Leaders from the Jerusalem Youth Chorus to visit US for speaking tour

Two leaders of the Jerusalem Youth Chorus, an ALLMEP member, will embark on a speaking tour to share the work of their organization across the United States this holiday season. 

The Voices of Hope & Determination Tour, led by JYC’s Artistic and Executive Directors Micah Hendler and Amer Abu Arqub, will run in several cities across the US from December 9 to December 20, 2023. Micah and Amer will lead participatory speaking events in Washington, DC, Chicago, NYC, LA, and Boston which will include conversation and community singing. 

Hendler founded the JYC in 2012 after his years of work in musical community-building and his more than 15 years of involvement in Israeli-Palestinian dialogue. He will travel the US with Amer Abu Arqub, a graduate of the JYC and its current Executive Director.

The JYC is a music and dialogue project that allows young Israelis and Palestinians from West and East Jerusalem to come together to share their songs and stories in Arabic, Hebrew, and English. The JYC works to create an alternative to the cycle of violence through musical collaboration. About 35 youth singers, half from East Jerusalem and half from West Jerusalem, girls and boys, gather and rehearse several times per week, attend retreats, socialize, and under normal circumstances, embark on international tours to share their work.

Following October 7 and the start of the war, the Jerusalem Youth Chorus was forced to cancel its live US tour for safety reasons. The Chorus was set to visit Chicago and Washington, DC. Despite the postponement of the full chorus’ US tour, the JYC and musical guests joined together online for a virtual event, “Voices of Peace in Times of War,” in collaboration with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC. More than 2,000 people registered for the musical event, which took place in late October.

Now, residents of Washington, DC, Chicago, NYC, LA, and Boston can register for Micah and Amer’s musical speaking tour here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe53T-p12qMeGnHn1YXTRt9oLGMhJNfMx9Gxzkq3zBfaZx8Zw/viewform. Join the JYC for an afternoon or evening of musical collaboration and inspiring conversation.