Help Traumatized Palestinian Children

Growing Up is Hard to Do

For Jamal, age 12, going to school has become a fearful process. There are heavily armed police on his walk through the Old City of Jerusalem to school. Mostly they ignore him, but several times they have searched his backpack. He understands some of the Hebrew instructions from the policeman, but not everything, and the experiences have frightened him. He has seen teenagers yank the hijab off of Palestinian women and run away laughing. He feels helpless, and even told the trauma specialist at the Spafford Children's Center that he should ‘be a man’ and protect his mother and other women, but he is afraid. He knows Palestinian children have been arrested for not following police orders. At SCC Jamal feels safe. He can talk about his feelings of anger and guilt, share with other youth, and recognize how his reactions are affecting his schoolwork. With help from the SCC tutors, he is catching up in his English and math classes, and feels more confident. SCC can’t eliminate the trauma triggers for Jamal and other children, but it can help them deal with their reactions.

A Fun Day Learning English

Open-close, before-after, black-white, sad-happy: these are some of the new words children learned during the Spafford Children's Center’s ‘English Day’. There was a giant crossword puzzle mapped out on the courtyard floor so the children could match clues with words. Bright blue circles, each with a word written in big letters, had the children scrambling to find the opposite word to make pairs. In another part of the SCC courtyard, the days of the week and months of the year were laid out inviting the children to put them in the correct order. The experienced SCC teachers kept the fun going and ensured that each child, regardless of age or language level, got personalized attention. At SCC children can access English books in the library, practice English using computer lessons, and work with a teacher to increase their competence. English language acquisition is important for future education and employment and SCC fosters a love of language in children.

Building Resilience

Children living in East Jerusalem are not experiencing bombs dropping on their neighborhoods, yet, the trauma of the war in Gaza affects them in very tangible ways. Palestinian families have relatives and friends in Gaza, see reports on the news, and live in a turbulent environment. The Spafford Children's Center (SCC) is offering programs that bring parents and children together for interactive activities to enhance empathy and resilience skills.

SCC can’t change the political situation, but it can try to prepare parents to answer the hard questions children ask, and to learn how to help children recognize that they are resilient, and have the support of their family and community.

Please support the American Friends of the Spafford Children's Center through GlobalGiving at https://goto.gg/31839.

AFSCC is an all-volunteer organization so your entire donation goes to SCC to provide services to Palestinian children and families in East Jerusalem.

With thanks,