Happy Passover! Happy Easter! Happy Eating!

Almost a year since I went to Lebanon, I am feeling nostalgic. My first full day in Beirut was Easter Sunday, in a year when the Orthodox and Western Easters fell on the same day. As I toured the city that day, I got a glimpse of the Beirut Synagogue, but was not allowed to get close or photograph it, because it is near some secure sites.

Anyway, the history of the Lebanese Jews has been on my mind since before then. And this week, during Passover and Easter, I am thinking of them, again. And what do I find but a Lebanese Jewish cook in Brooklyn. I will try to visit her kitchen, someday.

Here is a blurb about her from "The New York Times."

February 15, 2012
DINER'S JOURNAL; Food Stuff: Kosher Foods, for Cooks And Noncooks

By FLORENCE FABRICANT
A bountiful array of glatt kosher prepared foods, traditional and innovative, is the star attraction at Prime Butcher Baker, an elaborate new market created by Joey Allaham, who owns the Manhattan kosher restaurants Prime Grill, Prime KO and Solo. But there is also plenty for those who prefer to do the cooking.

At the entrance of the Upper East Side shop, which opens on Wednesday, is a temperature- and humidity-controlled glass case for aging steaks like rib-eyes. Beyond are a bakery and counters for fish, groceries and meat, including kosher wagyu and organic beef. Lining one wall are freezers filled with Lebanese stuffed vine leaves, flatbreads, kibbe and meat pies, along with soups, quiches, knishes, kugel, ready-to-cook sliders with various seasonings, and scores of other dishes.

Souad Nigri, a Lebanese caterer, prepares the Middle Eastern specialties; her stuffed onions and other vegetables are not to be missed. All the baked goods, including cookies, pastries, tarts and cakes, are pareve. The cheesecakes are made with tofu.

Prime Butcher Baker, 1572 Second Avenue (81st Street); (212) 616-1502 . Open Sunday to Thursday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Friday, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

This is a more complete version of the story than the one that appeared in print.

PHOTOS (PHOTOGRAPHS BY LIBRADO ROMERO/THE NEW YORK TIMES)

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And, so as to reflect properly my eclectic upbringing, here is a short video about Beiruti Christian celebrations of Easter. It is produced by Press TV, the Iranian government's media outlet.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3AGtZN-DiM

A Review of Anthony Shadid's New Book

I heard an interview on National Public Radio a week or so ago. It was with Mr. Shadid's widow; the subject was his new book, just published. "House of Stone" is about rebuilding his ancestral home in the southern Lebanese town of Marjayoun. Here's a review: http://articles.boston.com/2012-03-04/books/31118636_1_family-moves-stone-middle-east. It makes me think about the infinite ways we can think about what "home" is.

Sad News of the Past Couple of Weeks

Anthony Shadid, two-time Pulitzer prize-winning journalist who specialized in the Middle East, died of an asthma attack leaving Syria for Turkey last week. A Lebanese American from Oklahoma City, Shadid learned Arabic the hard way, in school as a young adult. There have been almost poetic tributes to him throughout the media because his journalism was uniquely insightful, informed as it was by local people, through countless conversations and intrepid reporting from house to house, cafe to cafe, group to group, and battlefront to battlefront. Here is one remembrance by James Zogby. It emphasizes how Shadid privileged the perspectives and experiences of those who live with policy and politics imposed on them, and how they perish or manage to survive. Shadid died less than two weeks ago; already I notice the absence of his in-depth stories in the mainstream media. Here's Zogby's essay, at: http://www.arabamericannews.com/news/index.php?mod=article&cat=OtherOpinions&article=5329&page_order=1&act=print


Anthony Shadid: A man for others
By James Zogby
Friday, 02.24.2012, 04:33am

"New York Times' reporter, Anthony Shadid died unexpectedly this week. With his passing we lose America's finest reporter on Arab World issues — at the time when Americans need his work more than ever. The importance of Shadid’s writings to Americans and Arabs cannot be overstated. His reporting was unique, reflecting both his understanding of the history and culture of the Arab World and his concern for its people.


[Photo description: ] New York Times journalist Anthony Shadid, middle right, interviews residents of Embaba, a lower class Cairo neighborhood, during the Egyptian revolution.

"Unlike so many of his contemporaries, Anthony appreciated the fact that the story of the region didn't begin the day he got the assignment. His reporting reflected a historian's appreciation for context. He understood contemporary Arab realities, because he knew from whence they had come. And for this reason, he also had a better sense of where Arabs were going than most of the pundits and commentators who fill our airwaves with their endless and often wrongheaded chatter.

More than that, Anthony's work was also distinguished by a poet's sense of texture. He wrote not with an ego, but with an eye for detail and an ear for the voices he heard. Where others "embedded" with troops, he walked the streets of war torn Arab countries "embedded" with people, bringing to life, for the rest of us, what ordinary Iraqis, Lebanese, Syrians, etc. were seeing and saying and feeling. He cared about the Arab people. To him, they were not faceless objects or the "other side" of a conflict. They were real people with hopes and fears, with stories worth telling.

What he brought home to his readers were the voices of his subjects and their story as it was unfolding through their eyes. When you read a Shadid dispatch from Baghdad, Beirut, or Tripoli, it was as if you had been transported to the place. The sounds and smells of the streets where he walked, the warmth of the homes he visited, and the emotions, and concerns of the people he met — all came through in full force.

He often put himself in harm's way to bring us stories we needed to read. He was shot and wounded by the Israeli military in 2003, covering West Bank violence; he was at risk in Iraq, staying with families whose lives were impacted by war and terror; he was kidnapped, held hostage and abused in Libya, telling the story of the early stages of that country's revolt; and he died of a freakish asthma attack while researching a story inside Syria that no one else could or would cover in quite the same way. The last time I spoke with Anthony was after his release from captivity in Libya. He didn't dwell on what had happened to him, he was on to the next story to tell. In a way, he was relentless in his passion for his craft. It was more than a job, it was his mission.

For his work, he won two Pulitzer prizes. But for the contributions he has made to our understanding of a region we need to know, but do not, we owe Anthony Shadid so much more.

If not for him, the voices of everyday folks across the Arab World would not have had an outlet to be heard. We would not have known of the dilemma faced by ordinary Iraqis as they struggled with the life and death issues of war and occupation; we would not have seen up close the impact of Israel's horrific bombing of Lebanon; or experienced the Arab Spring, with all its exultation and frustration from Egypt to Syria.

The Arab American Institute recognized Shadid's work in 2007. Following a moving tribute by Hollywood actor, Tony Shalhoub, Anthony took the stage. What impressed everyone most was his quietness. He was a gentle and humble soul. His greatness lay not his projection of "self,” but in his ability to serve as a conduit for others — he told us their stories, not his own; he brought them to life and made us all aware of their reality.

Anthony Shadid was a man for others, for Arabs and Americans. He was our bridge to a world we impact so profoundly, but whose reality we do not know. And now he is gone. I grieve for him and for his family. And I grieve, as well, for the countless souls in a troubled region who told their stories to Anthony so he could relay them to the rest of us. He was a man for others. This was his greatness and this is why we must lament his passing."

Public Spaces in Beirut

I have recently read a couple of articles on usage of public space in Beirut. One I read for pleasure (thanks, Dad), and the other for work-related research.

Rachel Doyle (2/17/12) wrote the first one: "In Beirut, the Zaitunay Bay Promenade Opens" (http://travel.nytimes.com/2012/02/19/travel/in-beirut-the-zaitunay-bay-promenade-opens.html?emc=eta1). Reading it reminded me of my first (and sadly, still only) visit to Beirut. I spent as much time as possible during my 19 days there walking along the Med. (As a Jersey girl and sailor, I am most at home on or along the water. It turns out that I was "down the shore" in Beirut!) For an idea of the location of the Beirut Marina, where the Zaitunay Bay Promenade is, look at https://foursquare.com/v/zaitunay-bay/4df7630ab3adec5a0b9a9b84 . When I thanked Dad for forwarding the link to the NYT article, I ragged a bit about the latest of Beirut's post-civil war construction efforts as being elitist. Although an upper middle income country (http://data.worldbank.org/country/lebanon), Lebanon's ratio of government debt to gross domestic product is one of the world's highest, at around 130%, because of the weak central government (see, e.g., http://www.albawaba.com/gross-public-debt-sees-marginal-drop-2011-388901). This means there is less public financing available for free and low-cost services, like spaces for civic and cultural events, parks, and playgrounds. Civil society organizations and the private sector help keep the country going, and the private sector needs to make a profit to do so.

For a Lebanese perspective on Zaitunay Bay, I went to the Beirut-based Daily Star (http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Culture/Lifestyle/2011/Dec-21/157459-zaitunay-bay-brings-back-old-glory-days-at-beirut-marina.ashx#axzz1mwEoDZme). There is reference to the need for public play spaces for kids and more fast-food and less expensive dining venues, but I don't think the average Lebanese could muster $35 for a modestly priced French dinner. I hope that the public and private sectors of Lebanon will continue the (slow but hopefully steady) trend exemplified by the developers of Zaitunay Bay Promenade to open up safe public spaces accessible to people of all ages and backgrounds. In my brief internet search, I didn't see any signs of one, but I hope there is a no-fee playground/space for kids in the new area. If not, is there a Lebanese performer who could do a benefit on Zaitunay Bay Promenade to raise money for one? You know, someone with rock-star quality and a big heart...like Bruce Springsteen ;-)

The second piece is "Spatial Transformations in the Lebanese 'Independence Intifada'" by Sune Haugbolle [The Arab Studies Journal, vol. 14, no. 2 (Fall 2006), pp. 60-77.] (This intifadah, or uprising, is known in the West as the Cedar Revolution.) The author shows how the redeveloped downtown area of Beirut was transformed from February through April of 2005 into a vibrant area for free political expression. The activity was precipitated by the demand for withdrawal of Syrian government troops from Lebanon as well as the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri (also the principal architect of the downtown development project). Although non-profit civil society organizations (from individual Lebanese, political parties, to scholars to non-profit media organizations) were the main participants/organizers, as with Zaitunay Bay/Beirut Marina, the private sector was involved.

The author provides examples of a cathartic spirit of national unity of over one million Lebanese who demonstrated in two rallies in March. The two rallies were organized by different political groups, the first on March 8th by Hizbullah, the Party of God (which is "pro-Syrian") and the second on March 14th, by the opposition (or mu'arada), which called for the Syrian withdrawal. The author writes that the opposition leaders tried to keep their followers from using harsh or violent rhetoric; unfortunately, the situation devolved over the course of the three-month uprising. It was a brief interval of national unity, though, with people of all backgrounds milling around, much speechifying, a wall for posting whatever graffiti or banners one wanted, a huge banner with a unity slogan in front of the National Museum, and an opening up of once strictly single-sect neighborhoods to mixed sectarian activity.

At the end of Independence Intifadah, Syrian troops retreated from Lebanon, but the spirit of "one Lebanon," to the extent that there was one, dissolved and is yet to be revived in as large a mobilization as one-quarter of the country's population. However, there are small pockets of unity-building that I have observed in civil society and government. I just try to remain hopeful that Lebanon will keep moving along, despite the current Syrian strife surrounding the country, other governments and outside groups with Lebanon-related political projects, internal conflict between the March 8th and 14th coalitions, the Palestinian refugee situation within Lebanon, and Israeli-Palestinian-Lebanese tension along the southern border.

Phew! Time for a walk in the park.

Socializing at work for the good of your organization?

In yesterday's New York Times is an article that caught my eye: "Building a Bridge to a Lonely Colleague, by Phyllis Korkki(http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/29/jobs/building-a-bridge-to-a-lonely-colleague-workstation.html?_r=1&nl=todaysheadlines&emc=tha25&pagewanted=print). Social scientists around the world are investigating any links between loneliness, collaboration, and productivity in the workplace. It makes sense that there would be. This may also have implications for integrating ethnic diasporas and other minorities.

Cultural diplomacy--what's not to love?

Though the Australian government and the Indonesian people have their differences, one diplomat from down under has figured out how to connect with at least some music lovers in the country with the largest Muslim population. So far, the arrangement sounds like it's working out: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/9007155/Australian-diplomat-becomes-Indonesian-singing-sensation.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+WhatsNewInPd+%28What%27s+New+in+Public+Diplomacy%29#When:19:55:53Z

Kahlil Gibran's Birthday

Thank you to Garrison Keillor http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/ for reminding listeners that today is the birthday of artist-poet Kahlil Gibran. Someday I would like to visit the neighbor in Boston's South End where he lived with his mother after immigrating at age 8 from Bsharri in Lebanon. Gibran died in 1931, famous for many works. See, e.g., http://www.library.cornell.edu/colldev/mideast/gibrn.htm

Gender Inequality in the Foreign Policy Community

I associate this thoughtful piece -- retrieved today from http://www.printfriendly.com/print/v2?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thedailymuse.com%2Fcareer%2Fforeigners-to-foreign-policy-not-a-womans-world-yet%2F -- with the panel I saw yesterday on Women's Political Participation [or lack thereof]in Lebanon (http://www.aspeninstitute.org/events/2011/11/10/womens-political-participation-challenges-opportunities)as well as with my experience at the U.S. Information Agency. The piece cites Scandinavian countries as examples of enlightened policy and practice. We're back to culture, I see. To deliberate this problem is to challenge cultural norms. Culture is slow to change, and only if we talk about it.

A Song About Community

I don't know exactly why I thought of the song "Stand By Me" as I sat down to work this morning, but I did. The thought didn't go away as I tried to start writing, so I went to youtube and found a couple of videos. I thought I would post them in case anyone out there might be interested. Maybe, as cheesy as you might find the videos, one or the other will resonate with you. They sure are meaningful for me. The first one is by Ben King, the composer, bless his soul. Sorry for any ads up-front, and best wishes...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vbg7YoXiKn0

and

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Us-TVg40ExM

Stand By Me | Playing For Change | Song Around the World
www.youtube.com
http://playingforchange.com/ - From the award-winning documentary, "Playing For Change: Peace Through Music", comes the first of many "songs around the world"...

Hope for the Unseasoned Visitor to Beirut?

With "Navigating the streets of Beirut, one landmark at a time," The Daily Star reporter Niamh Fleming-Farrell tells us about  a new process for giving people directions in Beirut  (http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Culture/Lifestyle /2011/Oct-29/152506-navigating-the-streets-of-beirut-one-landmark-at-a-time.ashx#ixzz1cMUoGnKb) . We'll see if this navigational tool of design firm PenguinCube catches on. It's a series of seven steps that could even fit on a business card. Some Beirutis have reservations about standardizing landmarks in their city and neighborhoods, since explaining to people where places are in their communities is a matter of identity as much as social conversation. Designer Tammam Yamout says he is trying to honor that, though. Who knows, perhaps there is hope for newcomers like me to be less late for appointments while honoring our hosts' cultural identity! 

The Lebanese Civil Coalition

The emerging Lebanese Civil Coalition is the first civil society group I have encountered that connects with the "Arab Spring" movements in other countries in the region. Read some preliminary information about the group at http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Local-News/2011/Oct-13/151155-lebanese-civil-coalition-launch-demands-rule-of-law.ashx#axzz1afBRzXyg and http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArticleDetails.aspx?ID=321639 . Unfortunately, I have not yet found a website for the LCC itself.

It's a small, increasingly interconnected world...

... and our diversity is infinite. Because of the Internet and worldwide web, and creative people, including Steve Jobs, those with the money and/or access can learn about and do so much more, minute by minute. With Steve Jobs' passing, I learned about his "halfie" biological connection with a Syrian American (e.g., http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/06/steve-jobs-son-of-a-syrian-is-embraced-in-the-arab-world/, http://www.yalibnan.com/2011/02/28/steve-jobs-is-a-biological-arab-american-with-roots-in-syria-apple/, http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44799722/ns/world_news-mideast_n_africa/t/arabs-embrace-steve-jobs-syrian-connection/#.TpAzm97nj1Q . But in addition to money and access, when I read these accounts, I think of community, luck, and the power of education. Steve Jobs was lucky to be born into a community that values education and has the resources to nurture children. That kind of culture generates infinite diversity. It's a culture that transcends national or geographical boundaries, yet is profoundly affected by them. I am endlessly fascinated by how we make babies, meaning -- and technology -- from our interconnectedness.

Post 9/11 Tensions between Irish and Irish Americans

Thanks to the University of Southern California's Public Diplomacy Twitter feed, there is an almost daily stream of links to diverse online news and analysis from around the globe. Yesterday, there was one from The Irish Times, touching on Irish economic interests and relations with the Irish American diaspora after the tragedy of 9/11. See http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2011/0908/1224303699425.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+WhatsNewInPd+%28What%27s+New+in+Public+Diplomacy%29#When:05:58:40Z .


Author Joe Breen provides an excerpt of his Master's thesis on media and international conflict. He frames the initial Irish government-media response to 9/11 as "consolation diplomacy" toward the U.S.  Indeed, as much as 25% of the 9/11 victims were of Irish descent. However, he writes, homeland-diaspora tension emerged in the weeks and months thereafter. Irish analysts began to criticize "America's appetite for war and revenge" and Irish Americans objected vociferously, including in an Irish American newspaper.

This is an interesting story about the place called "home" in one's national identity and perspective about the world. In my anthropology class on diasporicity, the professor asked each of us what home means. There was a variety of responses. Mine was that home is where my family is. That's complicated, because they are scattered around the U.S., and I also identify strongly with my Lebanese roots and the broader Middle East  generally.

By the end of the article I felt the author's message was that Irish Americans post 9/11 showed that they identify primarily with the U.S., at least in the situation of post 9/11 U.S.-Irish relations. If I were to have a conversation with the author, though, and read his thesis, I would be curious about the nuances of Irish American identity, e.g., across the U.S. and among generations.  

Related to yesterday's post...this just in...

Apparently U.S. Vice President Biden and Ambassador Locke have a less-than-desirable opportunity to wield their diplomatic skills: a friendship basketball game between Georgetown University and a Chinese team in Beijing resulted in a melee. See http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2011/08/18/world/asia/AP-AS-China-US-Basketball-Brawl.html?_r=1 .

Sally Jenkins sketches the broader political and cultural backdrop of the game at http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/georgetown-basketball-brawls-spark-isnt-clear-but-situation-was-obviously-flammable/2011/08/18/gIQAOkpVOJ_story.html?hpid=z2 . As well, she writes that Hoyas Coach John Thompson showed some diplomatic skill.




A New (Chinese) American Diplomat


Hat tip to John Brown's Public Diplomacy Press and Blog Review for August 3rd-8th, 2011, for flagging a China Daily report from August 3rd reporting on the appointment of Gary Locke as U.S. ambassador to China ( http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2011-08/03/content_13037261.htm , retrieved 8/17/11, “Locke sworn in as new ambassador to China,” updated: 2011-08-03 07:53, by Tan Yingzi and Qin Jize).

The article features a variety of officially sanctioned Chinese reactions to the appointment. One is a favorable assessment of Locke from a scholar of US-Sino trade relations, who cites the ambassador’s experience as US Department of Commerce Secretary. 

A second assessment, by an analyst at a research institute attached to the Ministry of Commerce, notes that only one of the assignments in Locke’s prior job was trade relations. Overall, the report quoted the analyst, Locke was just trying to “enhance strategic mutual trust” as any other US cabinet member conducting international relations would.  

A third assessment of the new ambassadorial appointment came from a university scholar, who argued that Locke’s Chinese roots will not cause him to behave differently than any other ambassador whose job it is to uphold his country’s national interests, although his experience with Chinese culture might help him: “to understand the mindset of the Chinese…. [A]nd I think his appointment as ambassador reveals the goodwill of the Obama administration.” 

The fourth perspective provided in the article is of an international politics scholar at a university: “Locke's new post shows the inclusiveness of US society, and Washington will take full advantage of Locke's Chinese background to develop its public diplomacy in China.” What I infer from this article is that at least elite Chinese will respond to Ambassador Locke as they would to any other ambassador from the US, with caution, but Locke’s common cultural ground with the Chinese in general may give him an edge, in engaging on both the official level and on the public diplomacy level, with the Chinese public. 

In my dissertation-drafting cave, I look at the appointment of this Chinese American diasporan to the US government’s highest post in Beijing as a wise leveraging of home-grown expertise and cross-cultural sensitivity.  Here’s to stronger Sino-US ties! 

The delicate matter of preserving pre-war Beirut

See http://business.blogs.cnn.com/2011/08/08/battling-to-save-beiruts-heritage-after-the-war/ for a brief, broad-brush account of the post-civil-war reconstruction of the Lebanese capital city. Rebuilding from violent conflict-in a small area of a small city or in the major world city of Beirut-is tricky business, requiring strong alliances among government, civil society, and business. I remember growing up near Asbury Park, New Jersey, and the killing and destruction during the civil rights protests of the early 1970s. There are still lived tensions there, as there most certainly are in Beirut. In both places, plenty of people have been trying to reconstruct, modernize, while preserving important memories. In both places, the process continues to take a long time.