Misguided ‘Shooting Back’ Puts Palestinian Kids in Danger

The first fundamental rule when working with children is their safety. They are to be protected at all costs and especially in high-risk situations. They are not pawns in the socio-political spheres of adults.

Ask Marian Wright Edelman, legendary founder of the Children’s Defense Fund in Washington, D.C., if she would support cameras being placed in the hands of youths to photograph criminal activity in the most dangerous neighborhoods in the nation’s capital, and she would probably conclude that this would be far too dangerous for the young people and their families.

In January 2007, B’Tselem launched “Shooting Back,” a video advocacy project focusing on the territories.

Its project provides Palestinians, including youths, living in high-conflict areas with video cameras. Its goal is to bring the reality of life under occupation to the attention of the Israeli and international public, exposing and seeking redress for violations of human rights.

I first heard of B’Tselem’s project in July 2008 when I received a call at my home in Los Angeles from a friend in Boston telling me that Brian Williams of NBC News had just aired a story about people using video cameras in Israel in a program called Shooting Back. She asked if I was connected to this group, as she knew me as the founder of Shooting Back. Apparently, B’Tselem, which has raised substantial sums of money from US philanthropists and foundations, had been visiting the US to make media appearances to further its cause and raise money. As a result, its efforts were widely covered in mainstream publications.

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Courtesy of:

Jim Hubbard

Jerusalem Post

September 17, 2008