Join us in this episode of Learning to Listen to Palestine as we dive into the powerful stories of Jordan and Palestine with guest Mona Naffa. Discover heartfelt accounts of resilience, the truth behind common misconceptions, and how travel and dialogue can bridge cultural gaps. Explore how education and storytelling are changing perceptions and fostering understanding between the West and the Arab world.

Don't miss this impactful conversation that uncovers deeper truths and shared humanity.

Lani Lanchester: What are some of the biggest misconceptions about middle east that you in encounter in your work?

Mona Naffa: First and foremost, everybody asks me, is it safe? I'm a female traveling. I'm bringing my family. I'm a corporate gentlemen, female coming here to do some business. So I tell them, I never want to say safe, as the name. But I tell them, I feel more comfortable, living, residing, thriving, working in Jordan, than I did in my life in California. So I let them make the interpretation. So, that really is the number one question. Our world has changed, Lani, And anywhere, anytime, anything can happen.

Narrator: Welcome to Learning to Listen to Palestine, where stories come alive and hearts connect. Each week, your host, Lani Lanchester, will dive into the untold histories, powerful narratives, and insightful interviews that bring us closer to understanding Palestine. Ready to be educated, empowered, and motivated?

Let's get started.

[00:00:07] Lani Lanchester: Listening does not come easily. And this has been my personal to learn, to listen to the Palestinian people. Really, this listening is about hearing what others to say, and to be vulnerable, to be affected by a different person's perspective than my own.

[00:00:46] Lani Lanchester: In my book, Learning to Listen Palestine, I learned to listen to difficult things like this. For instance, one time, I'd sitting with a Palestinian Christian in Jaffa, for hours. We talked [00:01:00] about our families, our faith, and our churches. But then, we heard a siren go by. And and my friends started cursing the Israeli police, and I was shocked. And I didn't know what to say, so I asked her the question. Can you tell me about this? And then, begin to learn.

[00:01:32] Lani Lanchester: Today, I have who has been teaching people to listen to stories about Jordan. Welcome, Mona Naffa.

[00:01:42] Lani Lanchester: I'm so glad to have you here. Mona and met in Jordan. There are many stories in my book in Jordan. In one of them, you brought a group of Americans to Mafraq, where I was also with Syrian children.

[00:02:30] Mona Naffa: So that day, we went to Mafraq, we had a chance to meet you, engage with the Syrian refugee students. And here we are, fast forward, a year later. But that was a day of engagement, storytelling, and sharing stories. And for our teachers to really learn, how Jordan accommodates refugees, and why Jordan is an optimal country in this part of the region to be the host country. And add to your story and to your book, as [00:03:00] we have this conversation.

[00:03:02] Lani Lanchester: Mona, you began your career in the corporate sector. But then you pivoted to promoting travel. In learning to listen to Palestine, how to travel the path, of Israel, Palestine, and Jordan, my understanding of the world.

[00:03:23] Mona Naffa: Sure. I was born and raised in California. My parents were from the region. My mom is half-Palestinian, and half Lebanese, and my father is from Jordan. They came over to the land of opportunity.

[00:03:58] Mona Naffa: And what brought me to [00:04:00] travel to Jordan was a marriage. So that's how I came to Jordan, from the beautiful state of California. And entered the world of travel, tourism, and hospitality.

[00:04:21] Mona Naffa: First and foremost, everybody asks me, is it safe? I'm a female traveling. I'm bringing my family. I'm a corporate gentleman, female coming here to do some business.

[00:04:59] Mona Naffa: [00:05:00] But I've been here now for 18 years. And I believe that I am very comfortable here. I drive everywhere. I go to my place of worship, very comfortably. I embrace the community. And I go to bed at night at peace.

[00:05:35] Mona Naffa: That's Jordan. That's Jordan from Newark.

[00:06:00] Mona Naffa: In fact, Bedouins in Jordan are the best storytellers in the world. And you've got to come to Jordan to hear the best stories in the world.

[00:06:19] Mona Naffa: I find that a great question. Why? Because the perception of most, I'm okay to say this, being that I was raised in the States, born and raised, educated, the perception of Arabs, mostly in my community, in our media, and our educational system has always portrayed us the secondary, the bad guys, the women with no rights. Let's be honest, in the movies, the Arabs always tend to be the bad guys. And that is a perception that is instilled in so many minds.

[00:07:12] Mona Naffa: Travel not only opens up your experiences, checks off many bucket lists, but it's also a great way to really learn. And for you to make that informed decision, by knowing both sides of the story. That is done, I believe in a combination of travel, education, and the will. You've got to have the will to have that open mind and open heart, to bring in a new culture.

[00:07:58] Mona Naffa: Exactly. And Lani, if I [00:08:00] may, I know that many of us don't have the means to travel, can't afford it, timing, can't leave our work. So what to do if you can't travel?

[00:08:58] Mona Naffa: Listen, ask, [00:09:00] and then that would produce dialogue, conversation, and a thought process.

[00:09:29] Mona Naffa: Exactly. Yeah. I know Modesto. And I'm from Anaheim. So, especially California, we're so diverse. We've got everything under the sun.

[00:09:49] Lani Lanchester: In my book, I talked about an organization that run by women, to serve the Syrian refugees.

[00:10:10] Mona Naffa: Once again, it's the perception. One of the stories, the media, the films that women are covered and 10 feet behind the man, that has changed. Though, we are still struggling, we are not at the level of the US, and we accept that we're growing. I come from a family of female activists.

[00:10:57] Mona Naffa: Once again, the perception is [00:11:00] not what you think in the West. Many of the women are behind the scenes, educating the kids, making earned income through, let's say a home-based business, initiatives like you said, running a community center, a camp.

[00:11:40] Mona Naffa: It's always been a conversation. And if I don't stop talking, things won't change. So, we definitely need platforms, board positions, key positions to make those small changes. It's not gonna happen overnight, didn't happen in the States, but the more are out there trying, we will [00:12:00] have wins, small wins.

[00:12:10] Mona Naffa: Sure. Thank you. I'm very proud of my family, if I may. We didn't come from money. We came from the importance of education. My father, God rest his soul. He came to America via a scholarship. So he used his will to learn, to be a better person, that scholarship from the American University of Beirut to Columbia University launched his journey. So with that, my mother was a nurse. And my mom taught nursing, let's say in the Middle East. And then took her nursing career to open up hospitals in Southern California. And basically, teach others.

[00:13:12] Mona Naffa: And with that, if I could share a story. My father was an Arab educator in the university system, and he was always an advocate of justice, of rights. My father is Jordanian. There's not an ounce of Palestinian in him. But he always talked about the Palestinian self-determination identity, and he brought it in conversation, brought it in with his students, and was attacked.

[00:14:11] Mona Naffa: But I wanted to go back to my own personal life. So, Dad was a college professor in the 70s and 80s. So, his speaking up, he was attacked, but he was defended by his dean and the college president, to allow him to have that platform to share the other narrative.

[00:14:40] Lani Lanchester: That's a strong family background and beautiful.

[00:14:53] Mona Naffa: There's so much. This is why Hollywood loves coming to Jordan to film their movies because we are a universe. We've [00:15:00] got beautiful deserts, to lush greenery, to the lowest point on Earth, the Dead Sea, to the Red Sea that we know in the Bible.

[00:15:35] Mona Naffa: The story of the grandmother, or mother, or the heritage of the family cooking. The diverse landscape, when you travel north, south, east, and west. So you've got everything in Jordan. And I just believe, it's a very special place. And like you, Lani, people who come to Jordan, it changes their life. They come with expectations and they leave with [00:16:00] exceeded expectations.

[00:16:05] Lani Lanchester: It's been an ache in my soul, ever since I left. So, can you tell me more about your mother? Did she come from Palestine?

[00:16:59] Mona Naffa: Fast [00:17:00] forward, many years later, 75, 76, 78 years later, the story continues. So, I would just want to go back to my mom, a little bit. So, she is a very passionate woman of her culture. My mom was a nurse. She loved her work. She loved medicine. She loved helping people. And one kind of cool thing about my mother, she's a beautiful woman. And at the time before 67, Jerusalem, Ramallah, Nablus was all under the Jordan mandate.

[00:17:54] Mona Naffa: So I think that is pretty cool, to have the mother, not only [00:18:00] represent the women, but the culture, the beauty, the image of a woman to the international world.

Narrator: Like what you hear so far? Make sure you never miss an episode show by clicking the subscribe button now. Don't forget to check out Lani's book, Learning to Listen to Palestine. Now back to the show.

I met Palestinian refugees for the first time in Bethlehem, then later in Jordan. I actually never heard the Nakba, before traveling to Israel.

[00:18:23] Lani Lanchester: Can you tell us about the Nakba, from family experience, what mean does it mean, Nakba?

[00:18:50] Mona Naffa: This part of the day, it's not a celebration, but it is a reminder of the occupation and the [00:19:00] exodus of Palestinians, Palestine. And it's a word that means, to fight the fight, to have justice, and get Palestine back to where it should be. It's a new word for me. I really learned it when I'm living here in Jordan. In the States, because it doesn't touch us, as an American, it's a word that did not resonate in our upbringing.

[00:19:35] Lani Lanchester: And another word, understand that this moved on to people that I talked to, is the word occupation. That's a difficult word for people to handle. Can you explain that work?

[00:20:06] Mona Naffa: I knew this word because I have a Palestinian mother who was uprooted. My father was an activist for human rights, Palestinian rights. So this occupation was understood in my household. My friends couldn't relate because it didn't affect them, personally. And it was suppressed in the US, due to the interest of not having the Americans understand what it means. So this part of the world coming here and understanding.

[00:21:02] Lani Lanchester: Yes. I think that's one of the goals of this podcast, is for us, to be able to take a word occupation, and break apart of it, and learn what this means. And I think this needs to take some time because there's so many airs that affect the Palestinians. Some of them are really devastating. This is going to be something that we'll have to do, of work on to understand.

[00:21:41] Mona Naffa: One thing I can understand is, Palestine wants to be recognized, and goes to the United Nations, and is recognized by most. And then a few powers don't want to recognize it. But why? I asked myself, why is there a constant veto to recognize [00:22:00] Palestine?

[00:22:07] Lani Lanchester: How can individuals outside region best support Palestinians in their class, you think?

[00:22:23] Mona Naffa: I don't think, all those college kids, and supporters, and diverse backgrounds, American, Jewish, Muslim, Christian, so diverse, have put their degrees, put their selves on the line, put their reputation on the line if they didn't think that something was wrong. So for them to have a voice for justice, and to understand the Palestine story is a movement, we are starting.

[00:23:28] Mona Naffa: I believe, to continue on educating yourself on Palestine, we've got lots of opportunities in the US and other parts of the world. I'm not sure if this market is, or this podcast is only for the US, but you've got multiple Palestinian museums, communities. You've got representatives in Congress now who are of Arab background, or different faith background, reach out, educate yourself, talk to Palestinians, [00:24:00] talk to Israelis. What is the conflict in between?

[00:24:22] Mona Naffa: We are blessed now with the open media sources. Don't believe everything on what you see on social media. This is why it's so important to come and educate yourself. But if you have the opportunity to travel, to converse, to attend lectures, it's your due diligence to learn. Because the youth movement is only going to get stronger. Right now, it's summertime. I'm not sure what's going to happen come September when kids are back at school. But this is life, this is changing. And it's exciting.

[00:25:02] Lani Lanchester: Can you share with me a story of resilience that inspired you?

[00:25:46] Mona Naffa: Some of my key successes is when I've invited many of my American friends, college friends, high school friends to this part of the world, and they shared with me, Mona, we knew you were Arab, your mom made amazing [00:26:00] baklava and tabbouleh, and almost everything was homemade at the time.

[00:26:25] Mona Naffa: We understand your father's speeches. We understand your dilemma and your identity. We understand a bit more on the Palestinian-Israeli story because we knew you, we knew how kind and hospitable, and how your parents didn't let you go out on Friday night because I had to study. We knew why education was so important.

[00:27:01] Lani Lanchester: That's beautiful. So what resources do you recommend to those who wanting to learn more about Jordanian and Palestinian history and culture?

[00:27:43] Mona Naffa: I believe, movies are very impactful. I would love to see our film and creative scene here, get to the big screen, with stories that can resonate to you, Lani, your listeners. And they can just say, wow, that was done by a Palestinian Jordanian, [00:28:00] but I can relate to that story. I can relate to that struggle. I can relate to those values.

[00:28:29] Lani Lanchester: Yeah. I noticed that when I was in Jordan. And I've been heard the stories about how much worse it is there.

[00:28:47] Mona Naffa: I would love it. I welcome your visit back to Jordan. Spend some more time with you. I would love a signed copy. I'll have to get that from Amazon or wherever you're selling it.

[00:29:17] Lani Lanchester: What are some favorite of your writers about Palestine?

[00:30:12] Lani Lanchester: That's beautiful.

[00:30:53] Mona Naffa: Yeah. Lani, I want to agree. Yeah, it is a good book.

[00:31:30] Mona Naffa: Yeah great. There's both sides of the story. And I believe, it's the Palestinian narrative storytelling. It's our time. I'm very diplomatic. I'm very compassionate to all religions and cultures. But over that is honesty and justice first. And then, everything else will trickle down from there.

[00:32:20] Lani Lanchester: Right. Thank you so much, Mona, for being here, and for having this conversation with us. And for all of you who want to learn more about Palestine, I encourage you to get my book, Learn to Listen to Palestine, and some of the other resources that we talked about today will be in the description.

[00:32:46] Mona Naffa: Thank you.

Narrator: Thank you for tuning in to this enriching episode of Learning to Listen to Palestine. I hope today's stories and insights touched your heart and opened your mind. If you found value in our conversation, please subscribe, leave a review, and share this podcast with friends and family. Your support helps us reach more listeners and foster a global community committed to understanding and peace.

Don't forget to explore our book, Learning to Listen to Palestine, for a deeper dive into these poignant narratives. And if you're inspired to take action, join a local group or start one at your library to engage with Palestinian stories firsthand. See our show notes for inspiration. We'll be back next week with more profound stories and thoughtful discussions.

Until then, remember to listen, learn, and build bridges. Keep the conversation going and stay connected. Thank you for being part of this journey.