Upon the one-year anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, Professor Fania Oz-Salzberger presents the case for Zionism's humanist legacy as a vital key for "the day after," and for prospective agreements between Israelis and Palestinians.
Organized by the UCLA Y&S Nazarian Center for Israel Studies. Co-sponsored by The UCLA Alan D. Leve Center for Jewish Studies.
About the Talk
Turning the tables on the global anti-Zionist response to the horrific war opened by Hamas on October 7th, 2023, Professor Oz-Salzberger presents the case for Zionism's humanist legacy as a vital key for "the day after," and for prospective agreements between Israelis and Palestinians. She will argue that the humanist legacy of Herzl, Ben-Gurion, and Israel's Declaration of Independence is crucial for the current debate and provides a realistic route between the extremes of ultra-nationalism and starry-eyed coexistence utopias. Oz-Salzberger will also assess the enormous collective trauma suffered by Israelis on October 7 and since, and offer a cautious roadmap to a future "Peace of the Moderates."
About the Speaker
About Younes Nazarian z"l
Younes Nazarian was a prominent businessman and philanthropist who, along with his wife Soraya, supported numerous causes in education and the arts in Los Angeles and in Israel. Their generous contributions helped to establish UCLA's Israel Studies Program and, in 2010, they created a permanent endowment that led to the naming of the university's Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for Israel Studies.
Nazarian grew up in an impoverished household in the Jewish ghetto of south Tehran. As teenagers, he and his brother traveled to Israel to support the newly formed country by working in the construction industry. These formative years influenced Younes and cemented his lifelong support for Israel. After returning to Iran, the brothers created a successful construction distribution business. However, the Nazarian family fled Iran during the 1979 Islamic Revolution and made their new home in Los Angeles, where they rebuilt their lives.
In Israel, the Nazarians’ foundation helped to create the Younes & Soraya Nazarian Library at Sapir College and the University of Haifa, and it has supported Haifa University scholarships, the Bezalel Academy of the Arts, the Hebrew University and Israel’s National Library. In 2009, Nazarian was selected among 12 recipients to receive Israel’s highest honor of the torch-lighting ceremony on Mount Herzl. In Los Angeles, their philanthropy has supported the Younes & Soraya Nazarian Center for Performing Arts at Cal State Northridge, the Nazarian Pavilion in Doheny Library at University of Southern California, Beit Midrash at the Milken Community High School, and the Hammer Museum at UCLA.
Younes passed away on March 18th, 2022, at the age of 91. He is survived by his wife, Soraya; four children, David, Shula, Sharon, and Sam; daughters-in-law, Angella and Emina; son-in-law, Fernando; and 11 grandchildren.
DISCLAIMER: The views or opinions of our guest speakers and the content of their presentations do not necessarily reflect the views of the UCLA Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for Israel Studies. Hosting speakers does not constitute an endorsement of the speaker's views or opinions.