Israeli and Palestinian Peace Organizations Honored at 2024 Hillary Rodham Clinton Awards
The event at Gaston Hall was sponsored by the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recognized two Israeli and Palestinian partner organizations on Tuesday as part of this year’s Hillary Rodham Clinton Awards.
Women of the Sun, a Palestinian organization, and Women Wage Peace, an Israeli organization, were recognized for their shared work toward peace in the Middle East in a ceremony in Gaston Hall.
“When women have a seat at the table, they can be very helpful advocates for de-escalating conflict and finding solutions,” Clinton said in her opening remarks to the crowd.
Following Clinton’s remarks, Angela Scharf, the foreign relations coordinator for Women Wage Peace, and Reem Hajajreh, the founder and director of Women of the Sun, took their seats next to each other among a panel of female world leaders.
For Women of the Sun and Women Wage Peace, the conflict is not merely a headline in the news. Both organizations are involved daily with the tragedies on the ground.
They both feel the pain and suffering of the past year acutely.
The co-founder of Women Wage Peace, Vivian Silver, was killed during the October 7 attacks by Hamas. Multiple members of Women of the Sun have been killed in Gaza since the Israeli government started its campaign to eliminate Hamas.
For the two women, the death toll on both sides has been more than enough.
“We decided to create a partnership to offer the world,” said Hajajreh through a translator. “Palestinian mothers and Israeli mothers; we refuse for our children to be killed.”
As part of that partnership, the two organizations promote peace by creating initiatives within the communities directly affected by the violence.
But such is not easy.
During a question and answer period, one student in attendance stated that pro-Palestinian protests on campus are often viewed as disruptive to discourse. The student asked the women how they communicate respectfully in such a tense environment.
Hajajreh explained that the two organizations work together to build a common language—a way of communicating that eliminates blame and focuses on the shared emotions of women and mothers around the world.
Scharf argued the situation is so dire that it's necessary to come together.
“We believe that there is another way, that without diplomacy we would just stay Israelis and Palestinians in an ever-continuing bloodshed,” said Scharf. “We don't accept that. We simply don’t accept it.”
As part of the annual event, Hajajreh and Scharf were accompanied by a panel of three other women, also honored with the award: the former president of Lithuania, Dalia Grybauskaitė, the former president of Estonia, Kersti Kaljulaid and the former prime minister of Australia, Julia Gillard.
Moments before Grybauskaitė walked on stage to receive her award, she was recognized for her bold stance against Russian aggression in Ukraine in 2014. After the Russian invasion in 2022, she has continued to be a prominent vocal opposition to Russia.
Kaljulaid was recognized for her work transforming the digital capabilities of Estonia. She shared her views on the evolving dilemma of advanced technology and artificial intelligence.
“We have to be vaccinated against these negative developments in the digital world,” she said.
Gillard was recognized for her work standing up for the rights of women in Australia. Gillard is famous for her “misogyny speech” she gave in 2012 to parliament, in which she criticized the opposition leader for sexist comments.
In her speech at the time, Gillard said of the opposition leader, “If he wants to know what misogyny looks like in modern Australia, he doesn't need a motion in the House of Representatives, he needs a mirror. That's what he needs.”
Her comments garnered both supporters and critics but solidified her role as a fierce advocate for equality in Australia.
The five women, all from different backgrounds, comprise this year’s group of honorees.
The Hillary Rodham Clinton Awards are an annual event run by the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security. Clinton has presented the awards every year since 2014.