Hummus | Lisa Goldman

Palestinian-Israeli rapper Saz, performing at Tel Aviv’s Levontin 7, which hosted a fundraiser for Physicians for Human Rights. A diverse group of Israeli (Arab and Jewish) artists performed, attracting a much-larger-than expected audience on a Friday afternoon. The money went to buy medical supplies for hospitals in Gaza.

A poster in the underpass at Jerusalem’s central bus station. The photograph is of the late Lubavitcher rebbe, who left no heir – which is why some of his followers think he will turn out to be the messiah. The caption read, “The messiah warns: a Palestinian state is a danger to the Jews!”

Abu-Dhabi Hummus in Tel Aviv. Note the spelling: Abu Dubi. Photo by DH.

This is the hummus that DH and I ate for lunch. It was a gorgeous, warm afternoon in the middle of a Tel Aviv winter week. We soaked up the sun and enjoyed the break from the war and the elections.

Hummus is very important in Israel. It’s fair to say it’s a national obsession – to the point that my friends in Tel Aviv were shocked to hear from Mohamed that Egyptians don’t actually, um, eat hummus. How can this be?!

I know a documentary film maker whose next project is a documentary about hummus. Because non-Israelis just don’t understand this national obsession, so he wants to explain it.

Jews from Middle Eastern countries (Mizrachim) compose more than half the population of Israel. Sometimes they argue about who makes the best hummus. Once there was an episode of a popular comedy show (Naor’s Friends) that featured a hummus war between the Mizrachi owner of a north Tel Aviv restaurant, and the Arab owner of a well-known place in Jaffa. But the other characters in the show – the hummus eaters who were torn between loyalty to the Mizrachi hummus man and preference for the Arab man’s hummus - were mostly Ashkenazim. Watch the episode here (sorry, no English subtitles).

For more about hummus, please consult this excellent blog by local hummus fanatic Shooky Galili (I think he’s Ashkenazi too).

Israelis pronounce hummus like this: “khoomoose.”

The following is a letter that was sent today to Pinchas Buchris, the Israeli Defense Ministry Director-General. To paraphrase the person who sent it to me, it just goes to show that this conflict is all about who owns the hummus!

Hummus by Liormania on Flickr, Creative Commons

Dear Mr. Buchris,

On behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and our more than 2 million members and supporters worldwide, I am writing to propose an idea that would draw attention to how simple it is to reduce violence. I’ve attached a copy of a poster that we hope you will allow us to post on both sides of the Gaza Strip and West Bank barriers. The sign depicts what the world wants to see: Israelis and Palestinians breaking bread together, something that often seems unachievable. The meal is vegetarian-the only diet that does not involve bloodshed-and the poster carries the slogan “Give Peas a Chance,” which is inspired by John Lennon’s song about war. We have also included the statement “Nonviolence Begins on Our Plates: Go Vegetarian” on the sign in both Hebrew and Palestinian-Arabic.

Throughout the Middle East and the world, animals raised for their flesh, eggs, and milk routinely suffer physical and emotional pain, terror, and death. Certainly, these are horrors that humans come to understand during times of war. Treated as inanimate objects who are not worthy of our respect, many animals are still conscious and able to feel pain as they are skinned and dismembered-something that can only be described as torture. Although we are often powerless to stop much of the violence in the world, every time that we sit down to a meal, we can make the choice not to participate in violence against animals.

While choosing a falafel sandwich over a lamb chop might not create instant peace, it will reduce the amount of preventable suffering in our world, which is valuable in and of itself. International peacemaker Mohandas Gandhi said, “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”

Please let me know that we have your permission to place these posters on the barriers. Thank you for your consideration.

Very truly yours,
Ingrid E. Newkirk
President

Update: Mohamed took the time to go over to the PETA blog and confirm that this is not a joke. Voila, the posters.