The Fine Line Between Light and Dark

Today was just about the most intense day of Year Course thus far. I know that the experience of Yom Ha'Zikaron (Israeli memorial day) and Yom Ha'Atsmaut (Independence day) will undoubtedly top today's experiences, but I feel as though I got a real taste of it, and in a context that was inadvertently drew parallels to unexpected issues.

We began with a trip to South Tel Aviv. Now, before I explain this aspect of the day, let it be known that this whole week, in my two favorite classes, we've been speaking about Asylum seekers/foreign workers in Israel. In my Zionism course, we briefly examined it from a critical standpoint (critical of the government, that is). In my 'Israeli society through film' course, we watch "Noodle" (strongly recommended), which is an Israeli fictional film about a foreign worker's son. Today, we took a trip to South Tel Aviv where Noodle takes place. South Tel Aviv is an area that is mostly non-citizen foreign works. Many of them are here legally, bound by a contract with their employer. If they lose their job by means of quitting, being fired, layed off, ANYTHING, they are no longer here legally. Thus, many of the foreign workers reside in S. Tel Aviv illegally. Let me tell you, its not pretty. Immigration police raid homes and work places, asking for papers and passports, all of which are in the possession of the employers. Sex trafficking has a strong presence - women will come with the promise of having a job as a masseuse, but end up being forced into prostitution. And to describe the vibe of this area, about a five minute bus ride from wealthy clubs, beaches, bars, parties, vacation homes --in three words - Poverty, poverty, poverty.

We, of course, proceeded to the group discussion of Asylum seekers. The guide, myself, and Alexis explained the story of Refugees from South Sudan, and talked about our experiences working with them, leading to the oh-so-complex-bang-your-head-against-the-wall-because-everyone-is-correct debate of the governments political and financial obligations to its statehood vs the moral obligations on which the state was founded (Judaism, Holocaust Asylum). Where do I stand on that debate? I simply don't know. I thought that after living here for what has been over 8 months I would have my answer, but I don't. All I know is that this is an issue that needs to be dealt with and these are people who suffered our grandparents' fate and deserve rights.

The next part of the day was a part of YC's leadership track, where we learned about Michael Levin, the first American-Israeli lone soldier to die at war. He spent his whole life planning to join the IDF and eventually did. During the one month break that he's entitled to as a lone soldier, he went home. During his trip home, however (2006) the 2nd Lebanon war began, and Michael chose to go back. He rejoined his paratrooper unit a week early, eager to fight for his country that he loved. But he was shot and killed during his invasion in Lebanon. He's famous all over Israel and the Diaspora community for his heroism, determination, and Zionism. Today, we met his Mom and sister at Har Herzl (mt. Herzl), the mountain in which all soldiers lost at battle are entitled to be buried at, with honor. We spent two hours asking questions and speaking to them about their loss.

When I began writing this, I was hoping that I'd find some sort of parallel along the way between the two experiences I had today. Really, there isn't a parallel. They were just two very emotional hands on experiences that I wanted to share, and if you can find one, let me know.

There's something beautiful that happens in Judaism - a transition between negative and positive; somber and excited, painful and celebratory. We see this phenomenon in Judaism all the time - Shabbat into Havdallah, Yom ha'Zikaron into Yom Ha'Atsmaut, Yom Kippur, Peasach, Independence and the War of Independence, its everywhere, this fine line between positive and negative - perhaps to show us that one cannot exist without the other. Would Israel exist without the Holocaust? Would South Sudan be a free nation without suffering a genocide? I guess its the pursuit of balance between the two that we're ultimately striving for in our mission here.

Strangers No More

The Israeli Film Strangers No More (www.strangersnomoremovie.com) has garnered a lot of attention this week after winning the Oscar award for best short documentary. The film explores the Bialik-Rogozin, a public school in South Tel Aviv that has students from an astounding 48 countries, including Sudan and the community that the school creates. A number of articles linked below discuss the film and the potential impact of the award.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/features/can-oscar-fame-bring-israeli-citizenship-1.346372
http://www.haaretz.com/news/international/documentary-on-tel-aviv-school-strangers-no-more-wins-oscar-1.346168

Unfortunately, I mostly read Ha'aretz, but if you find articles from other sites, please feel free to post them as well.

I haven't yet found the film for sale Amazon or other websites, but if you do find it, please post below.

-Noah

Have we Forgotten?

http://www.haaretz.com/an-image-problem-1.281112 - A Ha'aretz article from 2009.

Have we forgotten our values? Does human life not come above all in Judaism? Are we not taught to love our neighbor? Is our Jewish Nation not meant to be "a light unto nations"?

Have we forgotten our history? Are children and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors literally spitting in the Sudaneses' faces? I can respect; even find a great deal of truth in the opinion that the Sudanese asylum seekers in Israel cause a burden to our Jewish society. But these are PEOPLE, people escaping acts of Genocide, mass persecution and systematic killing. Does this sound familiar? Have we forgotten?

This is beyond the politics. This is personal. These are people in the streets personally verbally abusing ten year old asylum seekers. So I ask you: What does your ideal Israel look like? What values does it embody? Does this article about Arad, the city that was my home three months ago, sound like that Israel to you?

Please, responses and opinions on this article.

Return to Arad

Last week, Joel, Jimmy and I drove to Arad with the Director of Young Judaea Israel, Dan Krakow. We took a route none of us except Dan had taken before, and it was a little surprising to be reminded that we haven't seen all of Israel yet. Similarly, every time I meet a Sudanese refugee, I am reminded that I will never understand exactly the pain suffered by the refugees of Sudan, or any refugees from that matter.

We entered a creepy, abandoned-looking warehouse, led by UN program assistant, Alex Brookes, to find four Sudanese men, two college students, two people from the UN, and one woman from the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, who incidentally had gone on Year Course when Dan was a Madrich, all waiting to begin a meeting, all determined to make life better for the Sudanese refugees living here.

The meeting began with the Sudanese men explaining exactly how they arrived in Israel.

Tony left South Sudan three years ago. After traveling through Egypt, he arrived in Israel as a safe haven. I can assume he acquired legal refugee status because he now works as a manager of a McDonalds. Tony was a veterinarian when he lived in Sudan. He spoke fluent, perfect Hebrew, with an accent I will envy for the rest of my life. He works hard to provide for his family, and the majority of the Arad community still looks down at him.

There are five different Sudanese tribes that have all settled in Arad, and most of them work under-the-table jobs or clean bathrooms at the Dead Sea.

At the meeting, we came up with ideas to integrate the Sudanese into the Arad and greater Israeli community. The list included events for children, events for teens (educational and sports), cultural festivals and celebrations, and rallies and information. We’ve already started working with the people we met at the meeting to make these things happen and are excited to be implementing them soon.

After two hours of chatting and everyone exchanging stories, one man tried to say goodbye, and had a bit of trouble speaking.

He said, "Thank you so much for coming and listening here to our stories. I feel, for the first time, like I am welcomed here and wanted. Thank you."

Crunch Time

We have about a week left in Arad, and tomorrow is technically the last day of compulsory attendance at volunteering. After waiting for some final logistics that went a little slow since it was our first time going through the process of getting the necessary money (from what was fund raised last year), we got moving. The plans that were mentioned before of renovating the Gan are now translating into action.

The back of the Gan is an outdoor area closed in by walls, partially covered by a glass awning, and cluttered with what appears to be donated dusty, dirty chairs and tables. There are random wooden boards, signs, and nails thrown about. There are weeds growing around the perimeter of the partially brick tiled ground. The walls have eroded over the years, resulting in large gaps in the plaster. It all sounds lovely, I know, but when we're done, it will be entirely child proof. So, getting started, today and yesterday, Joel and Jimmy cleared out the heavy, random boards, signs and nails and brought them to the dumpster. We pulled the brick tiles around the perimeter, pulled the weeds, dug up the sand a little bit, and will be putting down mulch to plant a simple garden around the perimeter. Year Course's ever so capable Arad manager of logistics, Erez, came in and fixed the broken hose in the back yesterday, which was leaking water and wasting a huge amount, as it would not turn off. Today, we bought plaster and necessary tools and began fixing the huge gaps in the wall outside. This will be complete by tomorrow, as well as painted white. Once the wall is safe and painted, we will clean and organize the tables and chairs in such a way that the kids can play safely outside.

And all of that is only the outside. The inside is mostly child proof, but the nearly empty white walls give the Gan, a kindergarten, an almost hospital feel. It makes one go a little crazy to spend entire days in a completely white room. Kids, we believe, need an environment with color and texture. So, with what was upward of our 5th trip to the hardware store in the past 24 hours, we got two colors - a cream and a pale green that compliment each other well and are good, stimulating but calming colors for the kids. Before this trip, however, we made sure to ask Peter (the Sudanese community leader) and Abova (the caretaker at the Gan) permission. They welcomed the idea, telling us that what we think is good for the Gan, they think is good for the Gan. We also placed child safety power outlet covers on the power outlets that the children love to stick their fingers into. A 220 volt shock would be, I can imagine, less fun/safe than an American 120 volt. We will also plaster the small portion of the inside wall that has somehow come off, as the children LOVE to eat it. Yes, eat the wall.

With our team of Garin Tzedekers and random Year Coursers getting to work every day this week, we will be done before our bittersweet move to Jerusalem. This is what we've been up to. We will post before and after pictures as we go.

A Clarification

In no way was the previous post meant to demean any values that Garin Arevim is functioning based on or create any implications about moral or ideological superiority. Maybe it wasn't the best example to use as a potential for a split - the split occurs mostly within Israel and Garin Tzedek, and it was unfair to make a generalization about Garin Arevim.

A Split

After weeks, maybe a month, of trying to chase down a leader in the Sudanese community (turns out that two people had two different wrong numbers), Alexis, Joel and I were finally able to sit down with Peter, the Sudanese community president of Arad. Peter speaks a descent amount of English compared to others we've encountered and has a good idea of certain aspects of the community, though there seems to be a split in leadership/opinions of the community which is still unclear to me. We asked Peter what the Sudanese community needs - how we can help in Arad. He asked us to teach English/Hebrew to adults on various nights of the week. He also requested specific help from Joel with his English on his computer at home, which Joel did yesterday. We want to paint the entirely white Gan as well, and he welcomed us to do so. As of now, we're working on setting a date and getting materials.

What nineteen year old do you know that doesn't want cookies? Exactly. Directly after volunteering at the Gan today, Alexis and I spent four hours in a minimally equipped Year Course apartment baking cookies which we then sold before and during the break at Ulpan, our Hebrew class. We raised well over 200 nis which is about $60 for our Gan renovating plans.

While most Americans (particularly young Jewish activists as myself) are struck somewhere in their soul and memory by the idea of helping genocide/civil war stricken Africans, its not quite as simple in the democratic and theocratic Israel. So let's ask the question that many are too scared to ask: Do we as Jews have more of a responsibility to help each other than non Jews? If this is the case, does a Jewish life, thus, have a higher value than a non Jewish life? When push comes to shove, how do I, we, as young, American and British human rights activists, but also Jews and Zionists come to a balance? Can one's ideals be right winged and simultaneously be an active member of Garin Tzedek? While most people in the Garin, myself included, have developed personal answers to all these questions, most would have trouble convincing the average Israeli. To me, it seems unreasonable that I'd have to justify to ANY Jew helping a fellow human, particularly one who has been suffering the same fate that we did. These same people who's grandparents hid in the floorboards of Christian homes in Eastern Europe during the Holocaust will ask me how I could possibly spend my year in Israel working with Sudanese people. Maybe there are potentially those who value a Jewish life more. Maybe there are those who feel that as a chanich on a gap year in Israel, that we should be working with Jews. These are all valid arguments and a wide ranged controversy that has kept Garin Tzedek a safe distance from a specific political stance in the past. So there's a struggle, a split. PLEASE, Jews, activists, Zionists, comment. Bring the struggle home, discuss it, post it, tell us what you think.

Garinei Ha'am Shabbaton

This past weekend, Tova and I helped lead a shabbaton of sorts, of the three garinim that Year Coursers of 2010-2011 have continued/created. They include Garin Tzedek, Garin Arevim (of whose participants donate time to support victims of shock and terror), and Garin Kayamut (of whose participants want to live in an environmentally sustainable way). We came together as Garinei Ha'am, with the common aim of making the world a little bit better by continuing to build Israel.
Over the weekend, guest-speaker Nic from the African Refugee Development Center came and spoke about the problems facing refugees and asylum seekers, particularly the plight of the Darfuris and South Sudanese.
Those interested in Garin Tzedek were able to have questions answered by Nic, and use his information to start developing plans for this year in every section of Year Course.
Meanwhile, in Arad, Tova and I continue to volunteer at the Gan. One woman takes care of about 20 kids for the entire day. She cooks, cleans, and tries to supervise all of them. The ages range from about six months to 12 years old. We come to the gan to give the kids attention that they need, and help them start to learn Hebrew and English. They are stuck inside one room, because the one and only caretaker cannot supervise two areas at once. She also doesn't speak Hebrew or English (only Arabic), but insists on feeding us at least once a day. Everyone in the community chips in for the small apartment that the kids go to for daycare, and they have some toys and food, although it seems minimal.
Discipline is extremely different in Sudan than in Israel, or America. The kids learn from their parents and peers, and resort to crueler methods of punishment. It is for this reason that we'd love any comments about behavior modification for small children!
We hope to improve the Gan by painting it, or raising money for more age-appropriate toys and options for the kids, but are often hindered by the red tape and meaningless structure that exists even within the Sudanese community of Arad.
We'd love to hear suggestions on how to help improve the lives of these children of the Gan, and can't wait to work with the rest of our section to effect change here.

Getting Ready for Garin Tzedek on YC 2010-2011!

Yes, the time is coming for me - four months from now, I'll be enjoying my third day of Year Course in Israel. Meanwhile, back in East Brunswick New Jersey and Portland Oregon, Alexis Wojtowicz and I have started working on some of the primary plans for picking up where this year's Garin will be leaving off. We've drafted a vision statement, the fundamentals of which are very similar to the current vision upon which Garin Tzedek is currently acting. Alexis and I are still bouncing ideas off of eachother in terms of the vision, and waiting for input of those who would like to be involved. With about nine people who have expressed interest thus far, the Garin, by its nature, is starting off small in numbers for next year. Recognizing that it will most likely grow quite a bit, we're working on ways to create a community within the Garin members while in our different sections. Ideas such as monthly Shabbat dinners and fund raising projects within all sections have come up. As we progress and work with some of the year course staff, the logistics for this will continue to develop.

One of our big focuses is on how to utilize the time that each section spends in Jerusalem, where there is no Sudanese community (I believe, but someone correct me if I'm wrong). Political action has been discussed, though that could potentially become messy with the mix of two very valid sides to a complex political and moral conflict. A political stance will be something to discuss with the Garin as a whole. Some other ideas for Jerusalem include educational seminars. I've spent months researching the conflict in Sudan/Darfur, talking to experts, and have been doing my best to do hands on work, and STILL, I find it very dificult to put all of the pieces together. I think that the whole Garin will benefit greatly from a deeper understanding of the big picture. Fund raising can also be a focus in Jerusalem.

As for Arad and Bat Yam, we'll be continuing the great work being done now. We plan to tutor English and Hebrew and have community events for the Sudanese community. We're both really looking forward on spending the summer building these plans and working with Noah and other members of the current Garin in doing so, as Alexis, myself, Noah, and other Garin members will be staff at Young Judaea's leadership summer camp, Tel Yehudah.

Keep your eye open for posts on this blog regarding next year, and rest assured that all of the incredible work being done this year will not be coming to an end as the month of May does. Alexis and I both feel an extremely deep connection to this particular matter and can't wait to devote our year to it. While they still have about a month left, Alexis and I congratulate the current Garin on the amazing Dugmah (example) which they've set SO FAR (it's, of course, not over yet!), and we can't wait to get it going on Year Course 2010-2011!

Garin Tzedek Videos

Here are a few video clips of Section 2 volunteering in Arad: working in the Ganim, teaching English and running Sports Night.

This is a photo montage of Garin Tzedek volunteering in Bat Yam and Arad (Section 2).

These can also be found on Youtube if you search for "Garin Tzedek". Send these videos to family and friends to let them know what Garin Tzedek is all about!

Portland Dinner Photos and Article

Here are some pictures from the Portland Young Judaea Dinner for Garin Tzedek as well as an article about the event.












Here is the first bit, the full article can be found at http://www.jewishreview.org/local/Young-Judaea-gets-busy-locally.

Young Judaea gets busy locally

By DEBORAH MOON

article created on: 2010-04-04T00:00:00

A year after virtually all its local leaders graduated, a reinvigorated Young Judaea is going full tilt with social and social action programming including a major fund-raising dinner April 16.

The Portland chapter of Hadassah’s peer-led Zionist youth group has planned an educational, fund-raising dinner (see box) for Garin Tzedek, which aids refugees from Darfur and other parts of Sudan who live in Israel. Garin Tzedek, a vision of last year’s Young Judaea national president and some other high school-aged leaders in the movement, now has 52 participants in the Young Judaea Year Course who spend six of their nine-month gap year program volunteering with those refugees.

The local resurgence has been led by Portland Young Judaea President Tova Cohen, who plans to devote her volunteer commitment to Garin Tzedek when she participates in Year Course beginning in the fall.

Fundraising Dinner

Tova Cohen, a high school senior who is signed up for Year Course 2010-2011 and has already taken a leading role in Garin Tzedek for next year, headed the planning for a Garin Tzedek fundraising dinner a couple weeks ago. She sent the following message about the dinner:

Dear Young Judaea,

It is my honor to inform you all that as a result of all of your hard work (Portland maz) that over 100 people attended the benefit dinner for Garin Tzedek, and that between the donations, pledges, and profit from dinner tuition, we have raised an estimated $2000 for Garin Tzedek. Not only did we do an incredible Mitzvah by simply raising the money for this cause, but through the speaker, preformance, and programs at the dinner, we've successfully educated the Portland Jewish community on a matter which they probably wouldn't have otherwise thought about. I'd like to wish you all Mazal Tov on not only this, but also the Jewish Review article that was written about us, and how successful this club has come off the ground this year and how much work went into everything without any real staff or help. Congrats Arielle Berne, Aviv Bresler, Hannah Westerman, Jori Halpern and Romi Goldner. Can't wait for our next meeting,

Tova Cohen
Portland Young Judaea


Tova,
Thank you soooooooooo much. You are awesome and have helped Garin Tzedek in a great way, we can't wait to see what you continue to do next year and into the future.
-GT '09-'10

(Pictures forthcoming)

An Odd Moment

While I was teaching at Adam Abdullah's shelter a few days ago a six or seven year old girl named Shima and I started playing together. To help her practice her English I asked her to draw some pictures in her notebook. Once she had drawn the pictures I would ask her what the picture was of (in English) and if she didn't know I would tell her, and then we would spell it. B-U-T-T-E-R-F-L-Y, B-E-E, but then she drew a Magen David, a Star of David. Shima is Muslim and was born in Egypt, but this in many ways embodies the paradox of the Sudanese community. Black-African Muslim children who speak near-perfect Hebrew and dress Israeli, and apparently draw Magen David. This is strange to me, as part of the Jewish Diaspora. I had never been inclined to draw crucifixes or Jesus Fish in elementary school. But to Shima it was just a natural thing to draw. Maybe it has to do with the general love of Israel that the Sudanese now have because of the help it has provided. But I don't think so, after all, Shima can barely read and write, I don't think she's a Zionist quite yet. It's probable that Shima has just seen the Star, one of Israel's national symbols, on enough flags, bumper-stickers, and synagogues that it is normal to her - like the Stars and Stripes to American first-graders. But, there is still a strong symbolism in her action. It says something about Israel and about the situation of the Sudanese refugees who have found themselves here.

I asked Shima and she said that her mom and her had not gone to any Yom Ha'atzmaut (Independence Day) official ceremonies, which makes sense because many Sudanese are afraid of immigration police. However, it's possible that Shima feels Israeli. The question than is what happens when the generation of parents start going back to Sudan, but children want to stay, or what happens when some families decide to make Israel their home. In essence, when does a non-Jew in Israel become Israeli? For many Sudanese, their intentions are clear: they want to go home. Peter from Arad, as an example, always has his TV on SSN, the Sudanese Satellite Network, and can't stop talking about home. But for the rest who want to stay in Israel, estimated by some NGOs as around 25% of the community (though no one is sure), it is unclear what their future holds.

Language, employment, and education are important practical concerns at the center of this dilemma, but even more important is the emotional question. Can Israel be a Jewish state and a post-national state, and does it want to be? The obvious answer is no on both accounts, but the reality seems to suggest otherwise. Sort of. The Neve Sha'anan neighborhood, in the shadow of Tel Aviv's Central Bus Station is made up almost exclusively of Thai, Sudanese, Romanian, and other foreign nationals working in Israel. The neighborhood looks and feels dirty and illegal businesses and prostitution abound. However, there has been some recent excitement about potentially converting the neighborhood into the Tel Aviv equivalent of Chinatown. Additionally, while walking with the kids from Adam's English learning program to a nearby park I've seen multiple Filipino children in Israeli scout uniforms. And these workers are moving up. A handful of non-Jewish, non-Russian, immigrant workers live in Bat Yam, which isn't glamorous, but is certainly a step or two up from South Tel Aviv. All of this implies a sense of permanency about Israel's "non-Israeli" population. The Jewish State seems to be adjusting to an understanding that there will always be some "goyim" among us.

It seems that this is the natural consequence of Israel outdoing itself. If we weren't living in such a vibrant and successful economy there would be no incentive for the foreign workers. If we didn't act accordingly with Jewish morals we would have no refugee "problem" to deal with. As the adage goes, as you make your bed you must sleep in it. So, now that we've made our bed so nice and fluffy, with plush pillows and a down blanket, so nice that some other folks have jumped in, how do we sleep with them, if we do at all. There are three options.

Firstly, we could be assertive and brash, kicking immigrants out of the country. There is currently an ad campaign in Israel against illegally employing foreign workers that shows the pictures of Jewish Israelis with their statue (father of 3, newly released soldier, etc.) and says in Hebrew, "don't give away my job." While this viewpoint has some merit, it also runs the risk of seeming discriminatory to a level even greater than Arizona's S.B. 1070, which has already been disavowed by President Obama, influential Republicans like Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida, and even by the Major League Baseball Player's Union. Being under the international microscope of scrutiny, such as Israel always is, imagine the outcry if we were to expel the 20,000 plus refugees and tens of thousands of illegal workers.

Secondly, Israel can drop the whole Jewish thing and make a huge aid project of bringing in more refugees to help them here. While that may boost Israel's public image and do a lot of good, there is still an argument to make that with our limited resources and high poverty rate it may be wiser to spend that money on the citizens of the country in need first and then expand into a project such as this. The Talmud states that one should help their own community first and then those farther away. Additionally, this changes the mission that has held the Jewish State together for over 62 years and the Zionist endeavor for more than 120 years. It's kind of a big deal.

The last, and I think most practical option is to accept what is happening and make it an advantage. After all, this is how Israel has thrived for years, by taking set backs, like the Arab League boycott, and turning them around as Israel did by growing a more independent economy in response to the boycott. The Sudanese are now an economic burden, but they don't have to be. There are creative ways to bring them into the economy and it all starts with teaching language, vocational, and technological skills. This can itself bring the teachers, potentially previously unemployed Jews, some money. The Sudanese want to learn, and Israel is a proven teacher. One way to capitalize on this seeming disadvantage would be to gain foreign investment in an institute that would educate Sudanese, along with Jewish Israelis in the leadership skills they so desperately crave to bring back to Sudan. We can learn from them as much as they can from us, as anyone in Garin Tzedek could quickly tell you. And Israelis are culture junkies that travel the world for new tastes and ideas.

Most important though is that helping these people is not only moral, it can redefine the Jewish condition. We've been hunted and persecuted for so long that our natural instinct has been protectionist and isolationist. However, in a independent Israel, we have our first opportunity to sustain our unique Jewish essence and still extend our hand to others. We are now strong enough that we are beginning to connect globally, it's happening in Israeli business, traveling, and projects - just this month Israel sold millions of dollars of drip irrigation technology to African countries. If we can accept this reality and begin to act accordingly we can help those that need our help from our neighbors to the refugees from Sudan.

So, maybe Shima is just drawing what she's seen all over the streets in the weeks surrounding Israeli Independence Day, but maybe she thinks of herself as Israeli. And while we need to maintain Israel's Jewish character, maybe she can help us redefine who we are as a confident and moral people that can not only govern ourselves, but can also start to save the world.

Mourning and Celebration - Zionist Schizophrenia

The last two days have been a rafting trip through a river of emotions, ebbing and flowing by the hour. Israelis are like seasoned guides for this kind of trip but, like guides, even they get surprised every time and get an extreme rush from the experience without fail. Every year, as you may well know, Israel has Memorial Day (or Yom Hazikaron) and then immediately follows the solemn ceremonies for the more than 22,000 fallen Israeli soldiers and victims of terrorist attacks with Independence Day (Yom Ha’atzmaut) starting immediately thereafter. There is a sense of “schizophrenia” as Judy Cohen, the YJ Bat Yam coordinator, put it. On Memorial Day, all of Israel is in intense and personal mourning. We visited a cemetery full of bereaved families and friends. The radio stations play only sad music. Stores are closed early and everyone goes to ceremonies, large or small, often times through their municipality to commemorate the day. We went to Bat Yam’s ceremony where all of the 522 names of “the children of Bat Yam and their children” who have fallen in the line of duty or as a result of terror attacks were read. There were easily 3,000 people in attendance. There is a siren that begins Memorial Day at 8 pm and another the next day at 11 am and everyone is truly downtrodden throughout the day since almost everyone knows someone directly who has died in the IDF. However, around 5 pm attitudes and morale start to change.

By 8 pm, around the time when the switch from penultimate sadness to incomparable elation is made, everyone has changed from plain white or black shirts to festive hats, pants, flags, and face paints. In Tel Aviv’s Rabin Square people were dancing with strangers and children were running after each other with bottles of silly-string. It was hard to be anything but overjoyed, even after my friend JD accidentally threw coffee on me (don’t worry it wasn’t hot.) Independence Day itself is a holiday you can enjoy with all of your senses. Fireworks, barbeques, and family gatherings are commonplace across the country. You can hear old Zionist marching songs, folk tunes by Shlomo Artzi, and Kobi Peretz’s Mizrachi music; the excitement is palpable. But in Israel’s press these two days mean something somewhat different. Political correspondents talk about how we’ve triumphed or what we need to do better in the next year, culture and scene reporters praise Israeli films or shun the new wave in a nostalgic look backwards, and social activists rail on the current administration and ask for what’s next. Now, we could do that, although I think it’s obvious what we’d ask for to anyone who has read this blog before, and we still may do so, but not now. For now, I have had my fill of poignant and well worded social commentary – and I don’t think I could even come close to the neighborhood of Israel’s media in the eloquence of my words. But I do have a different insight that I think only an outsider, particularly a young adult could pick up.

These two days are too emotional to process; it reminds us of our national and personal fragility. I had the choice to either go to a ceremony for Memorial Day or to visit my roommate who was spending two days in the hospital because he had a problem with his vision. I chose the ceremony. And during it, one of the speakers read a well known Hebrew poem about a lost friend that roughly translates to:

And while today we must think of so many names, so many stories and lives, you still come to mind. Even though, when the siren rings I am supposed to remember all those that died for me, I will only think of you and you will be the only thing that matters.

Now, granted, my roommate was only in the hospital and not in life threatening condition, but what I realized a couple hours after I got home, was that I may have chosen wrong. I was all caught up in the day and forgot that it is about appreciating those we love. My roommate will be in the army next year and naturally I’m worried for him. I don’t think anything will happen, but still, on a day like Yom Hazikaron, these kinds of thoughts come up. But, that is what happens. On Memorial Day we remember that anyone, regardless of color, wealth, or country of origin, can be lost at any time. We are always close to the brink here, and today we recognize that through awful humor that tries to make light of things, through ritual, through mourning, through guilt, and through moving on into the best day of our lives come tomorrow and independence day.

I don’t mean to go much further than that, but as this is the Garin Tzedek blog, I do want to bring things back to our joint mission. Today and yesterday, we remembered and celebrated some crazy things here and Israel. This kind of distinction is a common theme in Judaism: between the profane and the holy; between the Shabbat and the normal days; between kosher and non-kosher; between death, life and all the stages of life. But those that now the difference between Zikaron and Atzma’ut, literally remembrance and independence, but more appropriately ultimate sorrow and ultimate joy feel how these distinctions sanctify our lives. In Israel how we cope with the responsibility of our independence because of the price we paid for it is a huge part of the culture. The Zikaron-Atzma’ut transition is part of why you can go into an Israeli home and expect to be offered a bed and a meal and why the other passengers on the bus help you find your stop. The understanding that we have to be happy and united because others we too may fall has caused Israel’s greatest victories, and when we’ve forgotten this value, our greatest defeats. This may be the keystone of Zionism and it is something that the Sudanese share as well. There community rises and falls together and they look out for one another because they too are constantly reminded of grief and elation, victories (however small) and their prices (however large.) Today of all days, we can see ourselves within them and them within us.

Yom Hashoah - Holocaust Remembrance Day

Yesterday was Holocaust Remembrance Day and yet I’m still wasting time. Here in Israel Yom Hashoah has a different prominence than it does in the Jewish communities of the Diaspora. Most obviously, here the day is a state holiday. Instead of small and little known gatherings, commemorations are large, obvious, and in your face. Even if one wanted to, one couldn’t avoid the powerful mood of the day, perhaps most symbolized by the two minute siren sounded during the mid morning, during which all activities stop and everyone stands in silence to remember. Rowdy classrooms are muted, businesses take a break, and the highway traffic halts as drivers get out of their cars to stand. This is a truly powerful sight.

However, the biggest difference is not the most obvious one. Perhaps Yair Lapid said it best when he said that he fears anti-Semites and neo-Nazis as a humanist, and not a personal issue. While Diaspora Jews, even in America, still live with some fear or inferiority in the back of their head, no matter how well it may be tucked away – because we are a minority, because we know someone who was affected by anti-Semitism in our community, or for whatever other reasons, our Israeli counterparts are confident and fearless. This entirely transforms the mentality of the day. In America we tell a narrative obsessed with the numbers, with the loss, and with how we can avoid our own victimhood in the future. We are still defensive and passive. Yes, we recall the heroism and bravery of Jews and Righteous Gentiles alike who stood up, but Yom Hashoah becomes a dreary repetition of facts; part of the uniquely Diaspora narrative that we must never be completely comfortable. In my experience Diaspora Jewry is engaged not in remembrance, but instead in “not forgetting.” We are told to battle those rhetorically who deny the Holocaust (similarly to how we are told to combat those who deny Israel’s right to exist.) But, I’ve learned a new way to practice this day in Israel this year. Abba Kovner says, “Build a monument, not of marble or granite, but of actions.” Israelis that I’ve encountered, living in the self-determinist Jewish state, take this sentence to heart today. In a society where the information battle is non-existent we must not only retell the stories of bravery, sorrow, misery, and transcendent pride, but we must also embody that on a daily basis.


Cars stop on the highway in Bat Yam to stand for the Yom Hashoah Siren
(Photo taken by Aaron Beer)



There are projects and good deeds that can be a memorial for the fallen and an act of defiance towards those who would have us not here. They range from projects directly related to the Holocaust, like helping feed the 200,000 Survivors still living in Israel, many too old and decrepit to support themselves, to general societal improvements like beautifying our country by picking up some of the thousands of cigarette butts and Bamba wrappers lying on the streets. The point though, is that we must internalize the lessons of the Holocaust and improve the world around us to show how truly fortunate we are. This is arguably the most Jewish form of practice – creating a ritual around an idea or ideal – and this ritual of Tikun Olam (improving the world) is the ultimate Jewish action.

Yet I’ve still checked facebook four times today and fed no one but my own flat-mates. With the Pesach Holiday break and the transition between cities we have all gotten too lazy and apathetic in Garin Tzedek, and no one more than me. But in fact this Spring season, from Passover, also known as Z’man Chiruteinu (the time of our freedom), to Yom Ha’atzmaut, Israeli Independence Day, is ripe with a theme that should be inspiring us. Not only does the Exodus from Egypt and Israeli-style Yom Ha’shoah, based on rebuilding after a genocide, directly correlate to the struggle of the Sudanese as well as it does to our own Jewish historical narrative, it speaks to the exact reasons we started this enterprise. We want to rebuild another people and be the “righteous among the nations” for another people. We want to release ourselves from the bonds of typical Western narcissism and reach a higher level. We want to celebrate our Jewish autonomy like Israelis do; not by combating our would-be enemies, but by helping those like and unlike us, by truly being a light unto the nations. I hope that we can concretely do this by not only repeating what we have done up until now this year, but by challenging ourselves to focus on how we can better REMEMBER the Holocaust, and not just “not forget” until the end of Year Course and throughout the remainder of our lives. Because Yom Hashoah is a day of mourning, but it doesn’t have to be only morbid, it can also be a genesis. That is what commemorating Holocaust Remembrance Day in Israel has taught me.

"Maybe You Should Let Your Kid Take That Year Abroad After All"

Garin Tzedek was featured in an article yesterday in "Parent Dish," a website with advice for parents.  Here is an blurb from the article, for the entire feature go to http://www.parentdish.com/2010/03/16/maybe-you-should-let-your-kid-take-that-year-abroad-after-all/




"High school grads tutor refugees.

Perhaps you've seen TV news exposés or heard stories about what really happens when kids graduate high school and take an "educational" year abroad before college: basically, a 12-month carnival of loafing, tanning, and drunken debauchery. But sometimes, your kids go abroad, get involved in a cause bigger than themselves, and actually come home as better people."

Section 2 in Jerusalem

On March 3rd, Section 2 moved from Arad to Jerusalem. Before leaving, we bought some needed materials for the Sudanese ganim in the area and bid a bittersweet farewell to all the children and the Sudanese community as a whole. A couple of weeks before our departure, Garin Tzedek also took a trip to the beautiful Mitzpe Ramon area, the largest erosion crater on Earth:


Har Ardon, the mountain we climbed up on the trip.


Nathan Chesterman, Scott Rothschild, and Cari Levison enjoy the view from the top of Har Ardon.

Although there are no opportunities to directly help Sudanese in Jerusalem, that doesn't mean Garin Tzedek in Section 2 isn't doing anything. We are now more than ever dedicated to running extra peulot and programming for our Year Course community, including both activities during the week and tiyulim. We're currently searching for ways to aid the Sudanese in Israel in a more indirect way, which may in the future include some sort of demonstration. In the meantime, we've already gotten started with our extra programming--on Tuesday the 9th, we watched the movie "Wet Hot American Summer" in one of the classrooms. If you haven't already seen it, it's a fantastic and wildly funny film about summer camp.

In our last two and a half months on Year Course, Section 2 Garin Tzedek hopes to become closer than ever as a community through our extra programming. If you have any questions, ideas, thoughts, comments, complaints, concerns, qualms, tidings, quarks, inquisitions, beatitudes, or anything else, feel free to tell us. Be expecting plenty of updates on our activities in this last excellent trimester in Jerusalem!

Dead Dreads Fundraiser Follow-Up

Thank you all, the Dead-Dreads fundraiser was a huge success. With your help we have had more than $1,500 pledged - as the donations filter in and are registered we will let you know the final sum. Young Judaea Israel even made their own contribution of 4 computers, 3 monitors, 4 mice (or is it mouses ?), and 4 keyboards! It was an awesome experience for me as well - I'm still adjusting to the weight loss - and we'll be able to begin the computer courses some time soon after Passover. Keep visiting the site for more updates and let us know if you are interested in more information or if you are in Israel and would like to meet any of the Sudanese or members of the Garin. You can email garintzedek@gmail.com.

B'Shalom, Noah

The Dead Dreads - Pictures

Here are pictures from the event, thank you to all everyone who participated and donated!!!

Section 1 Garin Tzedek

Making the move from Jerusalem to Bat Yam was very exciting for Section 1 to begin volunteering and making a difference through Garin Tzedek. At our first meeting we made our way to southern Tel Aviv to the community center where we met the families and were served refreshments as soon as we sat down. The Sudanese families were all so welcoming and eager to start as well. Our group was split up into individual tutoring with kids at their homes and classes with adults. The kids were ages 8-13 and when we came over their homes the parents welcomed us with more refreshments, vegetables, pita, and even meat. It was just like walking into a home with a Jewish grandmother, so hospitable and friendly. Tutoring was a little difficult at first, connecting with the kids with the best Hebrew we could, but once we started and got into the swing of things it was a lot of fun for both of us. We played games, helped them with their homework, worked with English books, and just talked to practice English. The classes with the adults were very interesting and we taught everything from colors to food to grammar. Adam Abdullah, one of the Sudanese refugees, was interviewed by a member of Garin Tzedek and we learned of his story from his life in Sudan to his life in Israel now. It is an incredible and inspiring story that is posted about in an earlier blog. Another thing that Section 1 did was donate stuffed animals for Garin Tzedek. Huge bags of stuffed animals were flown over with the Blitzer family as a great contribution. Although we were sad to leave Bat Yam and the families we worked with, Section 1 is now very excited to begin their Garin Tzedek Arad experience. We will be helping out in a gan with Sudanese children and work on more future projects.

The family I worked with, at their home.