Profs who back 2-state solution to speak at Berkeley fund-raiser

American Jews are not doing enough to bring about Mideast peace, claims Israeli professor Shlomo Sand.

To do his part, the Tel Aviv University professor plans to join with local Palestinians and Jews on Sunday to raise money for Arabs and Jews abroad.

Sand, a visiting professor of history at U.C. Berkeley, will speak at a fund-raiser hosted by A Jewish Voice for Peace. The organization is a grassroots group of Bay Area residents working for a two-state solution.

Beshara Doumani, an associate professor of history at Berkeley, will also speak at Sunday's event at the Ashkenaz in Berkeley. Titled "Joined at the Hip '99," the fund-raiser will feature a mix of music and speeches.

Proceeds will go to Negev Shalom, a coalition of Jewish and Arab minorities that advocates reducing West Bank settlement activity. Also receiving funds is Hope Flowers School of Bethlehem, which serves Muslim and Christian children.

The two scholars don't expect to raise substantial sums of money. But Sand and Doumani, a Palestinian who has taught at Bir Zeit University on the West Bank and at the University of Pennsylvania, said their actions have great symbolic importance.

"It's important to work together to show that neither side is monolithic," said Doumani, whose field is the social history of the modern Middle East. "There is diversity in both groups and room for understanding across national boundaries."

Sand, who is not a member of a political party in Israel, objects to American Jews funding either left- or right-wing political movements in Israel. Instead, diaspora Jews should throw their weight behind U.S. diplomatic measures and be boosters for social programs in the Jewish state.

"I blame the American Jewish establishment for not doing enough for peace in the Mideast because it's unconditionally helping Israel's government," he said.

"The Jewish institutions in the U.S. are supporting any Israeli party because they feel obliged to support Israel in general. They should support the society, not the state. "

Sand, a self-described liberal who teaches French intellectual history and cinema history in Israel, speaks frequently on French television about the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. He fears that American Jews would still fund Israel's government even if an extreme-right coalition came to power.

A Jewish Voice for Peace, he says, is a worthwhile cause not only because it's politically unaffiliated but because it improves the image of American Jews in the eyes of Palestinians.

Doumani agreed, saying that the good will from Jewish groups "reinforces positive images Palestinians may have had for American people as separate from the U.S. government."

Although no immediate crisis has prompted the upcoming fund-raising effort, Doumani said one objective of the gathering is to point out the volatility brewing beneath the current deadlock.

"I don't see the peace process meeting the minimum needs for peace in the area," he said.

"I see Netanyahu as an obstacle for peace. And the Palestinian Authority is weak and acting more as surrogate police force than a government that serves the interests of its population."

Joining Doumani and Sand at the event will be former Knesset member Marcia Freedman and Sema Dudum, a member of the Arab Women's Solidarity Association and a board member of San Francisco's Arab Cultural Center. Musical performers are Za'atar, The Gonifs, Thais Mazur Dance Troupe and LifeDance Theater.

Looking forward to the mix of Arab and Jewish culture, Doumani said, "I support any event that calls for mutual understanding and aid. Working together is a more effective way of getting our voice heard."