Twilight News Edition 94
Edition 94, 9th November 2021
ARABS & JEWS BREAK CULTURAL BARRIERS IN JERUSALEM USING “SPEED-DATING”
By Riyaa Palan
The divide between Arabs and Jews runs deep since long. However, in a recent attempt to break these barriers, Israeli Jews and Palestinian Arabs are learning Hebrew and Arabic from each other using the concept of ‘speed-dating’.
Around 20 students gather at a 19th-century villa in Jerusalem every week. Jews and Arabs sit face-to-face as they practice each other’s languages by reading out from cards with simple situations, enabling them to converse. A whistle sounds every 20 minutes and participants exchange partners across tables arranged under colourful murals.
The project was initiated in 2019 by Maya Giz, a Hebrew teacher, and Sahar Mukhemar, a Palestianian sports instructor, also her former student. The founders believe that these meetings could help Palestinians effectively converse with Israeli officials as well as enable Jews to gain a better understanding of Arabic.
“Palestinians in Jerusalem don’t study Hebrew in school, in any way. And it's the same for Israelis - if they do study Arabic, it's an Arabic you can't use. Therefore, we came up with this initiative, you can call it a civil initiative, that directly meets this need of the ability to communicate with each other. Out of this, the real important thing emerges - the meeting and the acquaintance,” Giz shared with the news agency Reuters.
Majority of Palestinians in Jerusalem dwell in the eastern part of the city, an area which had been captured by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war. The schools in this region only teach basic Hebrew which makes it harder for Palestinians to reach a high skill level in the language or even speak it fluently in their daily lives (for purposes such as travelling, communicating etc). It is due to these reasons that the founders of the project thought it necessary to popularise Hebrew language among Arabs and vice-versa.
This practice is not only a symbol of peace between the Jews and Arabs but also an example of the possibility for two such rival communities to look past their differences so that they can together develop a more cooperative future.
AMY WINEHOUSE AUCTION RAISES MILLIONS
By Ahana Barthwal
During her last ever stage performance, Amy Winehouse wore a halter minidress. Now, that same dress is being sold for more than 243,000 dollars! The late singer-songwriter was seen wearing the dress in Belgrade in June 2011, just a month before her unfortunate demise.
At the time, the dress must not have seemed like much, however after her death, its value rose tremendously, as it was the dress worn during her last live performance.
Recently, Amy Winehouse’s parents started a foundation aimed at helping young people struggling with substance addiction issues. The foundation was started in honour of Amy to mark her struggle with these issues.
The dress along with other items found at her estate were auctioned off to raise money for this very cause. Even though the price of 243,00 Dollars may seem like a bit too much for just a dress, the dress is in fact not “just” a dress for her fans, but a memento they will treasure forever, and may be an investment that will grow multifold.
It’s also important to note that the items at Amy’s estate (including the halter minidress) are not being sold for her parent’s personal gain, rather as donation for their foundation, making it a genuine and great cause to celebrate her life and achievements.
Compiled and Edited By Saanvi Tripathy