Tag / jordan

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  • Discovering the Green Line

    In kindergarten at my Jewish elementary school, my class took a “trip to Israel.” Our miniature chairs were arranged in two columns split by an aisle, and a TV was rolled in front of them, prompting hushed excitement. The lights were dimmed; a tape was slid into the VCR, and a blue sky dotted with…

  • News Does Not Need 24 Hours

    In middle school, I spent most of my weekend mornings watching Sports Center. The show would last for one hour, and then start up again with a repeat of the same show. Each day, it presented highlights and scores of the previous day’s games and discussion of the current day’s sporting events. ESPN would use…

  • Patriotism Trumps Politics

    I hear something in Hebrew. I look back, con­fused, at the woman behind the counter. She switches languages and says, “Ah of course, you are American. How will you be paying?” I hand her my credit card and she responds, “thank you. So you are American. How do you feel about Trump?” This exchange was…

  • The Refugee Crisis We Prefer to Change

    BY SOPHIE TARAZI When I first announced that I would be studying abroad in Amman, Jordan, the two questions I was most frequently asked were whether Jordan was safe for Americans and if all the women wore hijabs. Though I wish people wanted to know more about the Bedouin and baklava, I understand why these…

  • Palestinian Right of Return: What Once Was

    “Us Palestinians in Palestine, we’re not fighting for ourselves. We fight for our brothers and sisters abroad, the diaspora. We’re fighting their fight, so they can return to our homeland.” Palestinian activist speaking to me about nonviolent resistance–Beit Ummar, West Bank.   I lived in the West Bank and Jordan for most of this past…

  • "Gideon's Spies:" Funny Stories about Mossad

    In terms of sheer creativity these past months have been pretty intense for Mossad. According to some Arab states, the renowned Israeli intelligence agency has been willing to honor its own myth by perpetrating what have to among be the most extravagant plots of the decade, if not the century. By seizing upon the case…