On Reconciliation

Maya Savir has been a human rights and peace activist all of her adult life. She serves as Israel country director for Search for Common Ground, the largest international organization dedicated to peacebuilding. A professional in humanitarian and development work, she spent a decade working in Africa, where the stories of Rwandans and South Africans she met inspired her to write this book. She is the author of two works of adult nonfiction, one young adult novel, three children’s books and one work of adult fiction. The daughter of Oslo Accords architect Uri Savir, she lives in Tel Aviv with her husband and four children. Todd Hasak-Lowy is a novelist, essayist, translator, and short story writer. He is a professor of creative writing and literature at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.Aziz Abu Sarah, a Palestinian whose brother was killed in the conflict, is the co-author of The Future Is Peace. He runs a nonprofit dedicated to Middle East peace, and a travel company offering tours aimed at building empathy.

Maya Savir speaks the language of humanity, empathy, and equality. Her voice rises above divisions, carrying the stories of hope and healing in the most dire of situations. In a world often torn by conflict, she reminds us that another way is possible. She is not just a witness. She is a partner in our shared journey toward justice, healing and peace. ―Aziz Abu Sarah, Palestinian peace activist, journalist, social entrepreneur, and coauthor of The Future Is PeaceOn Reconciliation opens a window of light and hope in a reality that is hard, almost unbearable. It reminds us that reconciliation is not a weakness but a brave and necessary action. Savir invites us to observe the importance of reconciliation not only between nations but also within each nation, and demonstrates that it is possible to turn despair to hope. For Savir, writing is not only a tool, it is a vehicle for change. She writes from her soul, and this soul guides us to the most painful places, where she insists on seeking reconciliation between her Jewish nation and my Palestinian nation. ―Ayman Odeh, Palestinian Israeli lawyer, Knesset member and leader of the Hadash allianceMaya Savir has written a sober and necessary book, marked by unusual candor about her own society. She does not turn away from grief or from what justice and responsibility would actually require, and treats reconciliation as unsentimental, morally serious work: the hard, holy labor of learning to live together before all wounds have healed. —Yahia Lababidi, author of If You Cannot Say GenocideIn this thoughtful and deeply reflective book, Maya Savir confronts one of the most difficult challenges facing Israelis and Palestinians: how a future beyond war, occupation, and genocide might one day become imaginable. While reconciliation cannot be divorced from the hard political work of securing freedom, equality, and rights for all who live between the river and the sea, Savir reminds us that political change alone cannot heal the wounds of generations of violence and dispossession. Drawing on lessons from South Africa and Rwanda, she offers a compelling reflection on what it takes to acknowledge harm, confront trauma, and create the possibility of a shared future. —Sarah Leah Whitson, co-author of From Apartheid to Democracy: A Blueprint for Peace in Israel-PalestineI have a dream. I dream that this book will be taught in high schools, in seminars, in government. Maya Savir’s work is a lesson in the history of conflicts, in a citizenry that strives to improve the lives of both the individual and the majority, in a humane approach, in intelligent politics, in a commitment to a common future. … Savir’s prose is straightforward, elegant, and objective. ―MaarivThe encounters, the conversations, the characters, the descriptions and the insights Savir presents here are fascinating and thought-provoking. Savir somehow brings forth the stories gently but without sugar-coating them, in a clear and confident tone, and with humility. ―Globe

• ForewordIntroductionPrologueChapter One: A Consciousness Cast in ConflictChapter Two: The Uniqueness of a ConflictChapter Three: The Distance Between the Idea and RealityChapter Four: Between Romanticism and PragmatismChapter Five: LayersChapter Six: The HeartChapter Seven: On Reconciliation After October Seventh