Promises is a documentary filmed in between 1997 and 2000 by Justine Shapiro, B.Z. Goldberg and Carlos Bolado.
This documentary was filmed during a period of relative calm in Israeli/Palestinian relations. B.Z. Goldberg, who was born in New York but grew up in Jerusalem, returns to Israel where he travels to Jerusalem, a Palestinian refugee camp and an Israeli settlement in the West Bank. During his travels, he meets with 7 children of various descent - some Israelis and some Palestinians. Even though the children live within 20 minutes of each other, they exist in completely different spheres. One girl has never been to Jerusalem, even though it is ten miles from where she lives. The children were followed from the time they were 9 until the time that they were 12. They include:
- Yarko and Daniel - secular, Israeli twin boys living in Jerusalem;
- Faraj. A Palestinian refugee boy living in the Deheishe Refugee Camp in the West Bank:
- Sanabel, a Palestinian refugee girl also living in the Deheishe Refugee Camp;
- Shlomo. An ultra-orthodox Jewish boy in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem.
- Mahmoud. A Palestinian boy living in East Jerusalem.
- Moishe & sister Raheli live in the Beit El Settlement in the West Bank.
Pictures of the Deheishe Camp can be found here .
The children, express what each side has been through and all the distrust each side has for the other; but, at least, by talking about it on camera and by meeting each other briefly, it gives peace some chance–in the Middle East even something as small as that little hope is indeed welcome news. In some ways, it was really disturbing, to hear the beliefs coming from the mouths of babes. In some ways, I had hoped that the new generations would be able to bring change - my belief that there is hope in the younger people. At the time that this was filmed, there also was much hope. These children were brought together by the filmakers, who also brought interpreters, and they were able to sit the children all down, face to face, to discuss the problems. They children also were able to run around and play together and their laughter was healing.
The children were beautiful and smart. But I still felt a lot of uneasiness in my stomach. These children were so well-spoken and yet, some of the things that came out of their mouths were things that seemed to be indoctrinated prejudice. Now, I’m coming at this as someone that was brought up in the Catholic faith and who, at this point in her life, doesn’t put a whole lot into religion or the Bible or any religious text, really. So, take it with a grain of salt. But it seemed so disturbing that children, the people that will carry on the world, were being so ably indoctrinated and trained to carry on their parents’ anguish, hate and sadness. Yes, both sides have done awful, awful things to each other and are doing so to this day, but aren’t we supposed to break the chain? Anyways, this movie did a magnificent job in showing this unsettling picture.
I also appreciated that the filmakers went out of their way to make sure that varying points of view were represented. I felt that they did a wonderful job in making sure that diverse voices were represented. I also thought that it did a wonderful job in presenting what childhood in a war zone is really like. These children, regardless of where they live, are constantly in fear of bombs or gunfights. The twins worry that the bus that they ride to school each day will be bombed by a suicide bomber - they expect it in fact and look for people that may be the bombers as they ride to school. They worry because a bus on their route was bombed not too long before the shooting of this video. Another of the young boys was involved in the most recent Intifada . He and his friends and family members threw rocks at the Israeli soldiers because those were the only weapons that they had and he saw several of his friends shot dead. A NINE YEAR OLD, folks, not some military guy shooting at another military guy.
This film is important and should be seen by everyone, especially in light of the recent struggles in the Middle East.
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