"There Is Another Way" Film Discussion

Watch the film "There Is Another Way" online at 10 am or 4 pm

Thursday, June 12

Purchase tickets here for the film

Then join a civil discussion

with your fellow Kol Shalom members

facilitated by Lisa Lieberman

at 7 pm

Thursday, June 12

In-Person at Kol Shalom

coffee & pastries will be served

Registration is required for the free in-person discussion - Sign up on this page

Registration closes at 10 am, Thursday, June 12

In-Person Discussion is for CKS Members Only

There is Another Way

Survival is not by killing your opponents.

It’s by turning them into people you can work with.

With all the grim news coming out of Israel and Gaza, it is difficult to imagine a future where Israelis and Palestinians can live side by side. But Combatants for Peace, a movement founded in 2006 by former Israeli and Palestinian combatants, is committed to creating a nonviolent solution based on justice and equality for all people between the river and the sea.

A Statement from Lisa Lieberman:

I would like to explain my motivations for bringing the documentary film and follow-up Q&A about Combatants for Peace, There is Another Way, to Kol Shalom.

Combatants for Peace was founded in 2006 by former IDF soldiers and Palestinian fighters who renounced violence to build a future where both communities can live together. On January 16, 2007, I hosted a dinner for two members of the group, an Israeli and Palestinian, before a presentation they gave in our town. During the meal, we learned that the 10-year-old daughter of the group’s Palestinian founder (Bassam Aramin ) was killed by an IDF bullet on her way home from school. The presentation went on, but at the conclusion, we observed a moment of silence, grieving together for the loss of Bassam’s child. Out of this grief came a garden dedicated to her memory: a safe place for children to play. Abir’s Garden became the first of many.

I begin with this story because it conveys the spirit of Combatants for Peace. They’re about building trust, understanding the other’s experience. “Keeping our hearts open to the suffering of both peoples,” as they say in their Mission Statement. There Is Another Way doesn’t sensationalize conflict. It doesn’t preach or moralize. It invites viewers to listen and reflect.

My intention was to create an occasion where members of the Kol Shalom community could come together to listen to one another, using the film as a catalyst for thoughtful conversation. I am glad that we will have the opportunity to gather at Kol Shalom after you have viewed the live-streamed program to share our reactions.

In order for everyone to feel safe in this gathering,  I expect members to listen to one another and will work to ensure that everyone feels safe expressing their views about the program and that the conversation remains respectful. We are opening the discussion to Kol Shalom members only and are asking those interested in attending to sign up in advance. I look forward to seeing you on Thursday and to hearing your thoughts.

—Lisa

Bio:

A historian of postwar Europe, Lisa Lieberman taught for many years at Dickinson College and directed their Center in Bologna, Italy. She has held visiting fellowships at the Ohio State University and the University of East Anglia in Norwich, England and was the recipient of a Bourse Chateaubriand for research in Paris. In her spare time, Lisa lectures on postwar efforts to come to terms (or not) with the trauma of the Holocaust at venues including the National Yiddish Book Center and was a discussion leader for the People of the Book series in Amherst, Massachusetts. She has published essays, translations, short stories and film criticism in Noir City, Gettysburg Review, Raritan, Michigan Quarterly, and various academic journals. Media experience includes interviews on National Public Radio’s “To The Best of Our Knowledge” and Australian National Radio’s “All in the Mind,” and a panel discussion on KQED’s public affairs call-in program, “Forum.”

You can click here to purchase a ticket, then watch it online from your own location at either 10 am or 4 pm, Thursday, June 12. Online film tickets are priced on a sliding scale starting at $10, with proceeds going to Reconsider.org via Eventbrite. Each film screening is an international event, open to anyone and everyone who purchases a ticket.

Following the online screenings, Kol Shalom will host a civil discussion facilitated by Lisa Lieberman, in-person at Kol Shalom at 7 pm on Thursday, June 12. The discussion is free to Kol Shalom members, but registration is required. Register on this page to join the in-person discussion. Coffee and pastries will be served.