Esparanza: A Daily Outsider Public Service Initiative

  A protester wearing a watermelon yarmulke and a keffiyeh makes a peace sign at a protest in Berlin, Germany. Getty Images “We don’t need purveyors of hate, we don’t need provocateurs – we need peacemakers,” Sholto Byrnes wrote this week. Reacting to the contentious acts of some people over the Israel-Gaza war, his powerful column reflects on the need for multifaceted thinking instead of the dichotomous rhetoric we are seeing play out the world over. He highlights two particular peacemakers who are “putting themselves in the shoes of the other”. Palestinian Ali Abu Awwad and Israeli Ami Dar are self-described solution-makers and “Siamese twins” who believe “a shared commitment to dignity and justice is possible”. The pair came together for a TED talk earlier this year and echoed and supported one another question by question, especially in their calls for non-violent activism. The panel session is packed with many, many stand-out statements, rallying sentiments and to quote the host “