For my second project, we had to do the thinking skill of perspective. For my topic, I chose the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and I thought that because it was so controversial, it would make a rather juicy topic for perspective. This topic is extremely complex, and has so many different layers to it, so naturally, it's quite difficult to explain entirely, with all the nuances, details and little tad-bits, but I will do my best to explain and do so in an unbiased manner based on my research. The land that we know now as Israel and Palestine, was originally one, whole geographical region known as Palestine and it was situated in West Asia. It was the birthplace of Christianity and Judaism, but also holds significance to Islam, and as such, because of its historical and religious significance, it has long been coveted by many people, and was even dubbed "the Holy Land." Throughout its tumultuous history, it has been passed through many hands and empires, and by the late Ottoman period, was home to a diverse people of Christians, Jews and Muslims. But during the First World War, the British government promised the King of Mecca, Sharif Hussein, that he would have sovereignty over a proposed Arab nation, in other words, Palestine, if he helped overthrow the Ottomans, and he followed through on his part of the deal. Yet, a year later, they also promised the French (secretly) that they could cut up Arab lands under the agreement that the British could keep Palestine. And to top things off, they ALSO promised the Jews that they could live in Palestine through the Balfour Declaration. Needless to say, it was a mess, but after the Ottoman Empire died in the aftermath of the war, they nevertheless established a new colony named the British Mandate of Palestine. While in Palestine, the British would segregate and isolate the inhabitants of Palestine based on religious divisions and this would entice tension and religious divisions. The British also invited Jews to come over to Palestine, and so they did, purchasing land from non-Palestinian absentee Arab landowners, evicting the Palestinians who lived there, which further enraged them and incited more divisions. In the meantime, in Europe, Jews were undergoing terrible discrimination and persecution. A movement called Zionism called for the creation of a Jewish state, a safe haven for the Jewish people in the so-called "Holy Land." This plan eventually did come to fruition, as after the Holocaust, many displaced Jews flocked to Palestine to establish their new home. Palestine was eventually partitioned into Israel and Palestine, but this caused many Palestinians to become displaced and from then on, conflict upon conflict hit the area. As you can see, this conflict is incredibly complex, and my brief summary only displays a tiny fraction of just how nuanced it is.
History And Art
I understood that this topic required an immense comprehension of its nuance, so I decided to explore this complexity through a board game. We had a funky schedule this time around, so I decided to merge one project for both History and Art. For art, is it the actual artistic pieces of the board game, and for history, it is the rules, mechanics, and historical and factual context. Basically how this game works is that one person is the Israeli, the other a Palestinian, and based on historical context, they will each have a different experience, and they will try to fight each other for territory. The winner of the game will be the one that has the most territory. Either way, all players will understand what it's like, or at the very least a semblance of it, to be in the shoes of an Israeli or Palestinian experiencing this conflict. This, I hope, will also bring a more nuanced perspective into this conflict.
The Rules
The Card (text)
The Game Board and Pieces
And last but not least, my research and sources to which this project could have come to be without:
Thank you for your time and consideration in viewing this project!