Reading- Equality of a Different Kind

It is odd how often I forget that gay rights are not an American issue.  It is not something that some radical sector invented in the United States; there are LGBTQ people all over the world.  They are members of all ethnic groups and religions, and they are all human beings that seek to be loved and appreciated.

Faith, so often a vehicle of unity and love, brings with it an obstacle to acceptance for these people.  Restrictions, rules for living, and things considered “undesirable” are a part of many religions, as a way to separate the faithful from the rest of the sinful world.  Unfortunately for the struggle for gay rights, homosexuality and gender confusion are interpreted as sins and taboos for a variety of cultures for which organized religion is an important part of daily life.

And so I, like a few others in our class I imagine, have grown up under this paradigm, one that seems to conflict with the times as well as the teachings of unconditional love I have been taught all my life.  In the words of Obama (speaking about gay marriage in 2010) “I struggle with this.”

I keep this in mind when looking over these websites about organizations and projects that seek to give this community a haven and show it to a world that seems much like the one I grew up in.  Jerusalem is a holy city, and religious thought will always be prominent there.  It is encouraging to see these brave attempts at equality for anyone who professes to be anything other than heterosexual.

I was especially impacted by the introductory video for the documentary “City of Borders.”  There is something especially impactful about seeing a human face dealing with a certain situation.  It makes the topic less of a policy issue, and more of a real-life identity.  I was moved to see Boody (yes, I laughed out loud at the name) trying to be true both his sexuality and his faith.  I think more of us in the United States could embrace this complex identity rather than choosing one or the other.

Readings by Femenists

As a fellow woman, I found these readings to be both insightful and confusing at times.   The Amiry stories had a very honest and human quality to them, and the “story” format of the reading, rather than a lecture or essay, kept it interesting for me.  I especially loved “A Dog’s Life,” which any dog owner can relate to in terms of that unique unconditional love.   The section about Nura was funny and frustrating at the same time.  I love how Amiry has embraced humor as a way to cope: it is something relatively new and refreshing in our readings.

Hasan-Rokem’s article stayed more in the realm of allegory and metaphor, and so it is not surprising that this was the more challenging article to understand.  It was interesting to note all of the sayings surrounding the city, all coined by men.  It was much harder for me to connect this idea to the real world: Does this mean that men have historically been the only people with a longing for Jerusalem?  Does it mean that women’s expressions for the city were not written down or considered valid?  Her suggestion in the end that we must seek to end this sort of vision of Jerusalem as a sort of “helpless maiden” comes without concrete ways of applying it.  The overall writing was very good, however, I wish 

Journal 4: الموسيقى

I don’t even know where to begin.

I could start with the years of piano lessons, of voice lessons, or of the journey from my first note on a French horn, to my competitive high school years, to a position on Ohio’s All-State Band.  Or I could go the choral route and watch me develop from an awkward elementary-schooler singing in the shower to a college soloist.  Or I could explain to you the detailed (and sometimes still quite painful) decision process that led me to major in something other than music.  I could even bring it right up to the present and talk about that first full summer of sweating and screaming that allowed me to march here at OSU.

I think I’d rather start, though, with the trip from Pennsylvania to Ohio, when I was one and a half years old.  My dad held me on his lap as we climbed 1000 feet into the air, when he heard a sound at his chest.  He leaned in to listen, and found that I had been humming along to the pitch that the plane’s motor was making.  I think that says more about me and the role that music plays in my life than any other story I could tell you.  I cannot imagine my life without it.  It is easier and better than words.

Seeing programs like the East/West Divan Orchestra in Israel and Palestine, El Sistema in Venezuela, and the Kimbanguist Symphony Orchestra in Congo gives me so much hope.  As person who studies language, I have engrained in my mind an appreciation for the conservation of languages- each a system of communication with a unique worldview embedded within.  This idea can be extended to music, which is a system of communication that describes the parts of the human experience that words cannot describe.

Many speakers and experts on the Israeli- Palestinian conflict have commented on the necessity of listening; each side must learn to listen and to see the validity in the arguments of the other side.  Listening is not much of a choice in an ensemble.  In order for a flute to be in tune with the rest of the group, he/she must be constantly be listening to the tuba player in the very back of the room.  It is only through this kind of communication that the group can successfully relate their message to the audience.  I know that seems sort of obscure in a conflict-resolution setting, but there is something about working hard towards a common goal that brings people together in ways they may not even be aware of.

That brings me to the sappy part.  I have always been aware of how music affects people, mostly because I have been involved in music groups my whole life, but I can honestly say that I don’t know many other forces powerful enough to drive men three times my size to tears, or bond the people who would become my closest friends, or be the common form of worship found all over the world, or heal a person in despair.

I have so many meaningful pieces to share, but I picked one (you’re welcome for not boring you):

My grandpa, who fought in WWII, left us with a song that I have had to choke through many times. 

In context, it is sort of a recognition of our smallness in the midst of a giant celebration, and a prayer for my military friends today.

Sorry for the bad quality: It was the best youtube had!!

Readings Regarding Rap

I am once again excited to be dealing with the topic of music and how it impacts the world around us.  Just throwing that out there.

To start, it shocks me how much importance people halfway across the world place on the United States, its politics, and its involvement in international issues.  Especially surprising is how closely our internal politics are watched, because the politics of one powerful nation may affect many other nations as well.  Tamer’s lyrics make a reference to the Clinton/Lewinsky scandal, an event that I would not expect the people of other countries to know and care about.

The article on Israeli hip-hop irritated me when it questioned whether a well-off Israeli could pass as a rapper just as much as a black American in the west could.  A musical genre is not limited to a particular ethnicity or culture, and can be modified to reflect the emotions and styles of the audience that the artist hopes to attract. 

The author even goes as far as to say that Israeli rap is an “inherent contradiction,” attempting to imitate a culture that they know nothing about.  I just have to disagree.  Here is another way to look at it: At its heart, rap music is poetry in rhythm, an ancient form of self-expression used, in some way or form, by  all groups of people on earth.  I realize that in the current day-in-age, rap in an African-American context is prevalent and powerful, but it is not a crime to be inspired by it and adopt this art form to express the thoughts and needs of one’s own society.  In other words, we are the ones who put rap in a box, not rap music itself.

Moving on to the Subliminal interview, I think it would have been interesting to ask him what his experience in the military was like.  He obviously felt that he needed to hide his talents until he was out, and he did not talk about his specific experiences during his mandatory service, or how he felt about serving.  However, he did give insight into growing up in a politically charged world.  The second reading about him said infinitely more about his rise to rap, and the particular flavor of his music in contrast with other forms in the region.

“Rap is CNN for us,” explains Tamar Nafar in “Hip-Hop and the Palestinians.”  To Nafar, Palestinian rap music really did stem from a socioeconomic similarity.  Like African Americans here, Palestinians are the destitute minority who feel ignored and even oppressed by their government.  This suggests contrast between the meaning of Palestinian and Israeli rap at the core.  However, both types of rap can potentially be used toward the cause of peace, and be effective at that.  The final article regarding honor killings is a powerful example of how influential this kind of music can be, when many young people are listening.

Reading- Finding Different Perspectives About the Wall

Lately, it has been rather easy for me to sympathize with the Palestinian perspective of the wall.  After seeing both Israelis and Palestinians (such as the co-founders of the East-West Divan Orchestra) push for a stop to the settlements, interviewing a young adult involved in peaceful activism, reading about self-expression through graffiti, and watching the powerful film 5 Broken Cameras, this isn’t so hard to understand.

 What I would like to know at this point is the other perspective.  Why was something as extreme as the wall implemented in the first place?  Why did the Israeli government feel so threatened?  I think back to our first speaker, Dr. Herrmann, zooming out on the map to show us how Israel sees themselves and the world around them: a tiny Jewish state in a sea of majority Arab Muslim nations. 

This article was written in 2011 for the LA Times by Dore Gold, former Israeli ambassador to the UN.  It describes the security needs of the state of Israel, explaining that the 1967 boundaries were not sufficient to truly safeguard the nation.  A wall would show the true desired boundaries for the state, as well as make a statement to the world that Israel is powerful.

http://articles.latimes.com/2011/jun/05/opinion/la-oe-gold-israel-borders-20110605

My second source comes from my browser homepage: nbcnews.com.  This is much more recent- posted two days ago.  In the city of Bait Jala, in the West Bank, Christians and Muslims gather together for a weekly mass in the valley where the barrier is to be built.  Here we see a coming together of faiths, as well as a desperate plea for divine intervention as hope is running out for this community.

http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/25/17057961-christians-muslims-pray-to-halt-israeli-security-wall?lite

The article also mentions the Israeli explanations for the wall’s continued construction.  Their biggest argument is that the wall safeguards Israeli citizens from Palestinian terror attacks.

Reading- Writing on the Walls

Graffiti on the walls instantly brings to mind the writings on the bathroom stalls of the Central Classroom Building here at OSU.  Although this is considerably different, the image of the different handwriting and colors used, the hand-drawn images (some better than others) simply remind me of the graffiti here at home. 

In a way, if doesn’t matter how petty the opinion written, or by contrast, how widely- affecting the world conflict that people are writing about.  Walls are indifferent bystanders; they are modems for the emotions and opinions of others.  Any firmly held belief, however small, that one may not feel is being heard or represented in the world in any other way may be written or drawn on the wall.  This way, everyone can see it, and perhaps be impacted by it.

The thing I loved the most about Noura’s article was the universals: we all carry with us he hope of reconciliation and peace, we all long for a homeland.  When put this way, concepts like Zionism seem much less foreign to me.  It also brings to mind some of the tragic effects of not recognizing the legitimacy of the “other,” and of their own claims.  This can be said of both sides, and once each side at least recognizes the common desires of the “other,” my hope is that these boundaries one people between themselves and another can begin to fade.  Like the article mentioned, there is nothing about excluding others that is essential to any individual or group’s identity.

The reading about Vardi was amazing.  It is really inspiring to see someone my age (or younger!) taking such a courageous role in the struggle for peace.  The article mentioned that she was in Bel’in, a village I now know vaguely about from the movie 5 Broken Cameras.  In a place and a time plagued with violence, it is incredible to see the resolve in those who choose peaceful protest.

Reading- Parallels and Paradoxes

I must start off by expressing how excited I am to be covering this topic in class, and to have been learning about such a unique endeavor in the world of music!  This project is especially appealing to me as a musician and a person who consistently studies the interaction of language and culture. 

I was interested and pleased to see the commentary on Said’s own musical expertise in the introduction.  This has not really been highlighted in any other information about the orchestra project I have seen thus far.  With the two men having such brilliant minds and such basic passions in life, it is not really surprising that they would become friends (unless their musician’s personalities would render them competitive enemies).

Barenboim’s initial lines of his memoriam for Said are striking.  He begins by describing his friend as the “very essence of human nature because he understood its contradictions.”  This one line sums up the heart of this article, and the rest of the tribute was written just as beautifully as the opening paragraph.

The main article itself was interesting in that it was written in the question-answer format of an interview.  Barenboim’s statement about where he feels at home is what first caught my attention here: he feels the most at home in the idea of Jerusalem.  One of the themes I have taken from this class is that Jerusalem is, in the minds of those who love it, admired and adored for what it could be- for its ideal spiritual or aesthetic qualities that make it the center of the world.

The dialogue became more philosophical than I expected later on.  I managed to learn a bit about how Barenboim thinks and what is most important to him when it comes to his work.  In all of these writings, I have found the writers to be very thoughtful and open-minded, yet not withholding opinion.  I believe that everyone remotely connected to the modern conflict, the world of music, or both would benefit from reading these careful, honest reflections.