Why I did participate in last night’s social justice rally
Filed under: A New Reality, education, General, Life, Politics, Social Justice
Unlike Brian, I did participate in last night’s social demonstration. Along with another 450,000 Israelis who felt impassioned enough to get themselves off their comfortable sofas on to some very packed streets on a Saturday night. For me there wasn’t any question about it. Of course I’d go.
Okay the leaders of this mass social protest are still a bit woolly in their demands and their voices not quite refined yet, but hell, they didn’t plan this mass spontaneous eruption of feeling, and they haven’t had years to prepare. They may have initiated it, but they had no idea how big it would become or what it would mean.
Protestors packing Kikar HaMedina in Tel Aviv. Photo by Flash90.
Whether Daphne Leef served in the army, and why she didn’t is just a diversion from what is certainly the most significant and real protest about the inequalities in Israeli life – for all sectors of society, Jewish and non-Jewish (as the Haifa protest showed).
The fact that this protest erupted despite all the security threats of yet another long, hot summer, is just proof of how valid and sincere this movement is, and how pissed people actually are.
Many people live really well in Israel, despite the high prices, poor education, and low wages, but there are many who don’t.
A few months ago, we wrote a report on Leket, the organization that gleans food for the poor. The reporter stated that 1.7 million people in Israel are living in poverty, half of them children.
I phoned her up. “Are you sure that figure’s right?” I said. “There’s only 7.7 million people in Israel.”
“Yes,” she said. “It’s right.”
I may not live in Tel Aviv, but I live in a bubble, and I know it. I may grumble about the ludicrous prices we pay at the supermarket, I may get angry when petrol prices go up again, but I’m lucky enough to be able to swallow the increases. Many people can’t.
The night before the protest, we had family round for dinner. My husband said he was tired and wanted to stay in and watch TV on the sofa rather than go to the protest.
“This isn’t for us,” my sister in law’s husband said. “This is for all those people who have been struggling here for so many years. They’ve been protesting all summer, and they’re at their last gasp. We have to go in and help them.”
So we all went. We took the whole family. We went with friends, and bumped into so many other friends and acquaintances who all made the same decisions as us. We were squashed, and hot, and tired, and it took an hour and a half to get home. But that didn’t matter. We were there.
For me, I think of the current leaders of this movement as caretakers. I didn’t go because I believe their demands are perfect, I went because I think something needs fixing in Israeli society, and if you don’t stand up and say that, then nothing will ever change.
Coen brothers don’t say much in Israel
So the Coen Brothers are in Israel this week to collect the Dan David Prize for their contribution to filmmaking. It was a wonderful media opportunity, except for the fact that the highly talented brothers, who’ve made classic movies like No Country for Old Men, Fargo, The Big Lebowski, and True Grit, are notoriously reticent and barely said a word to the press.
On my way to the awards ceremony at Tel Aviv University, I met a journalist working for an international news outlet who’d just attended their press conference. Waste of time, he grumbled. No one could get anything out of them.
The Coen brothers, Joel, and Ethan.
They didn’t say much more in their acceptance speech – which I quote fully.
“This was a great honor,” Joel told the audience after picking up his million-dollar check, and a rather nice picture of a swinging pendulum. The award “was unsolicited and unexpected so it was an even greater honor. We are looking forward to spending some time with the students and lecturers at Tel Aviv University. We believe in a free and unreserved cultural exchange of people all over the world.”
Towards the end of the evening, I grabbed a moment to talk to Ethan Coen, looking quite cute actually in a black suit and black bow tie, in the hope that I might be able to get a nice quote about Israel.
“So what do you think of Israeli cinema?” I asked.
“Actually,” he said. “I haven’t seen any, you should ask my brother that question.”
“What, no Beaufort, no Waltz with Bashir?”
“No, not even Waltz with Bashir, though it’s meant to be really interesting. I supposed I should have watched some before I came out,” he added, and looked a little embarrassed.
“Is this your first time in Israel?”
Yes.
“What do you think of the country?”
“We’ve done some traveling in the last few days. It’s been fascinating. I’m glad we came.”
“So is Israel what you expected?”
“I didn’t know what to expect, so I wasn’t expecting anything.”
“What about the boycott, so many artists are talking about boycotting Israel, did you think about it?”
“It crossed my mind, yes,” he said, and added: “I was so hoping that I wouldn’t be asked this question in the press conference, but I was.”
“And?”
“There’s a well intentioned movement of well intentioned people who have their own idea about how to assist these problems, but we don’t agree.”
“Your brother said the prize came as a surprise to you both. How do you feel about winning?”
“Its great. Especially I must say meeting the three scientists who also won prizes – they are great. Very interesting people. The whole experience was great. Now if you’ll excuse me..”
And with that he was off at speed across the room.
5,778 kilometers to Jerusalem – by bike
Filed under: Environment, General, Life, Sports, Travel
Here’s a post from Viva – our newest member of the ISRAEL21c crew.
Up in Nazareth to do a story on eco-tourism and volunteer tourism, I turned to the GoEco
organization for help. GoEco matches international volunteers with its ecological and humanitarian programs in Israel.
I was excited to do this story for a number of reasons. For one, I am a traveler at heart. Before my three children arrived, I was known to be abroad at any chance I got. I have visited three dozen countries on almost all continents. And, I too, took time to volunteer in a foreign country.
Now that volunteer tourism – or voluntourism, as it is known – is all the rage on the travel circuit, I wanted to hear what brought today’s international backpackers to Israel to volunteer.
Upon arriving at the beautiful Fauzi Azar Inn
in Nazareth’s Old City, I was introduced to five travelers – one Brazilian, one Belgian, and three Americans.
And though the Americans were far more outgoing, it was the Belgian, David Verlinden, who had the most attention-grabbing story . The 31-year-old Verlinden cycled from his home town Voeren to Jerusalem. That’s 5,778 kilometers.
While Verlinden happily told me of his adventure, he was very unpretentious about the great feat he had achieved.
Verlinden and his Dutch friend Iris Baijens rode from Belgium, through Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan, before crossing into Israel.
The Krav Maga enthusiast says he decided to visit Israel because he wanted to see the place that developed the defense fighting technique he so loves. And rather than “waste” fuel and pollute the environment, Verlinden got on his bike and pedaled to Jerusalem.
It took him three months. Or, as Verlinden put it: “I pedaled 5,778 km. in 343 hours, 40 minutes and 26 seconds. With 71 days of cycling, that’s an average of about 82.5 km. and 04:54:34 a day.”
If that’s not mind-boggling enough, GoEco’s Volunteer co-ordinator Carly Siegel told me that she was even more surprised when Verlinden turned down the organization’s bus fare to Nazareth and chose to log another 102 kilometers on his bike instead. And really, why not.
Israelity’s top 10 stories of 2009
What a year. We started with the war in Gaza, and ended with a rash of terror attacks in the West Bank. And in between there was the water shortage, the Goldstone report, posturing and threats between Israel and Iran, and endless and bitter bargaining over the release of Gilad Shalit.
It was also, however, a year in which the Israeli economy weathered the global financial storm in extremely good shape, when new Israeli innovations in health and technology made good on the world markets, when Israeli charities gave life-saving aid to developing nations, and when Israel’s financial and technological success was finally recognized worldwide.
So what did our viewers enjoy reading the most in 2009? Well, the choice was as diverse as the year, ranging from the serious – the humanitarian aid webcam at the crossing into Gaza during the war, to the sublime – a YouTube mash created by an Israeli musician, and of course the ridiculous – the Bollywood style advert created by missile maker Rafael for the Indian market.
And, let’s face it, you all love to read about sex, scandals and supermodels as well.
Check out Israelity’s top 10 stories of 2009 below.
1. Foto Friday – Sexy Tel Aviv
In July, Rachel wrote a piece about gay clubbing in Tel Aviv during the hot summer months. The city has a lively gay scene and it abounds with great dance clubs and bars. Combine that with the great weather, and you’ve got a wild night out. Check out David Shankbone’s pictures in this post to see for yourself.
2. Israeli model Esti Ginzberg shot in New York
Fed up with all the hype about Israeli supermodel Bar Refaeli (yes, yes, the one who dated Leonardo DiCaprio), in March Harry decided it was time to write about a different supermodel – an upcoming one.
Esti Ginzberg, is a Tel Aviv teenager who featured in 2009′s Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition, and carried out modeling campaigns for international chains like Tommy Hilfiger and Pull and Bear. She’s been featured on the cover of the French version of Elle Magazine, and this year also became a Victoria’s Secret model.
Not long ago, Ginzberg joined the IDF for two years of army service. Check out our video interview with Ginzberg in uniform on YouTube.
3. Human body parts invade Haifa
It’s created controversy wherever it went on show. Israel proved to be no different. As David pointed out in March, the exhibition, Body Worlds, by German anatomist Gunther von Hagens, raised hackles with Israel’s religious community the moment it went on show in Haifa.
The exhibition, of human anatomical specimens which use plastic to replace the fat and water in human body parts, has been seen by over 26 million people around the world. In Israel, the Haredi population protested the opening, and rumors abounded that Michael Jackson had asked von Hagens if he too could be plastinated when he died – an event that most likely came much sooner than he expected.
4. Humanitarian aid webcam Gaza
In January, right in the midst of the Gaza conflict, the IDF decided to start operating a live feed of the Keren Shalom border crossing – the largest checkpoint between Israel and Gaza – showing humanitarian aid being transferred to the Palestinians.
Karin, who interviewed Peter Lerner, an IDF spokesperson working at the border crossing, wrote a blog post on the news with a link to the webcam, which operated for three hours every day, during the daily ceasefire.
5. Bar Refaeli proof that Israel is a land of wonder
She’s inescapable. Bar Refaeli made the headlines again and again and again this year. Either for upsetting the Haredi with her revealing ad campaigns , for appearing on the side of an airliner, or – in May –, for being voted the third “hottest” woman in the world by men’s mag Maxim.
Under her picture, the editors wrote: “If there’s any evidence that the Middle East is a land of beauty and wonder – not just unending turbulence – Bar is it.” Amazing what a pretty face can do. Not sure Refaeli is the right ambassador, however.
Read more
Picture of the week: I’ll have it on ice please
Filed under: Food, General, Picture of the Week, Pop Culture
I don’t really get the attraction myself, but since my kids first read the Guinness Book of Records, they’ve been planning various record-breaking attempts. Person to kneel on a fit ball longest – that’s one idea, or what about person to eat the most chocolate at one sitting (they haven’t reached the age when they realize how awful that suggestion actually is), or even person to make the biggest ball from elastic bands.
None of these seemingly ludicrous ideas are actually any more ridiculous than some of the record-breaking feats actually being carried out by people for the book itself.
Hence Israeli magician, Chezi Dean is now attempting to break the Guinness world record of staying in ice. Dean, who served as a magician for the IDF during his military service, hopes to break the record set by David Blaine, then 27, who encased himself in a block of ice for 58 hours, right in the center of Times Square.
Dean, wearing just trousers and a hat, entered the ice structure right in the heart of Tel Aviv on December 29th, and plans to leave the ice on New Year’s Eve – six hours longer than Blaine. Photo by Roni Schutzer/Flash90.
This isn’t the only record-breaking attempt going on at the moment. On January 8th, Juadat Ibrahim, owner of the Abu Gosh restaurant in Abu Gosh will be trying to break the world record for the biggest platter of hummus – a record that was just broken in October this year by Lebanon.
Then 250 chefs got together to create the dish using 2.976 pounds of chickpeas and 13,525 ounces of lemon juice. The final dish weighed in at more than two tons, beating the previous record, which was held by an Israeli company.
At Abu Gosh, the goal is to create a four-ton platter of hummus and some of the country’s best chefs will be on hand to do it. The event will be attended by government ministers, ambassadors and Jewish and Arab professionals, who will no doubt be feasting on hummus afterwards.
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