Voices from a 'Promised Land': Palestinian & Israeli Peace Activists Speak Their Hearts

Heavily skewed toward the extreme radical wing, these conversations with Israeli and Palestinian activists are only at times enlightening. The best material here--interviews with citizens of East and West Jerusalem during the Gulf war--conveys the immediacy of life during the bombing and a vivid sense of everyday existence for Palestinians and Israelis in a strife-torn society. The least memorable sections are jargon-filled diatribes. Rosenwasser, a radio producer and activist, does not challenge her subjects, primarily providing a platform for their views. Regarding Palestinian support of Saddam Hussein, one woman says that as a result of the bombing of Israel during the war ``Israeli society is tasting the medicine that we have been subjected to by them.'' Israeli activist Chaya Shalom expresses her frustration with Prime Minister Shamir by urging him to ``Move your ass and do something!'' Stan Cohen, a professor at Hebrew University, suggests that the most effective groups within the Israeli peace movement are the women's and human rights movements and the campaign against army service in the occupied territories. (Feb.)