Blog
Stay Tuned
In just a couple of weeks the NIF Board will convene in Tel Aviv for our winter board meeting. As usual, there’s a lot on our plate.
The African Refugee Issue: An Important Test for Israel
The African refugee issue in Israel, like so many other controversial topics that affect the Israeli body-politic, leaves me internally conflicted. On one hand, I have been appalled by the Israeli government’s behavior toward this issue: the racist incitement by Israeli politicians like Miri Regev, and the attempts to alleviate the situation through cruel and capricious legal mechanisms like the “Infiltrator law.”
Update on Treatment of African Asylum Seekers in Israel
Israel was always meant to be both a Jewish homeland and a democracy. Its founders were driven by their experience as stateless Jews to guarantee equal rights.
Israel’s dilemma: Who can be an Israeli?
Recently, Israel has been beset by a pair of controversies relating to its Arab minority: the proposal to resettle Bedouin Arabs against their will and the call to “transfer” Arab citizens to a future Palestinian state.
We Are Proud To Support Human Rights And Democracy
Since the massive asylum seekers demonstration in Tel Aviv on December 28th, there has been a coordinated and unprecedented right-wing campaign accusing NIF/SHATIL and its grantees of instigating the asylum seekers as part of a wider strategy aimed at transforming Israel into a “state of all its citizens.” This is one of the most concerted attacks on NIF for quite some time. For example, Ronen Shoval, who this week announced that he was resigning as Im Tirtzu chair, wrote the following in an op-ed: “Lurking behind the infiltrators is a series of organizations that seek to delegitimize Israel that are financed by foreign countries and funds (such as the New Israel Fund), whose goal is clear: to do away with Israel’s Jewish and democratic character.” Similar allegations have been made by a number of other right-wing figures.
How I Learned To Be Courageously Curious About Israel
You know you have been there: your heart starts beating a bit faster, the voice in your head is shouting “Are you kidding me!?!” and you write off the person you are talking to as being a lost cause. We all remember having that difficult conversation on Israel.
Opposing the ASA Boycott: A “Hopefully Flawed” Israel
As more and more attention is being given to the American Studies Association decision to boycott Israel, I want to share with you NIF’s approach to the issue.
Good-bye, “Madiba”
When I look back, I have no doubt that I joined the New Israel Fund because I was fortunate enough to know Nelson Mandela. So here is how it goes.
Cry Out Against Injustice
So often, in our work, we hold the beauty and the pain at the same time. But that’s the essence of working to strengthen and defend democracy during difficult times.