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Israeli democracy makes form of protest illegal

Israeli democracy makes form of protest illegal

There’s a ton of resources on the Israeli anti-boycott law, thanks to the groups in American and Israel who have condemned it across the political spectrum. But I will post groups we have featured on website before. First, Boycott from Within, the Israeli group most targeted by the law issued a statement in defiance. And here’s the Coalition of Women for Peace, whose video campaign targeted the law before it passed.   A new law passed July 11 in … Read entire article »

Filed under: Human Rights Activists in the Crosshairs

Meanwhile in gender: Israel hosts men only economic conference

Meanwhile in gender: Israel hosts men only economic conference

While our attention is rightly on the new anti-boycott law , this development reminds us of the other inequalities in Israeli society. While not the keystone oppression like that of Palestinians, conditions for women seem to be worsening, as they often do in both situations of conquest and religious fundamentalism. It is also worth noting that defenders of Israel often criticize gender relations in Arab societies as if it was a problem unique to them. Photo: Emil … Read entire article »

Filed under: Discrimination

A Lost Decade in Israel-Palestine: Diary Series Kickoff

This diary opens a collaborative effort to profile the past decade in the life of Israel-Palestine. A Lost Decade in all respects. Far worse than Japan’s “Lost Decade.” Unfortunately, the events that set this decade onto its lamentable trajectory happened shortly before the advent of the blogosphere. Therefore, in living blogo-memory, it has always been like this: a partisan tit-for-tat between “I”s and “P”s, accompanied by bigotry and shrill name-calling, and a sense of helpless circularity – or rather, of gradually spiraling down. But it wasn’t always like that. And the current reality in Israel-Palestine is neither normal nor inevitable. Ten years ago, I had no idea that activism would become such a big part of me, or that I would spend 8 years (and counting) overseas in what is essentially … Read entire article »

Filed under: Featured

New resource in the fight for Israeli Democracy

New resource in the fight for Israeli Democracy

By Jesse Bacon Amidst the dispiriting news coming from both American and Israeli democracy, one of the signs of hope has been the people who have continued to resist the downward trend. Association for Civil Rights in Israel is one of those hope-inducing groups, and they recently launched a new english-language version of their website Project Democracy, along with partners like Shatil and Zochrot. Their first post is a good a motto for our work as … Read entire article »

Filed under: Victories for Democracy

Association for Civil Rights in Israel on democracy’s heart attack (Long)

Association for Civil Rights in Israel on democracy’s heart attack (Long)

From the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, reprinted by permission. Ed’s note: This is long, but close enough to our mission to warrant reprinting in full. Here you have the definite guide to anti-democracy bills in the Israeli Knesset, some that will be familiar to readers of this blog, some that even close followers of Israeli democracy will be unaware of. Did you know that the Israeli Parliament (Knesset) might consider banning face veils? Or … Read entire article »

Filed under: Discrimination

Major Israeli Theaters Embrace The Settlements (+BIG UPDATE)

Some cultural news from Israel: Several of Israel’s leading theater companies have agreed to perform in the new cultural center in the settlement of Ariel, due to open on November 8. The companies include the Habima National Theater, the Cameri Theater, the Be’er Sheva Theater and Jerusalem’s Khan Theater. Ariel lies 20km inside the West Bank, deeper than any other sizable settlement. The divided highway leading to it – the best road in the West Bank – is open to Israelis only, *and* lacks any signs naming the numerous Palestinian towns and villages flanking the road. According to Peace Now’s 2006 settlement land report, 35% of Ariel’s area was confiscated from private Palestinian owners by military fiat. The rest is public land. No patch of Ariel’s lands was rightfully purchased. Occupied Palestinians … Read entire article »

Filed under: Featured

Hudson’s co-founder, the Israeli academic purge and the subversion of US Middle East policy

Hudson’s co-founder, the Israeli academic purge and the subversion of US Middle East policy

Reposted from Didi Remez’s Coteret blog. Evidence is mounting that the Institute for Zionist Strategies (IZS) — an Israeli NGO at the forefront of an ongoing campaign to purge Israeli Universities of faculty and programs deemed “left-wing” — is a creature of  The Hudson Institute, a major Washington based neoconservative think-tank, which played an active role in shaping the Bush administration’s Middle East policies. Hudson is the primary financial backer of the IZS, providing at least … Read entire article »

Filed under: Human Rights Activists in the Crosshairs

Our 2 Op-Eds in the Israeli Press about Israel’s Future (2)

My last diary was my translation of an op-ed Ofer Neiman, a fellow Israeli activist, and myself wrote together back in April at Ynet, a mainstream Israeli news site. That article argued that the self-reinforcing siege mentality is gradually taking the taste and meaning out of collective life in Israel. Last week we continued analyzing fundamental issues in Israel’s dealing with the world. The article appeared in Ha’aretz in an online-only, Hebrew-only format. Moreover, while the Ynet article was published pretty much with the same 575 words we wrote, Ha’aretz demanded only 450, and then were arrogant enough to further cut it to 400, change the title and much of the text. Below I translate the original with commentary. In a way, our message is a progressive Israeli response to the … Read entire article »

Filed under: Featured

…In Israel, it has been “Arizona” all along!

…In Israel, it has been “Arizona” all along!

(by Assaf Oron, crossposted from his DailyKos diary) I am encouraged by the wave of justified indignation, and spontaneous boycott movement, against the new Arizona law. Indeed, requiring citizens and legal resident to carry proof of their status at all times, and encouraging police to profile passersby who “look suspicious”, runs counter to the soul of democracy. The bigots who put together the Arizona law should be made to pay. And hopefully it will be declared … Read entire article »

Filed under: Discrimination, Featured

A Bailout For Arms Dealers: US Aid and the Israeli Budget

A Bailout For Arms Dealers: US Aid and the Israeli Budget

By Rela Mazali and Jesse Bacon The US Congress has shamefully abdicated its oversight role in US foreign policy and has become an apologist for the worst policies of the Israeli Government, all the while sending Israel billions of dollars in aid. Fortunately activists are not waiting for the US Congress to act. They are staging their own investigation, a first of its kind event. The Chicago Hearing is modeled after a Congressional hearing and will … Read entire article »

Filed under: Discrimination