their own story about growing up in Jerusalem. Through this portrait of their generation, we see how deep rooted and almost insoluble the problems of the Middle East have become. When the protagonists speak out in an epilogue a couple of years later, it becomes apparent that all have lost their childlike innocence.

Upcoming Film Series: In the Land of the Settlers

Date: - Hebron

8:00 pm

Location FPH 108

The second episode in the series is about Hebron, a city in the West Bank unique in that it contains enclaves of settlements within the city. Much of the city is closed off to Palestinians and the settlers there are particularly violent. Join us after the 50-minute film for discussion.

Date: TBA: The Wall

7:00 pm

Location TBA

This third episode concerns issues surrounding the wall built to separate Israel from the West Bank and Gaza.

There will be optional discussion sessions after each screening.

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UPZ's Declaration of Principles
The UPZ’s vision for Israel is based on the following principles:

-A just and peaceful resolution to the Arab-Israeli conflict

-The cessation of all terrorist activity and violence against civilians, Palestinians and Israelis alike

-An end to Israel's military, civilian and economic occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip

-A negotiated two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict that recognizes the rights of self-determination for both peoples

-Social and economic parity for all citizens and residents of Israel

-The continued resolve of the U.S. and Canadian administrations and the North American Jewish community to hold Israel – and its advocates – to the values of democracy, social justice and pluralism

Film Screening: Encounter Point
An inspiring film about nonviolent organizations working in Israeli and Palestinian civil society.

Speaker: Yonatan Cwik
Hebrew University student Yonatan Cwik spoke about his decision to refuse to enlist in the Israeli army and the challenges he and other young Israelis face in making this decision.

Film Screening: In the Land of the Settlers Part I: Overview of the Settler Issues
with Guest Speaker Kobi Skolnik

The first episode in the series gives an overview of the settler issues in Israel/Palestine. Guest speaker Kobi Skolnik, a former settler and soldier in the Israel Defense Forces, spoke about how his experiences turned him from a right-wing extremist into a peace activist.

Speaker Dotan Greenvald of "Breaking the Silence"
Tuesday, March 4  7:00 PM FPH West Lecture Hall

Sponsored by Hampshire UPZ and Western Massachusetts Brit Tzedek v'Shalom, the Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace

A presentation by Israeli soldier Dotan Greenvald with photographs and testimonials from a traveling exhibit based on the experiences of Israeli soldiers in the occupied territories.

Dotan was born and raised Kiryat Yam near in Haifa. He was an activist in a socialist youth movement, “Hanoar Ha’Oved Ve’Halomed” and he volunteered in community education for a year before the army. Drafted to the IDF in August 2002, Dotan was placed at the Nahal Brigade and trained as a sniper. Out of the three years of service, he spent two years in the Occupied Territories, specifically in Hebron and the third year educating youth before their army service. He is presently studying to become a tour guide in Israel, currently living in Tzorah, a kibbutz near Beit Shemesh. Dotan has been active in Breaking the Silence since the day he was discharged.

Breaking the Silence is an organization of veteran Israeli soldiers that collects testimonies of soldiers who served in the Occupied Territories during the Second Intifadah. Cases of abuse towards Palestinians, looting, and destruction of property have been the norm for years, but are still excused as military necessities, or explained as extreme and unique cases. Their testimonies portray a different and grim picture of questionable orders in many areas regarding Palestinian civilians. These demonstrate the depth of corruption which is spreading in the Israeli military. Discharged soldiers who return to civilian life discover the gap between the reality which they encountered in the Territories, and the silence which they encounter at home. In order to become a civilian again, soldiers are forced to ignore their past experiences. Breaking the Silence voices the experiences of those soldiers, in order to force Israeli society to address the reality which it created.

Breaking the Silence Exhibition Website