08/17/2018
More from our series sharing some of the reasons why our members are involved in TIPAC:
Here's a reflection from Nicole Roca, a rising junior who recently went on AIPAC's Campus Allies trip to Israel!
"As a Catholic growing up in Alabama, my friends and family found it pretty random when I became involved with pro-Israel advocacy. And until less than a year ago, so did I. My family had always been in support of Israel, but it wasn't something we often thought about, much less advocated for.
In July 2017, I went to my first AIPAC Saban Leadership Seminar to learn more about the US-Israel relationship and what it means to be "pro-Israel." As both a USG senator and member of the Student Leadership Team at Tulane Catholic, it was interesting to talk to other campus leaders from around the country, learn how they became involved, and why they believed this cause was important. Since that summer, I have realized how connected we all are to Israel and why this issue is so important to me.
Every American has some extent of a relationship with Israel: the country is one of our strongest allies, by far our strongest in the Middle East; Israeli technology and innovation benefits people worldwide; the collaboration of our militaries has been beneficial in a very volatile time; the list can go on forever.
My strongest connection to the country initially stemmed from my religious background. I always had a desire to visit the country to see the Holy Land and learn more about the roots of my faith. As I became more interested in politics, I was fascinated by how the overlap of politics and religion has affected the history of this country. This made me want to visit the Israel even more because I figured the best way to learn about the dynamics of the country was to see it for myself.
Earlier this summer I had the chance to do just that. I, along, with 58 other non-Jewish students from around the US, had the opportunity to travel to Israel. I had some of the most overwhelming religious and educational experiences of my life. We visited numerous religious and historical sites and met with countless individuals: generals, government officials, Jewish and Arab citizens of Israel, Palestinians, a woman who lives near the Gaza Strip, an Ethiopian Jewish community, a Palestinian Muslim and Orthodox Jewish Israeli in the West Bank working together to promote peace, and so many more. Often times I left conversations more conflicted than before. That is because the situation surrounding Israel is so complex; the more you learn, the more you realize how little you know.
It is easy to look from across the ocean, make this a two-sided issue, and decide who is right and who is wrong. But that is a flawed approach that helps no one. Claiming to be strictly "pro-this" or "pro-that" only alienates one side from the other. I now have a new perspective of what it means to be "pro-Israel," and that it is best to be "pro-solution." There is no perfect scenario for peace in the Middle East, and I for sure do not have an answer. But through education and conversations, we learn there is more that brings us together than separates us."
