Netanyahu's visit piques interest of Jews, Arabs on campus

Students of all backgrounds expect the former Israeli prime minister's remarks to be educational, if not controversial. Netanyahu will speak at the newly re-opened Irvine Auditorium at 8 p.m. on October 6, highlighting his personal experiences as a world leader and discussing issues that will affect world affairs in the next century. His speech will be followed by a 45 minute question-and-answer session. Both Arab and Jewish student leaders said they hoped that members of all cultures would attend Netanyahu's speech, which they thought could spark a meaningful campus dialogue. According to Hillel Israel Committee Chairperson Aileen Goldstein, there are "a lot of mixed feelings" in the Jewish community about Netanyahu's appearance -- especially because of his involvement with the controversial Wye River Peace Accords last fall. "There is a lot of pride that the former Israeli prime minister is coming but there is frustration over politics," said Goldstein, a College senior. "If [Netanyahu's] speech focuses on the peace process, there will be a lot more discussion on campus because it's a pretty inflammatory topic." Penn Arab Students Society President Heba Abdulla, said the Arab community was similarly conflicted over the former Israeli leader's appearance. "It is not a bad thing that Netanyahu is coming and we're definitely not against it," said the College senior, pointing out that Arab students are extremely interested in what Netanyahu will say. "But the Arab community would also like to see Arab speakers to give another approach to what is going on in Israel and Palestine." Both leaders said that Hillel and PASS were considering the possibility of creating cultural events and discussion following the speech. And although more than a handful of other Penn students could not even identify Netanyahu, most who did recognize the former foreign politician said they were impressed that Penn attracted such an influential speaker. "He is a former head of state and I want to hear what he has to say about the peace process -- it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," College and Wharton sophomore Rohit Sangh said. For Wharton sophomore Joe Mazor, the speech will have special meaning. "Since I'm Israeli, I hope that he'll talk about Israel and the peace process? and how Israel fits into the future of world affairs," Mazor said. Political Science Department Chairperson Ian Lustick, a noted scholar of Middle Eastern politics, felt that students would gain valuable insight into the political process, regardless of their interest -- or lack thereof -- in Middle Eastern affairs. "Students of democracy should be interested to hear a politician whose success and failure were both dependent on sound-bite politics, the heavy use of television, the crippling of political parties and the polarization of public opinion -- almost all imports from the United States," he said. Lustick also said he hoped that Connaissance would arrange time for Netanyahu to speak with Penn faculty from the Political Science Department and the University's Middle East Center, although no plans have been set.