Other Voice

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Other Voice is an Israeli peace coalition, made up of Israelis living in Sderot and other communities near the Gaza Strip. [1] It was founded in January 2008. [1] [2]

Contents

Other Voice is a member of Alliance for Middle East Peace. [3]

History

Other Voice was inspired by a series of blog posts written by two anonymous writers - one in Sderot, and one in Gaza. [2] It was founded in January 2008 by a small group, including the blog writers [4] and activist Nomika Zion.

By January 2009, the group had about 80 dedicated Israeli members, both religious and secular. [2] By mid-2014, the group had about 200 Israeli members, most of whom lived in Sderot. [5]

Activity

The group maintains relationships with Gaza residents, whom they contact regularly through remote means. [1] [2] [5] Sometimes, members will gather in larger meet ups to contact Gazans as a group. [1] [2] [5]

In August 2008, 50 members of the organization held a cycling event along the Gaza border. [2] [4] Members held signs with messages of goodwill. [2] Around a hundred Gaza residents cheered on the cyclists from their windows; although they had originally planned to leave their homes, volatile conditions on the ground made it too dangerous to do so. [2] [4] The Gaza blogger and founding member, using a speakerphone, asked the cyclists to "tell everyone that in Gaza you have partners for peace". [2] [4]

In 2011, Other Voice was one of the organizers of a Sapir College conference on non-violent resolutions to the Israel-Gaza border conflict. [6] Right-wing individuals called for a boycott of the conference, which was taken up by the mayor of Sderot. [6]

Other Voice hosts two drama groups, one in Israel and one in Gaza, who meet virtually once a week. [7]

The group has worked with the Gaza Youth Committee. [7]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Other Voice". www.annalindhfoundation.org. Retrieved 2023-11-17.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Kloosterman, Karin (2009-01-07). "Finding the Other Voice in Gaza and Sderot". ISRAEL21c. Retrieved 2023-11-17.
  3. ↑ "Other Voice". Alliance for Middle East Peace. Retrieved 2023-11-17.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Brand, Tomer (2008-08-11). "Blogging for peace". Ynetnews. Retrieved 2023-11-17.
  5. 1 2 3 Prince-Gibson, Eetta (2014-07-30). "Against the grain: Israeli group calls for dialogue with Gaza". Al-Monitor. Retrieved 2023-11-17.
  6. 1 2 Yagna, Yanir (February 14, 2011). "Sderot Mayor Heeds Right-wing Call to Boycott Sapir College Conference on Gaza Strip Crisis". Haaretz. Retrieved 2023-11-17.
  7. 1 2 Rose, Alex (July 21, 2023). "REACHING OUT BEYOND THE GAZA WALLS: AN INTERVIEW WITH RONI KEIDAR". Canadian Friends of Peace Now. Retrieved November 17, 2023.
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