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Bruins For Israel showcases the “How To Teach a Child To Kill” video on Bruin Walk.

A small television screen on Bruin Walk showing clips of media programs featuring Palestinian children being trained for warfare has faced opposition from several students. The presentation occurred during Islamic Awareness Week.

The student group, Bruins For Israel, organized the presentation promoting a screening of a similar documentary slated to be shown Monday. Their method of presentation and the timing of it prompted opposition from students from different communities.

Ross Neihaus, president of BFI, said the group has been planning this event for a long time and the fact that it occurred on Islamic Awareness Week is purely coincidental.

Neihaus, who is also a member of the United Arab Society, said it is important to understand that his group is not speaking about Islam, but is trying to raise awareness about some of the Palestinian Authority’s policies of training young children to engage in violent acts.

Several Muslim students expressed concern about what they called a one-sided portrayal of the issue.

“I’m afraid that they might forget to show the other side,” said Khadeeja Abdollah, a second-year undeclared student and member of the Muslim Student Association.

She added that the atmosphere in which these children are growing up – a disputed area of conflict – is important to keep in mind when watching the video.

Any interest the presentation has spurred among students was interpreted as a positive step toward starting dialogue between the two groups, Neihaus said.

“Other than a few cases, the reaction has been a largely positive one and students have shown a lot of interest and curiosity,” Neihaus said.

He believes that even opposition to the display can be seen as a positive thing since it made people stop and it promoted dialogue.

But other students believed the video did not promote peaceful discourse.

“There is constantly talk about the lack of peaceful dialogue and relations between the two groups ... a video like this that only enforces stereotypes, is definitely not helpful in reaching that goal,” said Lena Khan, a second-year political science and history student who is also an MSA member.

Those active in the campus’s prominent Muslim group were not the only ones concerned with BFI’s presentation.

Gideon Baum, president of the Jewish Student Union, said the presentation reflects poorly on the Jewish community as a whole.

BFI is only one part of the Jewish community and the majority of the community does not support the way BFI is going about advertising for their event, even though it might be politically effective, he said.

Baum said he also believes BFI should have rescheduled its event since it was a well-known fact that this week is Islamic Awareness Week.

But Neihaus maintains that his group is promoting peace through the program.

The display was aimed at promoting a Monday campus appearance of Itamar Marcus, who is the director of a group called Palestinian Media Watch. Itamar’s group compiles footage of the media in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and its affect on the children living in those regions.

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