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By: Abram Shanedling

Pro-Israel groups from the Mid-Atlantic to the Midwest have already run several successful
events in the last few weeks, highlighting current events in the Middle East and urging student
action in support of peace.

University of Illinois

On Sunday, Oct 3, Hasbara Fellowships partnered with Hasbara Fellows Tahli Hanuka,
Jessica Ost and local pro-Israel students at the University of Illinois to bring Tabby Davoodi,
an Iranian refugee to campus. The event, which drew over 300 students, was an overwhelming
success and was covered in the local Daily Illini. Davoodi, who also heads up the campus
division at Stand With Us, spoke about the history of Iran and her family’s story having to flee
the country.

In addition, hundreds of students signed a petition condemning Iranian President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s recent visit to the UN. The petition will now be sent to the UN.

Tahli Hanukah said she and other pro-Israel organizers worked closely with other registered
student organizations (RSOs) to plan the event with Davoodi, including the College Democrats,
College Republicans, the Indian Student Association and the Persian Student Club. “The lecture
was truly great,” Hanukah said. “So many new students were involved with putting it together,
and we were able to reach out ton new RSOs. I look forward to more successful events like this
one in the future.”

Luckily, Illinois students won’t have to wait long. This Wednesday, from 5:30 – 6:30, I will be
giving an update on Current Events at the Maimonedes class at Hillel, which will be followed by
a talk by Daniel Pipes on the spread of radical Islam.

Georgetown

Student Hoyas at Georgetown got a flavor of Israel last Thursday night, as the Georgetown
Israel Alliance hosted a Taste of Israel outdoor dinner reception. Over 50 students showed up to
the event, planned by GIA president Daphna Katz, tasting Israeli food, listening to Israeli music,
and hearing from several professors and students about their personal experiences in Israel.

University of Wisconsin-Madison

Meanwhile in Mad-town (Madison), Wisconsin, the Madison-Israel Public Affairs Committee
(MadPAC) is also hard at work planning advocacy training for students at the Big Ten university.

Just this past Sunday, I gave a Current Events/Trends update about Israel, the Middle East
and Iran to several student leaders. My talk focused on the current peace talks, the U.S.-
Israel relationship, the Iranian threat and de-legitimization efforts against Israel on university
campuses. The talk was the first in a series that I will be giving in the next month at campuses in
the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic, including the University of Illinois and University of Georgia.

For more information on how you can host a Current Events update on your campus, feel free to
email me at ashanedling@hasbarafellowships.org