If I walked to my front door and there were Israelis shooting at me, Id turn around and go through the back door, one gentleman shouted from the back. It is as simple as that.

Imagine that you live in occupied Palestine. You have lived there your entire life and are used to the constant power struggle with Israel.

You are used to seeing your streets filled with soldiers carrying guns that are larger than they are. You are used to the fact that if you want to get out of Palestine you must pass a checkpoint.

As a Palestinian Muslim woman, you stand in line for over three hours waiting to get clearance so you can travel to The United States. While you wait, you make casual conversation with the women around you. A guard notices that you are laughing quietly within your group and comes over and pulls you by the collar of your shirt out of line.

As you are on the ground the guard snaps at you, Why are you laughing at me? You answer that your laugh was not about him and you get thrown into confines for addressing the Israeli officer.

Now realize that this happened last month to Huda Abu Arqoub and that the Israeli Palestinian war, even though it has been going on for decades, has yet to recoil their differences.

Now imagine that you are a Christian woman living in occupied Palestine. Your family has owned a large chunk of land since the early 1900s and you are forced to give it all to Israel. You have the deed and can go to court to fight for the ownership of your land. After outlandish requests of aerial photographs and witnesses who have seen you cultivate your land, you remain the owner of the land that has been in your family for decades.

One morning, you wake up to see 250 holes in the ground. These 250 holes were once the homes of olive trees that have all been yanked from the ground by Israeli soldiers. The attempt to force your family out of your home was not fulfilled and you continue to work hard everyday to keep your family together by maintaining the land.

Amal Nassar is the Christian woman who still lives on the land that her great-grandfather bought in 1916, before Palestine had come under Israeli rule.

Switch gears now and put yourself in the shoes of a Jewish women living in Israel. You grew up in a culture that supports the war. Your brothers are Israeli soldiers and carry guns: the bigger the better.

As you get older, you realize that what is really going on around you is not being taught to you in school. You decide to make opinions for yourself. You learn that in 1948, 1,000

Palestinian villages were destroyed by surprise massacre. By a trip to Vietnam, you visit the war museum and notice all of the weapons used to fight the Vietnam War say, Made in Israel on them. You think, how can that be right? You have learned that Israel wants peace your entire life, yet supplies weapons of destruction. You develop a stance on the war that does not please your family, your friends and about 99% of Israel. Tal Dor is that woman and she has now become a spokesperson advocating hope for a peaceful future.

Last Thursday, the UWM Center for International Education and the Peace Studies Program along with Partners for Peace sponsored Jerusalem Women Speak: Three women, Three faiths, One shared vision. All three of these women Huda Abu Arqoub, Anal Nassar and Tal Dor came to UWM to share their personal stories, views and solutions for a better economy surrounding Israel and Palestine.

Both nations are suffering, not just one “ both, said Nassar when asked why she is still hopeful for a peaceful future. God has promised to give us peace and it is up to us not to give up hope.

Yet, it seems as though hoping for peace is not enough. It is what the Palestinians have been doing for decades. Generations pass by still hoping for a brighter future and leave this world never knowing what will come of it.

My family “ nothing made us leave Palestine. We do believe in the non-violent movement that the Palestinians adopted in 1946, explained Arqoub. Justice may not be near, but we still have more time in the source of hope.

Nothing will ever make Arqoub and her family leave Palestine. To her, Palestine is not just her country, but her family as well. Not knowing what was to come of her neighbors and friends could never be an option. Her conscience, in this case, rules.

The audience that afternoon had mixed emotions on the womens standpoints. Many of the older audience members, those who were around when the war first began, were even brought to tears and some “ to anger.

If I walked to my front door and there were Israelis shooting at me, Id turn around and go through the back door, one gentleman shouted from the back. It is as simple as that.

Dor snapped back, There are snipers at the back door. The audience erupted into a large chuckle and with a raised voice Dor said, Im serious, there are snipers in these womens backyard. The room quickly turned silent.

Many people in the room were quick to point fingers at who is to blame for this ongoing war; oddly enough their fingers were pointed at themselves.

I praise you ladies for being so brave, and elderly women said, but you fail to mention that The United States are the ones supplying the Israelis with money to continue this war.

All of the women agreed but Dor pointed out that The United States is not giving them money; they are giving the Israelis weapons, ammunition, fuel, tanks, uniforms and whatever they want to continue to hold complete control.

Fear builds war and hope builds bridges, Nassar said. I will continue to keep hoping for a peaceful state.

All three women will continue to travel around the Midwest for a few more weeks after returning home to Palestine and Israel. Their visit was to evoke an interest in Americans on making them more aware that there is not only one war going on right now, but two.

These women brought to UWM an awareness that could have not been there for some but is there now. They encouraged everyone in the room to research the war and see what they can do, even in the littlest way, to hold hope in their hearts.

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