‘One must hold up the dignity of all human life’: Distinguished scholars discuss history, future of Israel and Palestine at Notre Dame Forum event

Published:October 08, 2024

Author:Notre Dame News

Distinguished scholars Hussein Ibish and David Myers joined Notre Dame's Maura Policelli at DeBartolo Hall for a presentation titled, "One Year After October 7: Historical Backdrop and Future Prospects." The event began the Israel-Palestine Series of the 2024-25 Notre Dame Forum on "What Do We Owe Each Other?" (Photo by Matt Cashore/University of Notre Dame)

Distinguished scholars Hussein Ibish and David Myers joined the University of Notre Dame's Maura Policelli on Sept. 25 at DeBartolo Hall for a discussion addressing the approaching first anniversary of the Hamas attack in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. The event began the Israel-Palestine Series of the 2024-25 Notre Dame Forum on "What Do We Owe Each Other?"

The presentation, titled "One Year After October 7: Historical Backdrop and Future Prospects," offered multiple historical and political perspectives on what led to the attack and Israel's subsequent response in Gaza, as well as the expansion of the conflict to include Lebanon and Iran. At the heart of the discussion was an emphasis on the need for respectful dialogue, mutual understanding, empathy and genuine engagement in addressing these complex issues.

Tzvi Novick, the Abrams Jewish Thought and Culture Professor of Theology at Notre Dame, provided introductory remarks at the Notre Dame Forum. (Photo by Matt Cashore/University of Notre Dame)

John T. McGreevy, the Charles and Jill Fischer Provost, formally opened the presentation, which was co-organized by Tzvi Novick, the Abrams Jewish Thought and Culture Professor of Theology, and Mahan Mirza, an Islamic studies scholar and the executive director of the Ansari Institute for Global Engagement with Religion in the Keough School of Global Affairs.

Novick reminded those in the standing-room-only audience that the gathering was not meant to commemorate Oct. 7, but rather to take stock of the causes and consequences of that day. "The context is complex. The circumstances are terrible and tragic," he said. "We seek to acknowledge the terror and the tragedy, and to appreciate the complexity."

Policelli, professor of the practice and executive director of the Washington Office of the Keough School, introduced the two speakers and moderated the concluding question-and-answer portion of the program.

Myers, a distinguished professor and the Sady and Ludwig Kahn Chair in Jewish History at UCLA, has written extensively in the fields of modern Jewish intellectual and cultural history. He offered a few guiding principles to help frame the joint discussion.

"We believe that when it comes to understanding this conflict, and really when it comes to understanding anything in the world, one must hold up the dignity of all human life. One cannot choose sides," Myers said. "The second guiding principle is epistemological modesty, a degree of humility about knowing what we don't know, about knowing that what we present is going to be a partial account of this very fraught relationship between Jews and Arabs, Palestinians and Israelis."

Ibish, a senior resident scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington and a columnist and regular contributor to several national and international publications, also set the stage for the conversation by saying the two speakers would be grappling with competing narratives but not competing facts. He noted that while historians mostly agree on who did and said what and when throughout the region's history, they do not always know or understand why.

Hussein Ibish (left), a senior resident scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, and David Myers (right), a distinguished professor and the Sady and Ludwig Kahn Chair in Jewish History at UCLA, led the discussion during the Notre Dame Forum event on Sept. 25. (Photo by Matt Cashore/University of Notre Dame)

The two speakers offered an overview of the historical and political factors, beginning with the United Nations General Assembly's issuance in late 1947 of a resolution calling for the partition of Palestine and culminating in the events of Oct. 7 when Hamas breached the border between Gaza and Israel, assaulting Israeli citizens and destroying communities, killing 1,200 Israelis and kidnapping 240 hostages into Gaza where nearly 100 remain.

Israel launched a massive military response, calling up 300,000 reservists and bombarding Gaza in an effort to eradicate Hamas. After a full year of conflict, 41,000 Palestinians have been killed - 17,000 of whom were children; 95,000 have been wounded; and 2.2 million residents of Gaza have been displaced.

"We both believe it is a moral imperative to condemn what occurred on Oct. 7 as well as the extraordinary destruction that has been brought by the Israeli military," Myers emphasized. Such destruction often induces "blindness to the suffering of the other," he went on to say. Both traumas, he argued, must be held together.

After their presentation, Policelli opened the floor for 45 minutes of questions from the audience, with guidance offered by Ibish and Myers laying the groundwork for the dialogue.

"In light of the president's commitment to the question 'What do we owe each other?'" Myers said, "do your best to be as informed as you are, but modest enough that you know you don't know everything. Be skeptical at every turn and wary of confirmation bias. And finally, recognize that the stakes are very high. So, when talking with someone, bring curiosity and genuine interest in hearing what they have to say, as well as empathy and active listening."

Questions from the audience were wide-ranging, with some supporting the conversation's framing and others raising questions about the speakers' narratives and interpretations. Ibish and Myers responded graciously and thanked all participants for their probing and insightful questions.

To conclude, Mirza thanked all attendees and invited them to stay engaged with future events that are part of the Israel-Palestine series throughout the academic year. Alongside the Forum events, Mirza and Novick are co-teaching a course titled Israel, Palestine and What We Owe Each Other, which offers a way for students to delve deeper into the multiple narratives and facilitates respectful discussion and constructive engagement across differences.

You can watch a recording of the Sept. 25 event here. To see other and future events related to the Notre Dame Forum 2024-25, visit forum2024.nd.edu.

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