Food for thought: ‘Hummus not hate’ campaign launched online

A group of British Jews fed up with the online hatred coming out of the Gaza conflict have launched a Facebook and Twitter group encouraging people to post “hummus selfies” in support for peace in the Middle East.

ChickPeace founder Marc Shoffman explained that he wanted people of various faiths to take photos of themselves with the Middle East’s favourite dip after launching the initiative on Wednesday.

“The Middle East conflict is more than 3,000 years old, so realistically there is not much we can do in 140 characters or in a Facebook post to solve the crisis, but we can move the dialogue along by pushing for peace,” he said.

“We want to promote peaceful dialogue on social media amid all the hate being spewed on Facebook and Twitter.”

It follows the ‘Hummus Initiative’ Facebook page launched in France by students last week, which garnered over 2,700 ‘likes’ in just a few days.

In the UK, Judi Garland from Coventry was among the first to post a hummus selfie, later saying: “I wanted to do something light-hearted and non-divisive after a tricky few weeks in which I’ve been defending Israel online.”

Describing herself as both pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel, Garland acknowledged that there had been “a lot of anti-Semitism” on the likes of Facebook and Twitter, adding: “It’s a relief not to have to be so serious for once… This campaign is simple, with a simple but political message, and I think people will back it.”