Israeli-Arab Hero

September 26, 2002 3:01 PM

Israeli-Arab Hero this kid had a lot of guts - will he get the recognition he deserves in israel or the US? username: metafilter password: metafilter
posted by specialk420 (11 comments total)

More importantly, will he get murdered by Israeli hating Arabs after he gets out of the hospital?

Remember the story of the mother who was killed by a mob because she was thought to be an informant and her children were starving to death? HOw will he be received back in his society?

Good for him. I hope, but don't have much faith, that the choice he made will be looked up with good will.
posted by aacheson at 4:19 PM on September 26, 2002

I think the onus is also on the Israelis to embrace patriotic Israeli Arabs ... which is something they tend not to do at all, for all the unfortunate reasons we've been over a zillion times.

The kid's a hero.
posted by donkeyschlong at 4:33 PM on September 26, 2002

I don't know much beyond the news about what's happening in Israel/Palestine, but aren't there any Arab Israeli groups who are patriotic Israelis yet are willing to make non-violent protests work to save lives and protect citizens like this young fellow?

I suspect he will be targeted for killing too, like aacheson noted above, unless there are enough Arab Israelis who are willing to stand out to defend what he did as "doing the right thing."
posted by fatchuck at 4:50 PM on September 26, 2002

Actually, if he was a palestinian, he might be in a lot of danger, as has been noted above. However, he's an Israeli Arab citizen, and they, as a group are much more divided and less radicalized on the issue.

Some in his community will support him. Some will say he shouldn't have tipped the police. But it's fair to assume that his life is in no danger.
posted by kickingtheground at 5:03 PM on September 26, 2002

It's a crying shame people only rally around ugly things and seldom anything positive. The lack of comments in this thread is indicative of that.
posted by artifex at 5:47 PM on September 26, 2002

Fatchuck:

There are Arab Israelis who make nonviolent protests. And even Jewish Israelis who make nonviolent protests toward their own government.

The only two sources I remember offhand are a piece on ftrain.com which ended somewhat badly, and a book called Blood Brothers by Elias Chacour and David Hazard. The later is a biography of a Palestinian who was 6 or 7 when the UN declaration that gave us the current incarnation of this mess went into play. It's a bit outdated, but an absolutely excellent read for anyone who wants to increase their faith in humanity or God. The first six chapters are sometimes available as a PDF on this page.

After a little investigation, you see the same tragedy as you see in most places. Many people are happy to live and let live, and some are willing to trouble themselves and risk a lot for peace. There's just enough zealots out there who are willing to volunteer the rest of the world for needless suffering. That goes for Israel, or south central LA, or Ireland. It's too bad Hamas has more attention on the world stage than Chacour does.
posted by namespan at 5:55 PM on September 26, 2002

Namespan, thanks for the links and thoughts, they're appreciated. Speaking of Northern Ireland, it seems the belligerents on both sides (Israel/Palestine) are pretty ignorant of modern, post-WWII history. In short, no amount of terrorism delivered Sinn Fein (for the IRA) into government, while no amount of torture or repression by the UK governments could stop the terrorists. Off-topic, that's why I believe that the war on terrorism by the U.S. will be as useless as it was for the U.K.

Unless both sides desire peace, the extremists will continue to dominate the news. Too bad there's no mass non-violent movement by people on both sides to forge a compromise for peace. Sharon's an ass, but his counterparts aren't any better.
posted by fatchuck at 6:27 PM on September 26, 2002

Sharon's an ass, but his counterparts aren't any better.

That's really the problem. I can almost see it as a political cartoon: a horse with an ass on both ends, no head. Named "Peace Process."
posted by donkeyschlong at 6:42 PM on September 26, 2002

artifex: It's a crying shame people only rally around ugly things and seldom anything positive. The lack of comments in this thread is indicative of that.

Well, the problem is, when something is good, there's not much to say. The guy was a hero; this was a great story to read. I'm glad that he saved some lives, and it's great that he's of Arab descent. But what can you say that isn't obvious?

Of course, if this rule for posting were followed, the daily Iraq and I/P threads would be about 3/4 shorter...
posted by UKnowForKids at 9:04 PM on September 26, 2002

Three cheers for this kid. Without any hemming, hawing or "what ifs."

This kid's a hero on the level of the cops and firefighters of 9/11.
posted by swerdloff at 10:21 PM on September 26, 2002

i wonder if there is someway we could hear what he thinks and feels about the arab - israel conflict ?

i dare say - i would put more value on this young man's word - hopes - suggestions - than the collective voices of sharon, bibi, arafat, bush etc.......
posted by specialk420 at 10:57 PM on September 26, 2002