Germany
17.08.2020

Addressing Antisemitism and Anti-muslim racism through education – finalization of simulation game

In cooperation with our partner KIgA we have developed the simulation game “Our common future” that deals with an international youth conference where participants discuss solutions for peace in the “Middle East Conflict”.

Even today in 2020, peace between the parties of the so-called “Middle East Conflict” seem to be a long way off. Although in some Israeli cities like Haifa, Jaffa or Nazareth there is peaceful co-existence between Jewish and Arab Israelis in everyday life, violent clashes between the Israeli army and Palestinians from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank still occur regularly. So far, Israelis and Palestinians have not been able to agree on a sustainable solution to the conflict, but rather more and more obstacles are being put in the way of peace.

Considering Germanys particular historical role in the conflict and the increase of Anti-semitism and Anti-muslim racisms in Germany, it is important to better understand the multitude of perspectives on the conflict and its complexity. The conflict itself is too often portrayed as a “black and white” scenario. For that reason, we have worked intensively with our colleagues from KiGA throughout the last months to develop a simulation game that addresses this issue. The simulation game is designed particularly for political education in Germany, but can be adapted to other contexts.

Thus, the aim of the simulation game " Our Common Future" is for participants to better understand “the other side" and jointly develop an action plan with ideas and possible solutions for a sustainable peace in the Middle East conflict. In the scenario, the fictive Peace Initiative for Israel and Palestine (FIP), an association founded by Israeli and Palestinian youth, is organizing a youth conferences outside of the conflict zone in Cyprus. The Israeli and Palestinian actors will discuss the topics: Identity, Refugees, Jerusalem and Territory.