Have you heard the one about the Jewish and Palestinian-American comedians? Scott Blakeman, a Jewish comedian and political commentator, and Dean Obeidallah a comedian and son of a Sicilian mother and a Palestinian mother came together for the first time in June 2002 to do a series of benefit shows for Seeds of Peace (http://www.seedsofpeace.org/), which promotes understanding between Palestinian and Israeli teenagers by bringing them together in a summer camp in Maine.
Dean and Scott believe that by sitting next to one another and laughing we can begin talking in substantive and useful ways about peace in the Middle East. Laughter can help break the ice before we talk about the suffering in the region and what might be done about it. Through comedy, the pair helps educate people about the conflict, which is a start. So many people take a position on the Israeli conflict without even knowing the depth of complexity that characterizes the situation.
Scott and Dean came to Davidson College and performed for a crowd of about 100 students. This comedy duo, while most certainly more left-wing in their orientation, is a humorous and useful way for any school, organization, synagogue, mosque, to initiate conversations about the situation in the Middle East.
See their website for additional articles about their act and other information: http://www.standupforpeace.com/stand-up-for-peace-4.cfm
I highly recommend them!
