A group of women from the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa will be screening “Partners for Peace’ in Ottawa on June 17th. The public is invited. Read more 

Partners for Peace is a feature-length documentary film by a Canadian director that follows a delegation of American and Canadian women on a journey to Israel/Palestine in 2013. Their quest is to learn about the decades-long conflict and to reach out in solidarity to women activists striving amidst the turmoil. Confronted by the complex and brutal depth of the conflict, they are inspired by the commitment and sacrifices of the women they meet, and challenged to ask difficult questions of themselves. It was co-produced by Ottawans Ed Kucerak and Jane Gurr.

The film showing is being organized under the auspices of the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa which has a partnership with the Diocese of Jerusalem.

At times gut wrenching, the film shows how the women react to the clear injustices of the situation and struggle to make sense of it. One particularly dramatic sequence shows the group debating whether or not they should visit one of the illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank. In the end, they do visit the settlement and have an interesting exchange with several Jewish women settlers (all of whom speak with a noticeable American accent.)

While the film touches on the issues facing Palestinian citizens of Israel, it mostly tends to focus on the consequences of the occupation of the West Bank since 1967. (There is no reference at all to the issue of the 5 million Palestinian refugees, who constitute about half of the Palestinian population and probably the ones in the most need of assistance.)

The film screening will be followed by a discussion period with the participation of Rachel Vincent of the Nobel Women’s Initiative.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 17, 2015
Doors open at 6:30;
ST. STEPHEN’S CHURCH, OTTAWA
930 Watson St. (near Pinecrest/Queensway)
Parking lot at 2821 St. Stephen’s St.
TICKETS ($10) AVAILABLE IN ADVANCE
From Heidi Danson, Synod Office, 71 Bronson Ave.
heidi-danson@ottawa.anglican.ca

The public is invited to join the group of diocesan women who will travel this year
to our partner Diocese of Jerusalem, as they watch and discuss a
documentary about a similar venture from the Nobel Women’s Initiative.

“Things are so much worse than I’d even imagined.
And there’s so much more hope than I could have dreamed.”
Jaclyn Friedman, Writer, Activist, Partners for Peace Delegate