I was watching a documentary last quarter, in which a reporter for Al Jazeera joked that the conflict would be solved if only Israelis and Palestinians were forced to cross the border any time they wanted to buy cigarettes. I know, all these jokes are so simplified (hence their comedy), but I can't help but wonder, "If it were only that simple..."
Reading the introductory information on the Jerusalem Project for this class, and some of the jokes that were made behind the scenes, I often thought of this reporter's comment. At times, I felt as though the project and its coordinators were overcomplicating the task at hand, prying at closed wounds, begging to keep them bleeding. They were fighting over terms like "revivalism" versus "folklife," debating squares of "shared" or "divided" lawn space on the Mall. Their inability to resolve these smaller questions for the purpose of putting on a festival in a neutral territory begs the question: How will they ever solve the real issues? I also tend to agree that perhaps the Smithsonian Folklife Festival wasn't the right venue for this contested representation. After all, Mom, Dad, and the kids, touring Washington on the Fourth of July are probably not prepared to watch a debate broken out on Middle Eastern politics, all while eating their falaffel. The project would do better on a college campus, where twenty-somethings are prepared for such multitasking.
But if Jerusalem didn't work, why then did Ireland? Or India? I wonder if the representatives from these other countries to the festival cared so much about their image on the Mall, and were so meticulous with details. I also think the U.S. has put itself in such an implicated position with Israel, that its smaller-scale investment in the Jerusalem Project is rather telling. The project's failure, ultimately on account of the U.S. counterpart, says volumes about our supposed "neutrality." The complication of Jerusalem being represented in Washington was described well by Galit Hasan-Rokem in her article "Dialogue as Ethical Conduct: The Folk Festival That Was Not."
Hasan-Rokem says, "... the attempt to represent one (two?) capital(s), Jerusalem, at the heart of another, Washington, constitutes a complex case of mise en abyme [...] It may be of value to recall that both cities claim the role of centre of the world."
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hey josie. yeah i've heard of american apparel's founder...i think he's trying to do good things but his clothing is overpriced and his stores have too much ego. the people in there are just so freakin hip. i mean most of the stuff is pretty stylish but i dont think im cool enough to wear that stuff. there's an interesting story right now about how woody allen is suing american apparel for unauthorized use of his image in a billboard. i cant really find a link but you should google that.
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