Israeli women on tour to promote dialogue

Eynat Barzilay longs for the day that her group isn’t “special anymore.”

Barzilay, along with 19 other women from Israel’s Western Galilee region, is in the United States as part of “Women Cooking a Dialogue,” an initiative that brought them together because of their cultural differences, but now links them inseparably through mutual love and respect. Thought to be the first group of its kind in Israel, she, as the group’s leader, realizes how monumental it is for Christian, Muslim and Jewish Israelis to come together.

Now that they have, she said it’s hard for them to remember why they haven’t been the best of friends forever.

The group visited Northwest Indiana over the weekend through Partnership 2gether, a consortium among Western Galilee and several Midwestern states, and the Jewish Federation of Northwest Indiana. They ended their stay with a talk Monday at South Shore Arts’ Art in Focus program in Munster, where they shared their experiences of meeting and savoring each others’ cultures and norms.

The women, who started meeting twice a month in January, got to know each other through pot lucks and team-building exercises. Generally, the conversations stay centered toward religion and more holistic topics, Barlizay said, because although they all recognize the issues Israel faces, they want to know and understand each other outside of politics.

Being a neutral environment free of political discussion helped them bond because they weren’t bombarded by their husbands or other family members, said group member Tali Shner. For example, when her husband drove her to the airport, he asked if all the women were going to be able to speak English because he’d always thought Muslim women weren’t allowed to speak it.

“Well, he got his lesson on that,” Shner said as the group laughed.

But aside from a few outdated notions, the women agreed that their families have been supportive of them and their aspirations for the group. Omnia Massry said she texted her husband pictures of her making a presentation while the group was at one of their stops, and his pride was palpable.

“He texted me back, ‘You are a great woman on the way to the top,'” she said.

Dalia Shehadeh, a Christian Israeli, said talking about their respective religions made her realize how similar they are. A few of the women, in fact, had what they called a “hijab party” at their host’s house, wherein they each tried on the traditional Muslim head covering women wear; and they all tried to sing along with Muslim wedding songs on a Sunday trip to Chicago.

Fatma Yassin, a Muslim Israeli, said through Barzilay that the 10-day trip is the first time she’s even been on an airplane as well as the first time she’s gotten to speak English to people outside of the group. Leaving three children at home, she said that for many Muslim women, tradition has it that they aren’t allowed away from their families often, but her husband and family has been very supportive.

“I believe if we work together and love, we will be open to each other,” she said.

Jillian Van Volkenburgh, Education Director for South Shore Arts, told the women Lake County is about the same size as Western Galilee and that she admired them for their courage.

“We need to love our neighbors,” she said. “(These women’s) lives can be on the line (for what they’re doing), so why can’t we do this when we have so many more freedoms?”

Michelle L. Quinn is a freelance reporter or the Post-Tribune.