How to Have a Constructive Conversation about Israel and Palestine

A Critical Conversations Event

Join the Pratt community for an important and timely discussion led by Professor Peter Krause, who will share insights and practical strategies for having constructive conversations about Israeli and Palestinian history and politics. Drawing from his book project and experiences teaching and leading discussions among Israelis, Palestinians, and Americans, Professor Krause will offer strategies to guide participants through the nuanced history and political factors that have led to the recent events of October 7, 2023.

This session will offer tools for engaging in meaningful and respectful dialogue, even among those who may disagree. Topics will include strategies like recognizing and acknowledging pain and harm without comparison, focusing on learning rather than winning and understanding power dynamics within conversations. Attendees will also explore how language shapes conversations, delving into the meanings and interpretations of terms like terrorism, intifada, and peace—-and how words influence both the potential for constructive conversations and a vision for a more hopeful future.

This event is open to current students, faculty, and staff. Light refreshments will be provided.

About Peter Krause:

Peter Krause is an Associate Professor of political science at Boston College and a Research Affiliate with the MIT Security Studies Program. His research focuses on Middle East politics, Israeli-Palestinian relations, political violence, nationalism, rebels and revolution, and peace-building. He is the author of Rebel Power: Why National Movements Compete, Fight, and Win (Cornell University Press, 2017), co-editor of Coercion: The Power to Hurt in International Politics (Oxford University Press, 2018), and co-editor of Stories from the Field: A Guide to Navigating Fieldwork in Political Science (Columbia University Press, 2020). He has offered analysis of Middle East politics, political violence, and U.S. foreign policy with various national and local media. In the summers, he leads academic programming and dialogue sessions for Our Generation Speaks (OGS) and Middle East Entrepreneurs of Tomorrow (MEET), two Israeli-Palestinian organizations focused on entrepreneurship and person-to-person peace-building. He is a former Fellow in the International Security Program at the Harvard Kennedy School, the Crown Center for Middle East Studies at Brandeis University, and the Democracy, Peace and Justice Forum at Uppsala University. He has a Ph.D. in political science from MIT and a B.A. in political science and history from Williams College.

This event is part of Critical Conversations: creating space for and educating one another about our multiple cultural contexts, activism, civil discourse, and academic engagement.