As an adolescent in Gaza during the Second Intifada in 2004, Yousef Bashir was standing in his front yard with his father and three United Nations observers when he was shot in the spine by an Israeli soldier, leaving him in a wheelchair, paralyzed from the waist down. While an Israeli soldier shot him, it was Israeli doctors who saved him and eventually helped him learn to walk again.

In the wake of that experience, Yousef was forced to reckon with the words of his father, whose belief in coexisting peacefully with his Israeli neighbors was unshakeable and whose commitment to peace was absolute. And like the generous, empathetic man who raised him, Yousef too became an outspoken activist for peace. His personal story, as recounted in his memoir, The Words of My Father, is one he will share via Zoom in an Amram Scholar Series lecture on May 23 at 5 pm.

Amid the tragedy of the ongoing Middle Eastern conflict, his account is a powerful tale of moral awakening and of a fraught, ferocious, and profound relationship between a son and his father. Bashir’s story, and the ideals of peace and empathy it upholds, are a soothing balm for these dangerous and troubled times, and a reminder that love and compassion are a gift—and a choice.

After making his way to the United States to attend high school and college, Bashir earned a master’s degree in co-existence and conflict from Brandeis University. A vigorous advocate for Israeli-Palestinian peace, he has worked on Capitol Hill and served as a member of the Palestinian Diplomatic Delegation to the United States.

This program is free and open to everyone. RSVP is required to obtain the Zoom link for this program.

RSVP Here

Click here to purchase the book through WHC’s Mitzvah Mall

Presented in partnership with the Jewish Book Council.