Can Palestinians and Israelis come together to make peace? It’s a difficult question to find an answer to, but filmmaker Harvey Stein explores this difficult but important topic in his new film “A Third Way.”
By Ray Hanania
covering Chicago
City Hall
(1976-1992)
I met Israeli filmmaker Harvey Stein during my foray into the contentious world of Israeli-Palestinian peace in 2007 when he decided to do a documentary on the use of humor and comedy to break through the hatred, anger and divisions that separated Palestinians from Israelis.
In the past right years, Stein has continued to produce many videos and documentaries including one that followed the life of an Israeli settler Rabbi named Menachem Froman. Froman was unusual and strived to touch the good in both Israelis and Palestinians, breaking taboos and setting himself up as an example of how the two people could come together.
Rabbi Froman had many friends among Palestinians and among Israelis. Rabbi Froman knew the answer to the conflict, and answer that continues to elude many Palestinians and Israelis today: Rabbi Froman said we don’t have to agree with everything the other says, but we need to understand him/her – the only way to do that is meeting.
He is right.
Stein’s documentary touches on aspects of Rabbi Froman’s efforts. Stein is showing the documentary at film festivals around the world, most recently in Copenhagen, although not enough Arab film festivals have included it because of its underlying message of “normalization.”
But I think the documentary reflects the purity of Stein’s life and heart. His intentions have not only been good, they have been consistent. Froman (Menaham, Fruman) died in March 2013. Click for info on his obituary.
Here’s the trailer from the documentary. I hope you enjoy it. And if you do, maybe you can “Like” his documentary Facebook page by clicking here.
Here’s a column I wrote back in April 2014 when Stein began his documentary. You can support Harvey and you can support his documentary. But most importantly, you can support Palestinian-Israeli peace.
It isn’t a dream. It can be a reality.
You can reach Harvey Stein and invite the showing of the documentary by clicking here.
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Hanania also writes about Middle East issues for the Arab News, and The Arab Daily News criticizing government policies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Hanania was named "Best Ethnic American Columnist" by the New America Media in November 2007, and is the 2009 recipient of the SPJ National Sigma Delta Chi Award for column writing.
Email Ray Hanania at rghanania@gmail.com.
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