Yesterday, Thursday May 22, after a full day of classes, we extended our day to include a visit to (a "briefing" at) the U.S. Embassy (3 - 4:30 pm) plus a meeting at the Arab League (7 - 9 pm). A trip to "America" (which is where we were for the afternoon, on U.S. soil again ... albeit in the center of Cairo) was exciting for all 35 students - leaving all electronics at the security desk (especially fun for Engineering students!: laptops, cameras, calculators, cell phones, flash drives, iPods), wand scans, bag checks, visitor ID cards. Then, the actual "briefing" included talks by 3 Americans - all Foreign Service personnel - about what a great job it is for an American to "represent" American interests abroad. Sure, it's a challenge, but "someone has to do it" -- to make the Arabs understand our war in Iraq and our support for Arab dictatorships and our "empty pledges" to promote democracy, freedom, and human rights (yes, more editorializing by Dr. Denis). These "monologues" left most of the students "underwhelmed" ... and some said it even made them rethink their hopes of joining the State Department or Foreign Service.
And then we went to the Arab League ... where our students' interests in international diplomacy and supporting the values of America abroad were re-established. How strange, I thought, that it took an Arab diplomat to encourage our students' interests in American diplomacy. Ambassador Hisham Youssef, Chef de Cabinet for Amr Moussa, the Secretary General of the Arab League, was a "hit" with our students. He was more than generous with his time, spending over 2 hours with us -- during a period of time where he is also involved in negotiating an end to the crisis in Lebanon! Sitting around the formal desk of an Arab League Committee conference room, our students (all "dressed to the nines" in their suits, ties, dresses and heels) asked him intelligent, probing, thoughtful, "tough" questions -- about Israel, US policy in Israel and Palestine, Iraq, Sudan and Darfur, women in the Arab world, "democracy and freedom", the gaps between rich and poor across the Arab world ... I was one very proud professor!
Ambassador Youssef in turn asked our students questions about their perceptions of the Arab world, and Egypt in particular; "did your parents worry that you were going to a dangerous place?!" (with a quick statement that, "now you see it is not dangerous, and you're probably also surprised about how much fun you can have here!").
As opposed to the "flat" tone of the Embassy visit, our time at the Arab League was a truly engaging discussion. It was over 2 hours of give-and-take, friendly and tough discussions, and it ended in the great hall of the League itself, the "General Assembly"-style hall where all the diplomats gather for summits, League meetings, debates and negotiations. Our students went crazy when they entered the palatial hall and experienced a sight that is otherwise reserved for VIPs, Kings, Presidents, Foreign Ministers. Then, when they were told to "go for it", they ran around the opulent hall, and chose their "favorite Arab states" so they could get pictures taken behind the flags and at the desk of Libya, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco ... one of our Jewish students said he was "so tempted" to sit at the Palestine desk, but that he just couldn't bring himself to do it. That same student "connected" in a very meaningful way with Ambassador Youssef. In addition to his generosity of time, his thoughtful and encouraging nature, I believe this "connection" was also due to the Ambassador's open acceptance of Israel and his statements that the Arab League will continue its efforts to support peace, security, and justice for both Palestinians and Israelis. He is an advocate of a 2-state solution and yes, he is adamant that Israel needs to be pushed to make concessions for peace just as America and Europe are demanding that Palestinians, too, must make reciprocal concessions.
This "evening of dialogue and diplomacy" was a highlight of our stay so far ... I look forward to reading students personal reports to see if it will have a "lasting" impression.
