UNMIA

The UNM Israel Alliance will be holding its kickoff spring semester meeting on Monday, Jan. 21 at 4 pm, at Einsteins Bagels on Central, across from the University. We’ll have a small sign at the table for newcomers.

If you are interested in supporting Israel at UNM, come join us! We’ll be planning for this upcoming semester, choosing officers, and getting to know each other. We’ll be having some fun and educational events this semester.

If you can’t attend the meeting, but would like to get involved, email lprovenc@unm.edu and we’ll put you on the email list and get you hooked up with the group.

On Tuesday, November 20, three UNMIA people went to the Peace and Justice Center to join Justice First’s discussion of Jimmy Carter’s book “Palestine: Peace or Apartheid”. The crowd was small because of the Thanksgiving holiday, and there were four members of Justice First and an anti-Israel Jewish student from Arizona. Still, it was a hot discussion, as you might well imagine, and probably hotter because it was a small group. Justice First made an audio recording of the discussion, and you can probably contact them for a copy, if you are interested.

The Justice First co-leaders, Vicki Johnson and Mike, opened with a video presentation that Vicki had made for the discussion, and a handout featuring the main points and maps of Carter’s book, and a listing of the major factual errors in his book.

Rather than going into the debate and arguments of the evening, which were the sort that you would expect, this discussion brought up other issues that might be worth mentioning here…

The obvious question is, why go debate these things? Why go to discussions where the only attendees are devotees on one side or the other, and neither will change the other’s mind?

We constantly present factual …

Volunteer in Israel This March!
Are you a Jewish young adult (ages 18 to 30) who wants to go back to Israel soon? Alternative Spring Break is an incredible seven day opportunity to volunteer in Israel. Over 300 college students and young adults will be making a personal impact in communities in the Negev.

Trips depart March 8th, 16th and 23rd, 2008.

To register and find out more information, visit www.jnf.org/springbreak.

Help us spread the word about this Israel experience by forwarding the link to all of your contacts!

Tell Your Friends Now!

This will be the third year for ASB which has earned national media attention — it was showcased last year on MTV’s “The Amazing Break,”– and accolades from its participants — “ASB was one of the most fulfilling and enjoyable programs that I have participated in,” said Ben Schulman of New Jersey.

Now, it has earned the attention of the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation (CLSFF), which has granted JNF $100,000 towards the trip.

The need to connect to Israel is greater than ever. According to a recent Andrea and Charles Bronfman Philanthropies study, the second trip to Israel creates a lasting connection to Israel. The …

Note: This article is a much expanded version of the first comment on this subject that the UNM Daily Lobo refused to print.

by Lynn Provencio - On Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2007 I went over to Dane Smith Hall at UNM in Albuquerque to hear the presentation of “Three Jerusalem Women Speak”, which was billed as being alternative voices speaking for peace and non-violent solutions to the Israeli-Arab conflict. Actually none of the women was from Jerusalem, but maybe they just didn’t want to reprint their pamphlets.

The “Women Speak” tour is a production of “Partners for Peace“, and is sponsored by UNM (International Studies Institute, Religious Studies, Womens Resource Center, and Women Studies) and the Middle East Peace and Justice Alliance (MEPJA), (which is affiliated with the Albuquerque Peace and Justice Center and the International Solidarity Movement, a part of the International Communist Party).

The guest speakers were:

• Wejdan Jaber: A Muslim Palestinian, Ms. Jaber was awarded a USAID “Clinton Scholarship,” in 2000 and a Master’s in Public Administration and International Management from the Monterey Institute for International Studies, Monterey, California, in 2002. Born in …