After a security threat forced the cancellation of the OneVoice summit in Jericho, West Bank, similar rallies were cancelled in Israel and the United States, including one in D.C.
However, OneVoice held a smaller public discussion in D.C. on Thursday instead of the large rally that had been scheduled.
A fringe group in Palestine recently issued a press release claiming OneVoice was attempting to force their beliefs on Palestinian citizens, said Darya Shaikh, the U.S. executive director of OneVoice. These misinterpretations led to threats of violence directed at Jericho, the location of one of the planned rallies, Shaikh said.
To demonstrate solidarity with Palestine, OneVoice announced in a letter posted on their Web site that it had cancelled its events in Israel and the United States.
The People's Summit, a series of rallies organized by OneVoice, a grassroots organization working to help Palestinians and Israelis achieve peace on their own, were to occur Oct. 18 simultaneously in Jericho and Tel Aviv to force government leaders to begin planning a peaceful solution to the conflict between Palestine and Israel.
The echo events were to feature live music and speeches from celebrities, dignitaries and activists and were to be broadcast live to international echo events in D.C., London and Ottowa, according to the OneVoice's Web site. DC Echo was to be held on the Capital West Front Lawn and was going to include several prominent speakers, including the Palestinian ambassador, according to the Web site.
Several AU students were involved in the event's organization.
Sarah Gunning, a senior in the School of International Service and a student leader in OneVoice, said she became involved in OneVoice because she hopes to someday live in Israel.
"As a Jew, the land that is now Israel is very important to me," Gunning said.
OneVoice DC's student leadership, a group of students from AU and other D.C. universities who promote OneVoice and plan its local events, read a collective statement at the event saying the cancellation of The People's Summit rallies was a disappointment but only a minor setback in the long run. They were enthusiastic about the public discussion that replaced it, according to the statement.
The group's student leaders led an open discussion at noon on the scheduled day in the Josephine Butler Parks Center, outside Dupont Circle. Several ideas for promoting Middle Eastern peace were brought up, such as the prospect of unifying the peace movement and including other countries in the effort.
OneVoice events are important to amplify the voices of moderates on the Israeli/Palestinian issue, Gunning said.
"All we really see are the extremists on both sides in the media," Gunning said.
Lauren Barr, a freshman in SIS and also a student leader for OneVoice, is encouraged by how many AU students care about achieving peace in the Middle East.
"I think there is a definite interest," she said.
Prominent figures representing all sides of the Palestinian-Israel conflict also spoke during the forum Wednesday, including Rabbi Scott Sperling and Seth Green, founder of Americans for Informed Democracy.
OneVoice has been working since 2002 to reach a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. The movement's goal is to amplify the voices of the often-unheard moderate majority in both Palestine and Israel, according to Shaikh. "What we are really trying to do is push leaders to take decisive action," Shaikh said. "We're in a year where action is necessary."
So far, 309,500 Israelis, 275,162 Palestinians and 15,184 international supporters have pledged their support to OneVoice. Students can get involved at the OneVoice Web site, onemillionvoices.org, Barr said.
