Jessica Takes Action

You've probably seen this video of a Jewish man and woman offering Muslim worshippers dates outside the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem for Ramadan. This beautiful gesture shows the possibility of coexistence between the two people at an individual level - I mean, it's incredibly heartwarming to see something like this amidst the never-ending avalanche of hatred, violence, incitement & vengeful attitudes. But consider who isn't commenting or sharing this and doesn't want to acknowledge the powerful footage; think about who refuses to accept the inevitability of coexistence & peace between Israelis and Palestinians; imagine if more people put aside their differences for just this one individual video/post and said yes, Jewish Israelis & Palestinians are immensely capable of getting along; what if the algorithms promoted such positive occurrences instead of elevating violent content and incendiary speech; why aren't more people focusing on finding the slightest of common ground across our vast differences when we know that neither Palestinians nor Israelis are going anywhere. There are people on both sides who refuse to amplify faint symbols and messages of tolerance, shared humanity, and acceptance because those values go against their entrenched narratives. Yes, political decisions from the top are needed to make agreements on many issues. However, true, lasting peace begins with each and every one of us and requires a bottom-up approach that will take time but ultimately yield the best possible outcome out of this bloody & protracted conflict. This takes small but meaningful steps, like in this video. Blessed are the peacemakers ❤️✌️🙏