Palestinian Law, Human Rights, & Palestinian Refugees Internships

My time in Palestine has been incredible. I rode horses at sunrise, interviewed the director of Al-Haq, and established lifelong friendships. I came here with a desire to spotlight Palestinian voices, gain journalism experience, and improve my knowledge of Islam as a Muslim. I have been able to make significant progress toward all of these goals.

It has been hard to get homesick during my time here because so much here reminds me of home. I'm from Virginia in the United States, and Khalil is in every way a Southern town. Nablus reminded me so much of New York City, and the lovely town of Dura is like the Arab sister to my hometown.

It is also much safer here in the West Bank than news reports would have you believe. I have never felt myself to be at risk in any way. The most dangerous thing that happened to me here was accidentally sparking a space heater. I have been content, comfortable, and calm during my time here.

I am very grateful for all I have learned and for all the wonderful people I have interacted with during the short time I volunteered with the Palestinian Excellence Center (PEC). It has been a privilege to work with an organization that is well respected locally and well connected to the community.
Because of my interest in women’s rights and based on listening to the requests of the women we met via the PEC, I was able to create two small projects while in Hebron. The first was to teach professional skills at the Palestinian Family Planning and Protection Association. I ran a two-hour workshop on CV preparation and cover letter writing the Association's young volunteers.
My larger project is to help Palestinian women communicate their stories outside of Palestine. This project arose from hearing several women ask us as volunteers to share their stories. I am calling this project Amplifying Palestinian Women’s Voices. Through connections made for me by the PEC, I interviewed six inspiring women from the Old City, the Palestinian government, and the Al Fawwar Refugee Camp. I will translate and edit videos of the interviews into a short, cohesive documentary, allowing women to bring their stories to people across the world.
Fortunately, I have a lot of help with this project. Osama Hussein set-up the interviews and provided important conceptual guidance on the filming and production. Ghalya Abu Omar has been an excellent translator, both in this project and with the professional development course. She also learned to use a camera to record the interviews.
That leads me to reflect on one of my favorite parts of volunteering at the PEC, which is working with young local volunteers. I think the capacity building the center facilitates for young
Palestinians is a very important part of its work, and creating relationships between local and foreign volunteers helps foreign volunteers to better understand Palestinian culture.
I believe I made the most of my short amount of time here. Although I think all volunteers
would like to start working right away, the PEC’s method of scheduling the first week of a
volunteer’s stay with visits to local people and important sites creates perspective that informs further work.
I will miss Palestine very much. I have never interacted with people who are so welcoming, resilient, and kind, and I admire the Palestinian people deeply. I hope I will be able to return and to support people here from afar as well. I’d like to thank the PEC for this incredibly insightful opportunity

this is my second time visiting the excellence center, and it will not be my last. the first time i worked with the center I worked as an English teacher. I got to learn a lot about the education system and spend time with the local Palestinian kids and learn about their personalities and studying habits. my second time hear i participated in the human rights program. I missed teaching the kids, but with this program i got to learn a lot the history and day to day life of Palestinians. I got to hear stories and see for myself the struggles of the Palestinians suppression and occupation. I was able to visit multiple camps and family homes and learn about their future goals and optimism for a Palestine with no apartheid. The human rights program is a great way to make connections to local people and network with other volunteers to create plans to help the community. I loved my experience here and will be back very soon.

History is always written by victors. Instead of being documented impartially, it is usually being reported under the influence of some sort of ideology. Therefore, as a history and political science major student, it is imperative for me to view things as impartially and discreetly as possible.

In an era filled with information, with such vast information that it is arduous for us to distinguish accurate information from fake information, it is paramount for me to see eye to eye what really happened. With this in mind, I decided to fly to Palestine, to see what really happened, to see whether the news media, regardless of their political stance, is impartial or not, and most importantly, to document what happened so that I would be able to showcase the genuine situation of what Palestinians are facing day by day.

Before I came to Palestine, I thought the situation would be quite perilous. With the fact that I am a tourist, I feared I might be robbed by some random people on the street (As my skin color explicitly distinguishes me from local inhabitants). I even fear that my skin color might make me a target of some sort of extreme racial group, as I do not look Arabic at all, and there aren’t that many Asians traveling to Palestine.

Nevertheless, my experiences in Palestine and the excellence center have proven me utterly wrong. Contrary to my expectations, people here are so lovely that I have been greeted with a smiling face daily by people I do not know. They are so benevolent that they even treated me falafel balls when I said hi to them. In the center, my Arabic teacher, Miss Haya, taught me with patience and kindness even when my Arabic was pretty atrocious (Arabic is very sophisticated). Even though my Arabic pronunciations might not be comprehensible and even embarrassing, she taught me how to pronounce the vocabulary one by one with love and care. As a language teacher, Miss Haya's passion and devotion to her students are why I continue to learn Arabic after trepidations and obstacles. Overall, We are like a family in the center, where we congregate for breakfast, live together, go on field trips together, and spend our time in Palestine together. Even though some of the experiences might be daunting (as it is normal for a human being to be despondent after witnessing and hearing some of the most melancholiac and disturbing stories from people suffering from the atrocities being inflicted by some settlers), I have learnt more about appreciation and also treating people around us with affection and respect as we would never hope something like this would ever occurring upon anyone of us, including our worst enemies.

Everything happens for a reason and thank you for being one of the reasons that motivate me to continue on my goal. Everything wouldn’t have been so great without this center, Alhamdulilah.

My experience at Engage in Palestine exceeded all expectations!! I felt instantly welcomed from the moment I arrived in Palestine. It was easy to find the centre and my way around Hebron. I felt safe at all times, even walking alone. The family breakfasts at the centre made me feel at home instantly, every morning we share delicious food and stories and experiences with other volunteers. I have learnt so much from my experience with the centre, I was able to visit NGO's, Lawyers, Refugee camps and meet Palestinian families and understand their experiences. I would recommend this programme to anyone interested in experiencing Palestine, wanting to understand the situation here and wanting to engage in Palestinian culture!

My experience in Engage in Palestine exceeded all expectations!! I instantly received a warm welcome as soon as I arrived in Palestine. It was easy to find the centre and my way around Hebron, and I always felt safe, even walking alone. The family breakfasts every morning at the centre make you feel at home straight away, sharing delicious food and stories of experiences with other volunteers. I have learnt so much from my experience here, and am very grateful for the opportunities through the centre, visiting NGO's, law firms, refugee camps, and many Palestinian families. I would recommend this programme to anyone wanting to experience Palestine, understand the situation here and engage with Palestinian culture.

Hello, My name is Pearl and I am a University student from the United States. I have spent the last 3 weeks in Hebron, West Bank with the Excellence Center and absolutely loved my experience. The level of hospitality that I have received is unmatched by any other country I have been to. The Palestinians are so friendly and eager to share their food and culture with you.
With the Excellence Center I received a week of intensive Arabic class that really helped me improve my speaking skills. After the week we transitioned into our Human Rights focus of the program where we meet with various people in the area who shared their experiences with us.
In regards to safety, as a foreigner it is quite safe for your here. within Hebron there are no issues of safety. Within the Israel you will need to pass checkpoints and see guards with large guns, but again, for foreigners it is no issue.

My name is Hayden and I am a university student from the United States. I participated in the Human rights internship program at the Excellence Center for three weeks this summer. During this time we had the opportunity to meet with many people from the West Bank. From families living in H2 under Israeli authority to the Ministry of Education I was able to learn about a vast number of perspectives and experiences. I have been studying Arabic throughout high school and university and was eager to advance my fluency during my time here. The center provided us with an intensive Arabic class our first week to refresh our knowledge and accustom us to the local dialect. The classes were super helpful with a focus on speaking and ended with individual presentations in Arabic on a topic of your choice, mine being the scarcity of water in the West Bank.

A highlight of my time in Hebron has been the people that I have met, specifically at the center. Our host family, teachers, staff members, and other volunteers have been so nice and welcoming, making sure to check in on me and how I am doing and invite me to a lot of different events. The hospitality and kindness I have received here is like no other I have ever experienced.

Throughout my time here I was able to see many cities in Palestine including Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Ramallah, and Jericho. Traveling around the country was very easy and I never felt unsafe or in a dangerous position. Having an American passport brings one a lot of privileges in this country and allows me to never have to worry about my safety.

In the three weeks I have spent here I have learned so much about Palestinian culture and their struggle living under an occupation as well as their hope and determination. The center provides a safe, welcoming environment to get to learn about Palestine and I recommend coming here to anyone. I wish I was able to stay for longer.