On Sunday, April 18, 2010, the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) initiated an event titled "The Chicago Hearing: Does U.S. Policy on Israel and Palestine Uphold Our Values?", modeled after a meeting of a United States Congressional fact-finding committee.
The event was held at the University of Chicago's Hyde Park campus in Ida Noyes Hall. More than 250 people attended the event in person, while a national and international audience watched via live webcast.
A panel of faith leaders, community organizers and academics heard expert witnesses testify to the impact of U.S. policy on Israel-Palestine.
The AFSC stated that the hearing "highlighted voices of those on the other end of the pipeline of U.S. aid to Israel." Discussion was moderated by Helena Cobban, a journalist and owner of the "Just World News" website as well as "Just World Books" publishing.
Resources are hosted on the Chicago Hearing's website, including:
Fact sheets on property rights, freedom of movement and military aid to Israel
A 28-page Final Report, gathering summaries of witness testimony; background information on U.S. policy; and data that reveals the impact of closure policies, military assaults, and military aid transfers on the situation An "enhanced video" of the event, supplemented with data, graphics, and footage from Israel and Palestine A how-to guide on organizing a Mock Congressional Hearing
Context
The American Friends Service Committee is a "Quaker organization that includes people of various faiths who are committed to social justice, peace and humanitarian service."
The AFSC began working in the Middle East in 1949. The organization, along with the International Committee of the Red Cross and the League of Red Cross Societies, was asked by the United Nations to organize relief work for Palestinian refugees in the Gaza Strip.
Witnesses
The hearing heard testimony from four "witnesses" to U.S. Policy in Israel and Palestine.
Cindy Corrie is the mother of Rachel Corrie, an American activist who was crushed by a bulldozer attempting to demolish a house in the Gaza Strip in 2003. She is president of the Rachel Corrie Foundation for Peace & Justice. Jeff Halper is an anthropologist and Coordinator of the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions (ICAHD), a "non-violent, direct-action organization" which he helped to establish in 1997. The ICAHD's stated goal is to resist Israeli demolition of Palestinian homes in the Occupied Territories. Jad Isaac is an environmental expert and Director General of the Applied Research Institute–Jerusalem in the West Bank. He was formerly Dean of Science at Bethlehem University. Amer Shurrab is an Arab Palestinian from Gaza whose two brothers were killed by Israel Defense Forces during Israel's "Operation: Cast Lead" in the winter of 2008-2009. He is a member of Seeds of Peace, a peace-building youth organization in New York City.
Listener Panel
A panel of academics and religious leaders heard the testimony of the witnesses, and afterward asked questions.
Yali Amit is a professor in the Department of Computer Science and Statistics at the University of Chicago. He is also a Coordinating Committee Member for the Arab-Jewish Partnership. Cantor Michael Davis is a member of the Jewish Fast for Gaza, a group of "rabbis, Jews, and people of conscience" who undertake a monthly daytime fast in support of goals which foster peace in Israel-Palestine. Cotton Fite is an associate priest at St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Evanston, Illinois and a member of the Chicago Faith Coalition on Middle East Policy. John J. Mearsheimer is the R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago. Barbara Ransby is an associate professor of Gender and Women's Studies, African American Studies, and History at the University of Illinois-Chicago. Dr. Zaher Sahloul is a physician at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Illinois and chairman of the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago. Ghada Talhami is the D.K. Pearsons Professor Emeritus of Politics at Lake Forest College in Illinois.
Testimony
The testimonies of the witnesses and the subsequent questions fell into three categories: Property Rights; Freedom of Movement, Association and Speech; and Military Aid and Armaments.
A speaker explained the context of each topic and introduced the speaker(s).
Property Rights
This issue was introduced by Mezna Qato, a Palestinian-American and human rights activist completing her doctorate at Oxford University.