Council Circle as a Peacemaking Practice

I recently thought of my teachers Itaf Awad and Aura Hammer in Israel/Palestine. I wanted to check in with them and also shine a light on their peacemaking work in the world through Council Circle practice. Here is a link to the interview.

Council Circle is a ritual container for conversation and sharing that disrupts traditional hierarchies and power dynamics. Everyone has a voice in circle practice and the aim is to offer each voice equal weight and consideration. Over time, Council practices can help us learn how to speak and listen from the heart, build trust and empathy, and make choices collectively. In this way, it holds the potential to restore balance and justice.

(There is one correction in this interview. Toward the end of our conversation, Itaf talked about her Council Circle work with women in Gaza. My follow up comment made the assumption that this circle in Gaza would eventually widen to include the voices of Jews and Arabs in Israel. After the interview, Itaf let me know that this particular circle will continue to be for the empowerment of women in Gaza. There is no plan or intention to expand it to include Israelis.

Itaf also said she wanted to add that Abu Akleh was the voice of the Palestinian people. She was a symbol of the freedom of the press and of democracy. And this is why this killing, as opposed to all the others, has had such an impact on her people.)