Face2Face Project
I just heard a guy say what I think adequately sums up the state of our nation: “We are more known for our disunity than our unity. We are more known for what we’re against than what we’re for.” To elaborate on his statement with my own thoughts: it seems that we divide ourselves based on religious affiliations, social classes, race and general opinions.
While it is important to me to develop a solid worldview, I want to be about listening and hearing the thoughts and approaches to life that others embrace. How else will I prove to people that I love them more than I disagree with their sentiments?
Here’s an absolutely beautiful example of two artists who’ve taken this thinking a giant step further. JR and Marco launched, in essence, a strategically placed photography campaign that forces Palestinians and Israelis to let go of their ethnocentric views (at least a little) and come Face2Face with their similarities.
Rather than try to explain their wonderful idea, here’s a excerpt from their website:
When we met in 2005, we decided to go together in the Middle-East to figure out why Palestinians and Israelis couldn’t find a way to get along together.
We then traveled across the Israeli and Palestinian cities without speaking much. Just looking to this world with amazement. This holy place for Judaism, Christianity and Islam. This tiny area where you can see mountains, sea, deserts and lakes, love and hate, hope and despair embedded together. After a week, we had a conclusion with the same words: these people look the same; they speak almost the same language, like twin brothers raised in different families.
A religious covered woman has her twin sister on the other side. A farmer, a taxi driver, a teacher has his twin brother in front of him. And he is endlessly fighting with him.
It’s obvious, but they don’t see that.
We must put them face to face. They will realize.
We want everyone to laugh and think when they see the portrait of the other and their own portrait.
The Face2Face project is to make portraits of Palestinians and Israelis doing the same job and to post them face to face, in huge formats, in unavoidable places on both the Israeli and the Palestinian sides. In a very sensitive context, we need to be clear. We are in favor of a solution for which two countries, Israel and Palestine would live peacefully within safe and internationally recognized borders. All the bilateral peace projects (Clinton/Taba, Ayalon/Nussibeh, Geneva Accords) are converging in the same direction. We can be optimistic. We hope that this project will contribute to a better understanding between Israelis and Palestinians.
Today, “Face to face” is necessary. Within a few years, we will come back for “Hand in hand”.
