Kefah Abukhdeir: 'We don't have to love each other, but we do need to respect each other'

My guest this week is an activist for Palestinian rights from East Jerusalem. Kefah Abukhdeir is a Palestinian-American who co-directs and teaches at EduReach, a local Palestinian educational and learning organization, and I had the honor of speaking with her about her family’s deep roots to the holy city, her American roots, and what she thinks about the end of the Trump era.

But what I’m really thankful for in our conversation is, first of all, the glimpse that Kefah gives me about life in East Jerusalem, which I’m not sure is really known to most people who think they have an understanding of this conflict.

And I’m also grateful for her willingness to share a bit of her connection to Mohammed Abukhdeir, her 16 year old cousin, who was brutally murdered in 2014 by Jews. It was a murder that horrified this region, and it was part of the chain of events that eventually led to the 2014 Gaza war. Last year, HBO produced in Israel a show called "Our Boys," based on the events of those days.

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