From the Orange County Local News Network:

Racial tensions at UC Irvine are at an all-time high, and the relationship between Muslim and Jewish students on campus is especially stressed as they find themselves taking sides on a singularly divisive political issue. But on Tuesday, UC Irvine hosted an event with a message of peace and solidarity. Olive Tree Initiative and OneVoice — two groups dedicated to creating reasonable dialogue about Israel and Palestine — came to Irvine to engage students in a collaborative discussion about the conflict. Olive Tree Initiative is a UCI-based group, and OneVoice is a global organization, supported by Tony Blair and Paul McCartney, that brings Israelis and Palestinians to the U.S. and Europe to educate the public about the complex issue. “We started this program five years ago in response to polarization we were seeing on American and U.K. campuses,” said China Sajadian, a program director for OneVoice. “Our goal was to create a forum in which different students who have diverse interests and stakes in this situation can engage in a civil and constructive way.”