THE HALA FOUNDATION FOR ARAB-AMERICAN LEADERSHIP

Trial by Fire: the Arab Women's Council: 1982

[co-authored with Nouha Alhegelan]

For those of us who were there at the start, it is at times difficult to believe that the Arab Women's Council grew from feelings of frustration and anger into an idea that mobilized hundreds and, in just one year, became an organization with three chapters and more than 140 members.

The Council was officially organized on June 14, 1982, only days after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon. Yet, while the crisis was the catalyst, it cannot be credited on its own for coalescing the sensibilities, the talents and the energies of the women who created the Council.

Before Israel's devastation of Lebanon, we were already responding to events in the Middle East, as individuals or small groups. The women who finally formed the Arab Women's Council were deeply involved in many cultural and political activities and events related to the people of the Middle East.

Lines of communication, mutual respect, and awareness of each other's commitment existed long before the horror of Lebanon. As we lived what was happening through the stories of friends and relatives, the images were never vicarious for us. Our children looked like the children in the photographs of Lebanon. Our parents reminded us of the old people looking for shelter in the shattered cities. We recognized buildings known since childhood, places filled with memories.

The blunt unexpected immediacy of Lebanon forced a powerful blending of the personal and political within us. These feelings were always unique and individual, but there was a common response: "There must be something we can do." The Council was a fusing of the personal, private pain and frustration into collective action.

The event that galvanize our group effort was so monstrous that petty concerns shattered before they could get hold on our activities. Our individual commitment found expression in a demonstration of unity and in a clarity of purpose that produced quick decisions.

If ever the term " trial by fire" applied to any group, it applied to us. We found ourselves dealing directly and without pretensions with one another. We found ourselves standing together in our interactions with both friendly and unfriendly organizations. From the beginning, we recognized our limitations. We had no financing, only very limited organizational experience, and no established reputation in the Arab or Arab-American community. There was only one course for us, we had to turn these liabilities into assets, coordinate our efforts and involve other groups and individuals to strengthen both our own and the overall response to the crisis.

Our first step is an organization was a letter to the Arab heads of state urging them to develop a unified strategy in response to the invasion. The next day, we held a press conference and read a joint statement signed by 90 women. Our existence as an organization of independent women capable of strong action became known.

All the "negative" stereotypic images of us as women, as "Arab women," were to become assets in our favor. Most Americans see Arab women as passive, uneducated and "behind the veil." Our actions contradicting this image kept curiosity about us high. As wives of diplomats we were considered socially effective but with little more to offer. That, too, we used to attract and hold attention as our activities increased.

Americans expected us to be as divided as their image of Arabs generally suggested. Again, the negative expectations were turned to positive advantage as we proved our solidarity under trial and pressure.

Finally, we created a serious image, completely congruent with the devastating situation. This image was so organic, so much a part of the situation and our own feelings, that rules were unspoken, organization a logical and natural set of responses. We never let ourselves forget why we were organized. Each member, responding to a personal commitment, upheld the integrity of the Council as we would any personal act. Our silent vigil was a case in point. Here were women, in black, carrying candles and standing in silence for hours in front of the White House. It was strong, it was individual, it was dramatic -- and, as a result, it was newsworthy.

We allowed, indeed insisted, that our efforts as a group be personal expressions. The letters to political leaders and newspapers were handwritten by each member and by many of our friends. The vigil, the press conferences, the interviews and the telephone conversations were all filled with personal responses and reactions.

If the tragedy of the Lebanese and Palestinian peoples was to be communicated, the communicators and the message had to be as real and as personal as the event itself. We had to penetrate the media image of the invasion, an image that did not communicate to Americans that human loss and suffering in Lebanon.

Our goal was simple: to utilize our presence in United States as best we could by making a significant contribution to ending the tragedy in Lebanon. Had we been on the scene of the invasion, we might have done other things, had other choices of what to do. However, we were in the United States. There was only one level of participation open to us: providing information that we hoped would help change public opinion and consequently change US policy toward the Arab people -- our people.

Many members had already initiated a response to the incredible inaccuracies and information gaps we perceived in the news. "Fact Sheets" were published giving accurate information and a different viewpoint on the events in Lebanon. The response was slow at first, but soon these fact sheets became an integral part of the Arab communities? information efforts in United States. But this was not enough. We clearly saw the need to reach a much wider audience. Within eight days of the invasion, we met in Washington, DC and decided to place advertisements in major newspapers. We also targeted groups of Americans for a letter campaign.

Utilizing our most important resource -- groups and individuals who shared our commitment -- was an important key to whatever success we attained during the crisis. We gathered lists from every possible source. American friends sent lists of all kinds. We had the lists of relatives, of business associates, of church groups, of women's groups. Actually, we wrote to anyone who might be at all receptive to our information and motivated to action. We also organized Arab and American friends to write letters to editors and commentators in the print and broadcast media regarding their coverage of events in Lebanon. We believe then, and still do, that the American people can and will respond to end human pain and suffering. We also recognize that the task was unending and complex, requiring a vigilance that had defeated the efforts of many before us. Yet, this was our goal and we were determined to be as effective as possible. Three activities were particularly effective. One allow for regional, even local focus on the Council throughout America, while the other drew national and international attention.

The first was a tour by six Council members throughout the United States, visiting 22 cities, appearing on 69 television and radio programs, and giving 33 newspaper interviews. Each person carried her own perceptions of the tragedy and a very human perspective on the "geopolitical battle" being fought in Lebanon. The second was a visit by the Council's president, Mrs. Nouha Alhegelan, to Mrs. Nancy Reagan. On June 18, only four days after our formal organization of the Council, Mrs. Alhegelan delivered a message from the Counsel to the First Lady. Mrs. Reagan was very touched as Mrs. Alhegelan told her of the many human tragedies occurring every day in Lebanon. This meeting became famous, often cited by commentators in their discussions about Lebanon.

The third event to draw international attention was the hunger strike by nine members of the Council. From July 28 to August 4, national and local television and radio stations, newspapers and wire service reporters followed the hunger strike. The women held a permanent press conference that was a constant and tangible reminder of the human suffering experienced for months by our people in Beirut.

In the last days of the hunger strike, Israel increased its bombing and invaded Beirut. Events had outstripped our small statement and it became painfully inadequate in light of new tragedies and horrors. On September 18, news of the massacres at Sabra and Shatila became public. Plans to hold a conference in October were canceled. Again, the enormity of events in Lebanon drew our efforts to an immediate need for response to the devastation.

Once again the Council organized the vigil: hundreds stood in front of the White House for four days with a banner saying: "Enough is Enough! No More Massacres! Against Israel Out of Lebanon Now!" With other organizations, members participated in a memorial service and motorcade. The memorial service attracted television and newspaper coverage.

Our information efforts continued throughout the fall. At the end of 1982, we sponsored a tour of the United States by Dr. Amal Shamma?, chief of pediatrics at the Berbir Hospital in Beirut. With the cooperation of other Arab-American organizations and the Arab League, she visited 22 cities in 14 states to describe as an eyewitness the medical complexities of the invasion and the treatment of thousands were maimed. Her accessibility to the American people was significant: 36 radio and television interviews; 19 newspaper interviews; 16 speeches before A rotary and Lions clubs; visits to five hospitals; and 26 meetings with congressmen, senators, congressional aides and international aid agencies.

As time passed and events in Lebanon no longer created headlines, new efforts were needed to communicate the human suffering the continued in Lebanon without the glare of TV cameras. Our information campaign had been a success in the midst of crisis, yet even as we felt a sense that we have done our duty and done it well, the lack of peace in Lebanon left us with a deep sadness. New action and new approaches were needed and a decision made after the fighting and before the massacres remained to prepare a comprehensive plan of action for our organization's efforts. Our goal is still simple: to provide information about the human dimensions of life for the Lebanese and Palestinian people and our viewpoint on the Arab-Israeli conflict. Many projects undertaken from the fall and winter of this past year were accomplished with the cooperation and coordination of other Arab-American organizations.

The Council is sponsoring a photographic exhibit that has traveled to six US cities and is scheduled for others. A half-hour slideshow has been developed showing Beirut in the worst days of the war and has been touring throughout the United States. Our latest product, now in its last phase, is a for state essay competition for 11th and 12th graders on "the Arab-Israeli Conflict: a Solution." One winner will be chosen in each state and will travel with his or her sponsoring teacher on a two-week trip to Tunisia, Syria and Jordan. Some 8000 mailings were made to school principals and teachers of English and social studies along with information kits on the countries to be visited.

As we look back over our tumultuous first year, we realize that we must consider this only the beginning. We believe the effectiveness of the Councils work has its roots in each person?s commitment to the goals that motivate us all throughout a time of crisis. The challenge now is to demonstrate that we can be effective, not only in adversity, but also in response to the great need to make the Arabs and their cause better known to the people of the United States.

This article, co-authored by Nouha Alhegelan, at that time wife of the Saudi ambassador to the United States, details the first year of the Arab Women's Council, following the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in June, 1982.