Struggling Towards Peace in Times of Terror
Lecture by Avraham Burg
Former speaker of the Knesset
and prominent Israeli peace activist
November 9, 2004
UMass Amherst
On December 1, 2003, Avraham Burg and other Israeli and Palestinian civic leaders signed the Geneva Accord, a proposal that could pave the way toward a final peace agreement.
In contrast to his father, a former head of the National Religious Party and leader of the religious Zionist movement, Avraham Burg is a peace activist who believes Israel must give up land in order to ensure its survival as a democracy with a Jewish majority. He is also an Orthodox Jew who, as a leader of the secular Labor Party, advocates for pluralism and tolerance in Israeli society.
Biography of Avraham Burg
Burg's lecture was sponsored by UMass Hillel, the Office of Jewish Affairs,
and the Department of Judaic and Near Eastern Studies.
News coverage and opinion pieces by Avraham Burg:
Geneva Accord Splits Israeli Left
by Stewart Ain, The Jewish Week 12/05/03
Critics cite plan's concessions as too risky.
U.S. Must Return to the Table
by Avraham Burg, The Los Angeles Times 11/16/03
Only the West can bring peace to the Mideast.
On the eve of destruction
by Ari Shavit, Ha'Aretz 11/16/03
An interview with Avraham Burg on the failure of Zionism, Israeli politics and the Geneva Accords.
An Open Letter to my Palestinian Friends
by Avraham Burg, The Forward 9/26/03
A future of life or death, children with hope or despair, a Palestinian nation that is respected or despised - it is all in the Palestinians' hands.
A failed Israeli Society is collapsing while its leaders remain silent
by Avraham Burg, The Forward 8/29/03
Israel needs a new vision of a just society, or it will collapse.
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