By Channah Barkhordari

Two packed weeks of programming hit two sides of New England these past few days, as Israel Peace Week took hold at Smith College in Western Massachusetts and Northeastern University in the heart of Boston.

Each week had its own specified programming, tailored to their campuses with a mix of education, hasbara, and cultural connection.

Hasbara fellow and Smith Israel Alliance (SIA) executive board member Katy Swartz helped kick off their week by hosting Gil Hoffman, chief political analyst for the Jerusalem Post, to a packed audience of over 50 young women. The renowned journalist spoke on Israel’s democracy in the context of the Middle East, enlightening students on its current dynamic amidst a fast-changing region.

The SIA also held an Israel photography exhibit on their main lawn, with pictures that promoted progressive support for Israel and its dedication to human rights. The photo exhibit was the first of it’s kind at Smith, and the women of SIA hope to repeat it annually.

They also rounded out the week with a pita making coffeehouse party, where students baked their own pita to Israeli music and enjoyed Bedouin-style tea and coffee.

Tammy Burzstyn, president of Students for Israel at Northeastern (SFIN) facilitated the organization of their first annual Israel Peace Week as well, which extends through the end of this week. To jumpstart the week, on Monday, April 4^th they screened “Crossing the Line: The Intifada Comes to Campus” as a way of making the community more aware of the growing threats against Israel at universities across the continent.

On Wednesday evening, April 6^th, SFIN hosted Jeffrey Robbins,  former US delegate to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. Robbins spoke to a packed audience on the integral issues of Israel’s military ethics, the right of the Jewish state to self defense, unacceptable moral parallels, and the illegitimate BDS movement and its true intention. He also fielded questions from members of Northeastern’s Students for Justice in Palestine.

Today, SFIN is holding a campus-wide “Israel Peace Project,” in which artist Diana Brody works with the students to create a mural representation of students’ experiences in Israel based on previously submitted photos. The mural on wheels will be donated to the student center and moved to a new location every month.

On Wednesday, Northeastern University Hillel has teamed up with SFIN to host their annual iFest celebrating Israeli food and culture, and they will be rounding out Israel Peace Week with a Lunch & Learn on Friday, April 15^th, including a session on how to make the case for Israel on campus.