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We witnessed a setback for Israeli democracy when the Knesset passed legislation intended to stigmatize progressive critics of the current government’s policies. But, the partnership that is NIF — that fuses together those of us who care about Israel’s future with the smartest and most determined Israeli social change activists — is the path forward for a better Israel.

The hatred and divisiveness that is pulling Americans and Israelis apart is not only unnecessary and immoral but terribly damaging to both national projects.

It is precisely now, when there is so much at stake and so few safe places, literally and politically, in which we can find refuge, that we must take a stand for our values.

Iris Zaki made this documentary about a special hair salon called Fifi’s, which is owned by two Christian Arab women and is beloved by Jewish and Arab women alike.

I want to draw your attention, for a moment, from the headlines to the grassroots. Because underneath the radar, tens of thousands of Israelis are working to protect liberal democracy and to build a truly shared society. Their stories often go unnoticed and unremarked on.

We at New Israel Fund are in the social change business, meaning that we talk a lot about what needs to be changed in Israel. Today, it’s worth thinking about some Israeli qualities that needn’t be changed, because they are what made Israel the vibrant and interesting society it is.

I vividly remember Simcha “Kazik” Rotem, leader of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, as he went around the table, turned to each of us with his piercing stare and asked: “What was the lesson of the Shoah?” I’ll never forget his answer.