American Arab Anti Discrimination Committee

ADC LETTER IN TODAY'S NEW YORK TIMES:

<http://www.nytimes.com/2001/05/31/opinion/L31MIDE.html>

To the Editor:

David K. Shipler, in his analysis of the conflict in the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel ("A Conflict's Bedrock Is Laid Bare," Week in Review, May 27), concludes that the conflict is driven by Palestinians who insist on the right of refugees to return to their homes and a complete end to the Israeli occupation of East Jerusalem.

Mr. Shipler calls these ideas "conversation-stoppers," since Israelis will not seriously discuss them. However, given that the right of return and an end to the occupation are rooted in international law and numerous United Nations resolutions, it would be more reasonable to conclude that Israeli intransigence, rather than Palestinian rights, is the heart of the problem.

No solution that disregards the human rights of millions of refugees and allows for the acquisition of territory by war can possibly produce a lasting peace.

HUSSEIN IBISH Washington, May 27, 2001

The writer is communications director, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee.

ARTICLE IN TODAY'S DAILY STAR (LEBANON) ON ADC CONVENTION:

<http://www.dailystar.com.lb/31_05_01/art4.htm>

Arab-Americans gather to effect change Nada Awar Jarrar Special to The Daily Star

WASHINGTON: Given the persistent blundering of American foreign policy in the Middle East over the past 50 years, Arab-Americans should know better than to try to change it. But that is exactly what some 2,000 people will attempt to do when they gather in Washington on June 7 for four days of discussion and activities focusing on how best to influence US-Arab relations.

The 18th national convention of the Anti-Discrimination Committee takes place as tensions in the region reach a dangerous high and at a time when the new administration’s Middle East policy seems limited to a determination not to go down the same path taken by former President Bill Clinton.

"All in all, it’s fair to say that it’s a whole new ballgame out there," says ADC vice-president Khalil Jahshan. "The intifada has shown that the Oslo peace process is dead and there’s a government in Israel that is not willing to respect previous agreements. At the same time, there’s a new administration in Washington that seems to be reaching out for some sense of direction. This provides us with a valuable opportunity as a community to fine-tune and focus our activities in order to better impact the US government’s decision-making process."

The first day of the convention will see ADC chapter delegates from around the country visit Capitol Hill to bend the ears of senators, representatives and their aides on the Arab-American community’s most pressing concerns. The perception that they will be heard this time around is not illusory, says the ADC’s Hussein Ibish.

"We are at a point where we have a presence in the media and in electoral campaigns," argues Ibish, the director of communications. "There is, at last, a recognized and defined Arab voice in American conversation in its broadest sense." But it’s a voice that has yet to achieve a foothold in Congress, where well-organized lobby groups can have a lasting impact on government policy.

"We (Arab-Americans) now have to go further to become a political force in the US," Ibish adds, "and build a political presence and self-sustaining institutions that are commensurate with the size of our community as well as the level of education and achievement of our members."

The resolve among the 3-million-strong Arab-American community to put right a relationship between the Arab world and the US that, in Ibish’s view, has become "untenable," is the result of both frustration with and a profound belief in the democratic nature of the American political system.

According to Imad Hamad, regional director for ADC chapters in Michigan, Ohio, Illinois and Indiana, many Arab-Americans who voted for George W. Bush "are definitely not happy with the administration’s position on the Middle East so far. We expected more because of the promises made during the (presidential) campaign."

Yet it is that very frustration, Hamad continues, which has fueled a very healthy debate within the community on how to use their new-found political clout to bring focus to their lobbying efforts.

Hamad argues that approaching individual senators and representatives who are always looking to gain electoral votes and having face-to-face discussions with them "has always paid off." A good example was the outrage expressed by organizations representing the community over a law referred to as the "secret evidence law" which has, in the past five years, allowed authorities to detain dozens of people without charge.

While this particular law has not yet been banned, argues Hamad, support for it among members of congress is definitely waning and the incidence of arrests on the basis of "secret evidence" has decreased.

But if the convention aims to provide a platform from which Arab-Americans can present their views to the wider American public, it is also intended to give members of a somewhat dispersed community the opportunity to communicate with each other.

"The convention will have heavy representation from over 80 ADC chapters around the country, and people from other Arab-American organizations, such as the Arab-American Institute and the American Muslim Council, as well as civil-rights groups like Amnesty International," says Ibish. And while there will be speakers, more weight will be given to the question and answer sessions that follow, Ibish continues.

The final day of the convention is titled What is to be Done and will be devoted entirely to a series of brainstorming sessions to produce a set of recommendations for action.

The convention will also feature prominent members of the Arab-American community, including Ralph Nader, Green Party candidate in the US presidential elections; professor Edward Said of Columbia University; and Ed Masry, a prominent attorney whose support for the environment was the subject of the recent Hollywood blockbuster, Erin Brockovich.

A roundtable discussion on day two of the convention includes New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman; Bob Simon, a correspondent for CBS Television’s Sixty Minutes; Raghida Dergham, Al-Hayat correspondent in the US; and Hisham Melhem, Washington bureau chief for As-Safir. Ibish, who will act as moderator for the session entitled Mirror Images in the Media, says the focus of the discussion will be on the way that Americans cover the Middle East and portrayals of the US in the Arab media.

"These are Americans trying to understand the Arab world and Arab journalists writing about this country, and we want to have them talk to each other," says Ibish, adding that tough questions will be put to both sides. "One of the questions for the Arab journalists will be how is it that so much misunderstanding continues in the Arab press about the structure of American politics, and why Arab officials still don’t know enough about the decision-making process here." Jahshan agrees that a principal aim of the largest gathering of Arab-Americans should be "creating a bridge of understanding between our countries of origin and our new country."

"While we would like to help develop a better American understanding of the Arab world, at the same time we would like to see a better understanding by the Arab world of the US," says Jahshan. "There is a tendency (in Arab countries) to oversimplify the situation here and a tendency not to understand that although we are, in a way, an extension of the Arab world, we are also American citizens."

ADC COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR ON WPKN'S BETWEEN THE LINES:

ADC Communications Director Hussein Ibish can be heard discussing the conflict in the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel on this week's edition of WPNK's weekly radio magazine "Between the Lines." The program is online at <http://www.wpkn.org/wpkn/news/btl.html> and can be heard directly in realaudio at <http://www.wpkn.org/wpkn/news/btl060801.ram>. The discussion begins 6 and a half minutes into the program.

	31 May, 2001
	Letter in NY Times, Article in Daily Star, WPKN's Between the Lines

	ADC LETTER IN TODAY'S NEW YORK TIMES: <http://www.nytimes.com/2001/05/31/opinion/L31MIDE.html> To the Editor: David K. Shipler, in his analysis of the conflict in the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel ("A Conflict's Bedrock Is Laid Bare," Week in Review, May 27), concludes that the conflict is driven by Palestinians who insist on the right of refugees to return to their homes and a complete end to the Israeli occupation of East Jerusalem. Mr. Shipler calls these ideas "conversation-stoppers," since Israelis will not seriously discuss them. However, given that the right of return and an end to the occupation are rooted in international law and numerous United Nations resolutions, it would be more reasonable to conclude that Israeli intransigence, rather than Palestinian rights, is the heart of the problem. No solution that disregards the human rights of millions of refugees and allows for the acquisition of territory by war can possibly produce a lasting peace. HUSSEIN IBISH Washington, May 27, 2001 The writer is communications director, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee. ARTICLE IN TODAY'S DAILY STAR (LEBANON) ON ADC CONVENTION: <http://www.dailystar.com.lb/31_05_01/art4.htm> Arab-Americans gather to effect change Nada Awar Jarrar Special to The Daily Star WASHINGTON: Given the persistent blundering of American foreign policy in the Middle East over the past 50 years, Arab-Americans should know better than to try to change it. But that is exactly what some 2,000 people will attempt to do when they gather in Washington on June 7 for four days of discussion and activities focusing on how best to influence US-Arab relations. The 18th national convention of the Anti-Discrimination Committee takes place as tensions in the region reach a dangerous high and at a time when the new administration’s Middle East policy seems limited to a determination not to go down the same path taken by former President Bill Clinton. "All in all, it’s fair to say that it’s a whole new ballgame out there," says ADC vice-president Khalil Jahshan. "The intifada has shown that the Oslo peace process is dead and there’s a government in Israel that is not willing to respect previous agreements. At the same time, there’s a new administration in Washington that seems to be reaching out for some sense of direction. This provides us with a valuable opportunity as a community to fine-tune and focus our activities in order to better impact the US government’s decision-making process." The first day of the convention will see ADC chapter delegates from around the country visit Capitol Hill to bend the ears of senators, representatives and their aides on the Arab-American community’s most pressing concerns. The perception that they will be heard this time around is not illusory, says the ADC’s Hussein Ibish. "We are at a point where we have a presence in the media and in electoral campaigns," argues Ibish, the director of communications. "There is, at last, a recognized and defined Arab voice in American conversation in its broadest sense." But it’s a voice that has yet to achieve a foothold in Congress, where well-organized lobby groups can have a lasting impact on government policy. "We (Arab-Americans) now have to go further to become a political force in the US," Ibish adds, "and build a political presence and self-sustaining institutions that are commensurate with the size of our community as well as the level of education and achievement of our members." The resolve among the 3-million-strong Arab-American community to put right a relationship between the Arab world and the US that, in Ibish’s view, has become "untenable," is the result of both frustration with and a profound belief in the democratic nature of the American political system. According to Imad Hamad, regional director for ADC chapters in Michigan, Ohio, Illinois and Indiana, many Arab-Americans who voted for George W. Bush "are definitely not happy with the administration’s position on the Middle East so far. We expected more because of the promises made during the (presidential) campaign." Yet it is that very frustration, Hamad continues, which has fueled a very healthy debate within the community on how to use their new-found political clout to bring focus to their lobbying efforts. Hamad argues that approaching individual senators and representatives who are always looking to gain electoral votes and having face-to-face discussions with them "has always paid off." A good example was the outrage expressed by organizations representing the community over a law referred to as the "secret evidence law" which has, in the past five years, allowed authorities to detain dozens of people without charge. While this particular law has not yet been banned, argues Hamad, support for it among members of congress is definitely waning and the incidence of arrests on the basis of "secret evidence" has decreased. But if the convention aims to provide a platform from which Arab-Americans can present their views to the wider American public, it is also intended to give members of a somewhat dispersed community the opportunity to communicate with each other. "The convention will have heavy representation from over 80 ADC chapters around the country, and people from other Arab-American organizations, such as the Arab-American Institute and the American Muslim Council, as well as civil-rights groups like Amnesty International," says Ibish. And while there will be speakers, more weight will be given to the question and answer sessions that follow, Ibish continues. The final day of the convention is titled What is to be Done and will be devoted entirely to a series of brainstorming sessions to produce a set of recommendations for action. The convention will also feature prominent members of the Arab-American community, including Ralph Nader, Green Party candidate in the US presidential elections; professor Edward Said of Columbia University; and Ed Masry, a prominent attorney whose support for the environment was the subject of the recent Hollywood blockbuster, Erin Brockovich. A roundtable discussion on day two of the convention includes New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman; Bob Simon, a correspondent for CBS Television’s Sixty Minutes; Raghida Dergham, Al-Hayat correspondent in the US; and Hisham Melhem, Washington bureau chief for As-Safir. Ibish, who will act as moderator for the session entitled Mirror Images in the Media, says the focus of the discussion will be on the way that Americans cover the Middle East and portrayals of the US in the Arab media. "These are Americans trying to understand the Arab world and Arab journalists writing about this country, and we want to have them talk to each other," says Ibish, adding that tough questions will be put to both sides. "One of the questions for the Arab journalists will be how is it that so much misunderstanding continues in the Arab press about the structure of American politics, and why Arab officials still don’t know enough about the decision-making process here." Jahshan agrees that a principal aim of the largest gathering of Arab-Americans should be "creating a bridge of understanding between our countries of origin and our new country." "While we would like to help develop a better American understanding of the Arab world, at the same time we would like to see a better understanding by the Arab world of the US," says Jahshan. "There is a tendency (in Arab countries) to oversimplify the situation here and a tendency not to understand that although we are, in a way, an extension of the Arab world, we are also American citizens." ADC COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR ON WPKN'S BETWEEN THE LINES: ADC Communications Director Hussein Ibish can be heard discussing the conflict in the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel on this week's edition of WPNK's weekly radio magazine "Between the Lines." The program is online at <http://www.wpkn.org/wpkn/news/btl.html> and can be heard directly in realaudio at <http://www.wpkn.org/wpkn/news/btl060801.ram>. The discussion begins 6 and a half minutes into the program.