Reflection #6

Audrey Beedle

COMM 211 – Reflection 6

            I remember watching the documentary “Promises” awhile back in middle school.  At the time, I was a little younger, and although I understood the general idea of the story, I don’t think it really hit me until watching it again at a slightly older age with more experiences and insight.  I really appreciated and took notice of the carefully ordered clips in the film; the creator was very intentional in how he portrayed this conflict in Israel.  It started out as showing these very likeable, young children, some Arab, and others Jewish.  They all seemed very friendly and easy to talk to.  You wanted to be on their side and you assumed they were just innocent children.  Then, as you get to know the children a little better, it is clear that they have very strong opinions that are influenced by their families and surroundings everyday.  Many of these children were more articulate than the average American adult when speaking about their country’s history, religion, and current territorial conflict.  It was truly shocking to hear the words come out of their mouths, as if they’ve heard it said millions of times before.  They are what seem to be, “trained,” to recite the story of their ancestors and family members, who lived through the conflict and violent times of war over the land.  Both the Arabs and the Jews feel that the land is rightfully theirs. 

            The most frightening/shocking thing about the film was the desire for violent vengeance from these children.  A few of them had peaceful natures, and wanted to meet with the other children in order to solve the dispute by communicating and befriending one another, in order to peacefully share the land.  At the same time, other children were threatening to kill the opposite group, refused to meet them, and continued to explain why the land was “theirs.”  The film made me very thankful for my country.  For the ability we have had to live among people with drastically different views, beliefs, and cultural backgrounds, relatively peacefully for many years.  Of course, the United States is not perfect, and religious/cultural intolerance are a real issues that affect people today, but most Americans are not living in constant fear and desire for retaliation against their neighbors.  I am extremely grateful for this.