d.c. summer interns from
TRANSCRIPT
8/4/2019 D.C. Summer Interns From
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/dc-summer-interns-from 1/1
USA TODAY WEDNESDAY, JULY 27, 2011 WASHINGTON 9A
Rotem Gabay,bornand raisedin Israel, says she’d never met aPalestinianbefore this summer.
Samer Anabtawi, a Palestin-ian, says that while he had metan Israeli before, he has neverspent somuch timewithone.
Gabay, 26, and Anabtawi, 21,are two of 10 students takingpart this summer in New StoryLeadership fortheMiddleEast, anon-profit internship programbasedin Washington, D.C.
The two are interning in theWashington office of Rep. JaredPolis,D-Colo.
Founded in 2010 by Aus-tralian writer and educator PaulCostello, the program brings Is-raeli and Palestinian students to
the nation’s capital to live andwork alongside one another forthe summer.
Costello says the programforcesthem to createnew expe-riences andproves that they candisagree without losing respectforone another.
“We’ve been laughed at, beentold we are naive and it’s notgoing to work,” says Costello,who has also helped build pro-
grams for Protestant and Catho-
lic Irish youths and white andblack South Africans. “But wejust need to create one contra-diction in the old story that willprove that people from bothsidescan worktogether.”
Gabay, a graduate studentwho hopes tobe a diplomatoneday, says it’s “a hugechallenge.”
“I was raised in a very pro-Israeli home,”she says.
“It’s not about loving one an-other . . . it’s about learning tolive with each other,” Anabtawiadds.
Polis says having the two inhis office has been “an eye-openingexperience.”
“They will bewhatshowspol-iticians that peace between Is-raelis and Palestinians is pos-sible,”he says.
Anabtawi admits he facedskepticism from some in hiscommunity,butsaysthathe andGabayhave becomefriends.
“There were some peoplewhothoughtthis idea wasridic-ulousand made funof mefor it,”Anabtawi says. “But I really be-lievein what we’redoing.”
“Wewill alwaysbe discussingIsrael and Palestine,” Gabaysays. “But I know that after this
summer, Samer and I will be
smarter thanwe werebefore.”Other programs have similar
goals. In Rensselaer, N.Y., for ex-ample, the Doane Stuart Schoolhosts oneCatholicand oneProt-estant Irish student from Belfasteach year as part of its Irish andAmerican Exchange programwhich started in 2004, saysRichard Enemark, the prepara-toryschool’s headmaster.
Michael McPhearson, spokes-man for United for Peace and Justice, a network of peace andjustice organizations aroundworld, says any program thatbrings groups together to learnisgoodfor theworld.
“Organizations like these go alongway indismantlingthe ideathat we’re all so alien to oneanother,” McPhearson says. “It
helps them to see where theotherperson is comingfrom.”
Declan Heery, 31, a 2002graduate of Costello’s Irish pro-gram, says he remains closefriends with his Northern Irishcounterpart.
“Exposing yourself to a pro-gram like this really makes yourealize that, across cultures andboundaries,we trulyare a globalfamily,” he says.
ByJackGruber,USATODAY
Life lessons: Rep. JaredPolis,D-Colo., says it’san “eye-openingexperience” to havesummer internsIsraeliRotemGabay,right,andSamerAnabtawi, a Palestinian, working inhis officeforthe summer.
D.C. summer interns fromMideast bridge differencesBy LukeKerr-Dineen
USA TODAY
rockslike nothing else.
Introducing the 7digital music app.13 million songs at your fingertips.
© 2011 Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. The information contained herein is subjectto change without notice. Not all apps available on all devices. All screen images simulated.
*NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Sweepstakes begins at : a.m. EDT on // and ends at : p.m. EDT on //. Open to legal residents of the United States and District of Columbia, who are at least and Hilton HHonors™ members
at time of entry. Entrants must first register at www.HHonors.com/Dream. For entry without a qualifying stay, send a " X " card with proper postage (one per envelope) to Enter HHonors Come Dream With Us Sweepstakes c/o The MarketingArm, Bryan St., Suite , Dallas, TX or an email (one per entry) to [email protected], stating first and last name, mailing address, phone number and HHonors ™ account number. Entry in any formmust be received by October , . Void where prohibited or restricted by law. See official rules and prize details at www.HHonors.com/Dream. Sponsor: Hilton HHonors Worldwide L.L.C., Jones Branch Drive, McLean, VA .
E V E R Y N I G H T Y O U S T A Y I S A C H A N C E T O C H E E R O N T E A M U S A A T T H E 2 0 1 2 O L Y M P I C G A M E S .
Michael Phelps, Olympic Champion
H i l t o n W o r l d w i d e .