“All beginnings are hard”, from “In the Beginning” by American writer Chaim Potok (1929 – 2002) is one of those opening lines transcribed in a notebook, diary, or journal to always keep at hand and mention it every time life puts important choices in front of us. In Israel and Palestine, important choices continuously follow each another and the scenarios are constantly evolving. Over the years, we have learned to follow the flow of events and “to take change as an opportunity”, to quote our local contact, Yasha.
The gender equality chapter, which is especially difficult in a conservative society like the Arab Palestinian one, and often takes a back seat to the project’s primary objective of letting children from different religions and cultures play together, has followed an unexpected path. The activities began in 2017 thanks to the resourcefulness of local coach Arturo Cohen and a collaboration on the pitch of two young Palestinian coaches, Rozy and Besan, who have always been passionate about football and are determined to pursue their dream of an “alternative” sport.
The group of Arab girls, of which there as many as 25, are still training on the pitch at Beit Zafafa with Coach Ali Utman, a former professional player and active for a long time in organizing collaborative sporting moments with the Municipality of Jerusalem.
Of course, the road has not been without obstacles: we have suffered a lot of pressure over the years from the inhabitants of the Palestinian neighbourhood of Jerusalem, right on the border between East and West Jerusalem, people who did not want to see little girls in shorts running after a football. So, we moved training from Friday, a day of prayer for the Arab world, to Wednesday; we avoided having girls and boys play on the same pitch, believing that the girls’ right to play, including playing football, was worth the compromise.
Today, the girls’ group continues to train in Beit Zafafa, and while in the beginning, participation in integration tournaments between all the local centers was unthinkable, this year they have participated twice in that festive moment that brings together boys and girls from Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Tel Aviv… By the way, a new group of girls has also started training here this year and, despite the clichés, they do so with grit and a desire to participate and win!
