Three Israeli young adults believe media bias has either ignored or slanted the Israeli perspective in political and social issues facing the Middle East.

Guy Schmidt, Ariel Hochstadt, and Dikla Ben Asher, of the Israel at Heart program shared their experiences in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on Tuesday, the Independence Day of Israel, to a group of Tulane students in the Hillel organization.

The two men and one woman have been talking to groups around the world in synagogues, churches and primarily on college campuses.

“It is to know Israelis and see Israeli faces,” Hochstadt said about why they travel and speak about their personal experiences. “Living in Israel influences us.”

Despite recent bomb attacks on public buses, the three said that many citizens and especially younger adults continue to use public transportation.

“I don’t have a car,” Schmidt said.

Sometimes if a bus seems too full, Asher said she waits for a less-crowded bus. She said it is important for her to be able to see everyone on the bus.

“We try to make eye-contact with as many people as possible,” Asher said, “so we can recognize identities.”

More people are using taxi services and minibuses, Schmidt explained.

“If we don’t ride the bus, we let terrorism win,” Asher said.

Schmidt compared his riding a bus to how people in America still go to the Pentagon and World Trade Center site.

“You learn how to live again,” Schmidt said.

In Israel, it is mandatory to join the Israeli Defense Forces after the twelfth grade. Men serve for three years, while women serve for two. In a country whose population is only six and a half million, military service is not a question.

A Tulane student asked the Israelis if they thought the different periods of service were fair. Hochstadt answered that possibly not at that time but that women help the country by serving the nine months in pregnancy when they have children. These children will grow up to also serve in the Israeli Defense Forces. Anybody can serve longer if they choose, Asher added.

“It’s a duty, but a good duty we are brought up and raised to do,” Asher said. “It’s like second nature.”

Schmidt referred to a poll recently taken in Israel, which asked if a person would still join the military if service were voluntary. The majority of those polled said yes, according to Schmidt.

Only one of Asher’s friends openly resented joining the IDF, which disappointed the friend’s parents.

However, the three maintain that open discussion and argument are freedoms they say are unique to Israel.

“The rest of the Middle East is not a democracy,” Asher argued.

Michael Granoff, president of Maniv Investments and advocate of Israel, said Americans have to take advantage of their freedoms to help act of Israel and other countries.

“The U.S. is an important element to peace in Israel and freedom,” Granoff said.

The three young Israelis each gave their personal views on how peace may occur in their homeland.

Asher advocated a new democratically elected leader for Palestine (not Yasser Arafat). She said that Arab children are taught to hate Jews, and therefore over the next two or three generations children must be taught to love.

Hochstadt said that Israel cannot surrender to terrorism and that peace was possible only with new leadership.

“I’m for giving something back. I ask the other side to be realistic, too,” Schmidt said. “Only a two-state solution is right. If one, then there will be no Israel.”

Israel at Heart seeks to promote a better understanding of Israel and its citizens through the testimonies of young Israelis, always in groups of three.

The organization was found by Joey Low, a Jewish-American who believed that Israelis were unfairly represented in the media.

Naomi King can be reached at [email protected].

Ariel Hochstadt, Guy Schmidt, Abe Hakim and Dikla Ben Asher share their experiences and opinions on the conflict in the Middle East during a session of “Israel at Heart” at P.J.´s on Willow Street. (Katie Kennedy)