Yousef Bashir
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Brandeis University (M.A.)
Yousef Bashir | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1989 (age 36–37) |
| Citizenship | United States |
| Alma mater | Northeastern University (B.A.)
Brandeis University (M.A.) |
| Relatives | Khalil Bashir (father) |
Yousef Bashir (Arabic: يوسف بشير; born 1989) is a Palestinian-American author and peace activist. Bashir was born in the Gaza Strip. He spent time in an Israeli hospital and later in a rehabilitation center after he was shot by an Israeli soldier who had occupied his family home.[1][2] He attended a summer camp hosted by Seeds of Peace in the United States and subsequently returned to further his education. He is mostly known for his book, "The Words of My Father: Love and Pain in Palestine," and his work as a foreign affairs advisor and lobbyist in Washington, D.C. He became a citizen of the United States in 2019.
Bashir was born in and grew up in the Gaza Strip.[3][4] His father, Khalil Bashir, was the headmaster of the German school in Gaza.[1] Bashir's parents stressed nonviolence as a form of resistance,[5] and told him that hatred would not lead to peace.[3]
His family's home was occupied by Israeli soldiers in 2000, during the Second Intifada, due to its proximity to the religious settlement of Kfar Darom.[3][2] Although given the opportunity to leave, the Bashir family was determined to stay, knowing they likely would not be able to return to their property if they left.[2] The soldiers destroyed the family's greenhouses and orchards and forced his family (Bashir, his parents, grandmother, and seven siblings)[1] to sleep in the living room, while the soldiers used the second and third floors of the house.[3][4][2] That year, Bashir's brother, Yazen, was shot non-fatally by soldiers while putting out a fire in the family's garden.[1][2]
Bashir was shot by an Israeli soldier on February 18, 2004, at age 15, resulting in a spinal injury.[3][4] The shooting occurred at Bashir's home, while the family was saying goodbye to UN staffers who were visiting.[1][2] Although the Israeli army took responsibility for the shooting, they did not provide an explanation as to why it happened.[2] He was brought to a hospital in a UN car.[6][7] Because the local hospital did not have the resources to treat him,[4] Bashir was brought to a hospital in Tel HaShomer, Israel, where he formed connections with some of the Israeli healthcare workers who treated him.[3] After four months in the hospital, he was transferred to Shikum Yiladem, a rehabilitation center where he lived and attended physical therapy with 12 Israeli children, whom he also made connections with over the sixteen months he spent there.[4][8] By the end of his stay, Bashir was able to walk again, and he returned to his family home in Gaza.[3]
In 2005, Bashir attended an American summer camp in Maine run by Seeds of Peace.[2][8] The experience made Bashir decide he wanted to pursue his education in the United States.[8] His family regained full control of their home in September 2005.[2]
Education
Following rehabilitation for his injury, Bashir chose to attend a Quaker high school in Ramallah.[8] However, he remained interested in studying in the United States, and in 2006, at age 16, he moved to the US, where he attended school at Wasatch Academy in Utah.[4][5][8]
Bashir earned his undergraduate degree in international studies at Northeastern University in Boston, although he had originally hoped to attend Brandeis University.[8][7] He was able to attend Brandeis for graduate school, where he received a master’s degree in Conflict and Coexistence.[6][8]
In August 2024, Bashir finished a Ph.D. in international affairs at Johns Hopkins University.[3]