Vaccinate yourself against racism with Sadaka Reut’s Youth groups

Sadaka Reut’s youth groups from Kufr Kasem, Kalansawa, Jaffa, Tel-Aviv and Netanya set out to their second youth seminar. The seminar, Held in Ramot Shapira near Jerusalem, focused on activism and on the ability of youth to work together in cooperation despite their differences.

In the first day of the seminar the Palestinian and Jewish participants were divided into three mixed groups and enjoyed an exciting Out Door Training activity in the nearby forest that included tight rope walking, relay races and many other field activities. In order to win the competition, each mixed group worked hard and practiced cooperation and trust building. Indeed, working in partnership is the only way to win.

Adi, a young Jewish participant commented on the ODT activities: “The things we went through in the forest really helped me to get to know the other participants that are not from my hometown and not from my nationality and contributed to team building”.

Later in the day, after the team building events personal and group identities were discussed in workshops among the youth. They conversed about the differences between them and similarities they share. Also, they analyzed why their diversity can strengthen their joint activity against racism.

The next day was dedicated to the discussion on activism. Each bi-national group presented its social-communal activity that they led in their hometown. For example, the Kalansawa group presented their activity “Kalanswa without Violence”- an event that was initiated by the group where more than 200 people attended. The event was intended to eradicate the violence from the city. Another group – “Ironi Alef” from Tel-Aviv introduced their theatrical performance against chauvinism within Israeli culture that they held in different parts of Te-Aviv.

At noon, the students left for Jaffa to produce the campaign “Vaccination against Racism”, that was formulated in the previous seminar. During this campaign the students were dressed up as nurses and set up three different stations in Arab and Jewish neighborhoods. In each station they gave “vaccination shots” against racism along with bumper stickers that read “We are all Different- Sadaka-Reut Youth against Racism” and “No entry for Racism.” The youth “vaccinated” hundreds of by-passers and got them to sign a petition against racism.

Abdallah– a student from Kfar Kasem shared his experience from this campaign: “We were divided into groups and approached people, Jews and Arabs alike, on the streets. People were kind and even offered help. One Sheikh asked me with a hint of pessimism: ‘Do you really believe it would bring change?’ and I answered: ‘We must try no matter what. We have to take responsibility to stop racism.” Abdallah added: “I think this activity gave people hope”.

At the end of the second day the groups met in the park and had a concluding session to process the intense and experiential two-day period they shared. The next morning they called to find out when there will be another activity.

The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of Sadaka Reut and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.

The camera as a tool for activism – Two days of bi-national filmmaking

Training workshop of “Community in Action” participants

Sadaka’s young activist group Community in Action made an early start on Friday, April 27^th, heading north to the mixed city of Akka. There an intensive seminar took place in which the group envisaged, planned, filmed, edited and created two one-minute movies – all in two days. The movies touched the struggle in old Akka, resisting the evacuation of Palestinian families from their houses in favor of new boutique hotels.

The background for the situation in the city and the on-goings of the struggle were exposed to the group by the Akka-based activist Johayna Seify. The eye-opening tour was often stopped by the group who made sure they heard Johayna’s words correctly, describing the absurd reality of evacuation and oppression. They found out that indeed they heard right, it is the racist policies and municipal acts that are unbelievable.

A concentrated filmmaking workshop commenced right after the tour. The workshop was conducted by the Palestinian filmmaker Anan Barikat from Nazarreth. The group, divided into two production teams, decided about an initial idea and developed it into a shooting-plan. The next day and noon where spent by roaming the streets of old Akka, directing, filming, acting, waiting for the light to change and arguing about both cinema and politics in loud voices, merging suitably with the voices from the market place and the marine.

After the shooting material was gathered, the group returned to the hostel in order to edit it into a film. At the same day an official YouTube channel of the group was inaugurated in the name SadakaFAC, where everybody can watch the films.

Mahmud, a Palestinian participant, honestly described his feelings before the seminar and how they changed: “I came to the seminar very skeptical at first, I didn’t understand what exactly are we supposed to do. After a talk with Anan, the cinema guide, I immediately thought of something and filmed it with Anan’s help. Afterwards we showed the pictures, which were truly beautiful and inspiring”

Michal: “The seminar enabled us to meet through the joint creation, as human beings. For a moment I wasn’t an “Israeli Jew” (which I am a little bit tired of being) but just Michal. We managed to create a film together because we agree on many things; we recognize injustice and atrocities in the same places. This discovery was exiting, liberating and made me hopeful regarding joint action. The experience I went through with the group, was the magic of this seminar from me”

One of the most important aspects of “M2M” is the Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning process the three organizations have decided to undertake. Though the three implementing partners have extensive experience in conducting bi-national programs, the MEL (Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning) process will help to consolidate this experience and expose it to other organizations and stakeholders. Another goal of the MEL process is to give the implementing partners creative monitoring tools and innovative learning methods to expand the organizations’ ability of extracting the important insights they collect along the way.

The Race To The 160 Million,
Sadaka Reut’s youth group visit the city of Lod:

On the 26^th of February, Sadaka Reut’s youth groups from Jaffa, Tel-Aviv, and Lod met in the city of Lod to learn, and experience the city and its citizens.

During the day, the youth participated in “The Race for The 160 Million.” They were divided into small groups racing to get to the final destination of the demolished house of the Abu-Eed family in the city. Two years ago, the seven houses of the Abu-Eed family were demolished by the government in order to build a road in that same place. The demolitions left more than 70 persons on the streets. Till this day, most have not found adequate housing. The “160 Million” promised to the winners of this race, represented the 160 million NIS that were guaranteed by the Israeli government to the city and were supposed to “empower and develop the city of Lod.” However, the money was never transferred, and the city continues to portray a reality of neglect, discrimination, and a clear division and difference between the Palestinian and Jewish citizens of the city.

The process of studying about the current situation of the city during the game was very independent and to the point. To begin with, the groups
discussed the term “home” and what it represents for every one of them. Then, they walked around the city interviewing locals about Lod. They asked questions like “What do you think of the city?” and also questions like “How would you imagine the city in 10 years?”  After the interviews they collected information about the Palestinian house demolitions in the city through different assignments.

The race ended as mentioned in the location of the demolished house of the Abu-Eed family. There one can see seven piles of destruction standing as a faint testimony of a family that was torn apart. Each group took photos of the demolitions that presents the loss of the term “home” that they discussed earlier. They later sat together surrounded by the rubble, and listened to the first-hand account of Um-Rawdi that shared her story of the demolitions. She talked about that day as a Nakba (catastrophe) for her family. On that day all of the families of her seven sons were dispersed across the country in search of housing.

After that emotional meeting, and during the dinner, the youth joined back together with their groups. They summarized their journey and looked back at the photos they took. One group mentioned the photo on the side and wrote: “The combination between the rubble and the skyline represent our feeling of injustice on the one hand, and on the other, our hope for reparations.”

Disclaimer: This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of Sadaka Reut and in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.

 Sadaka Reut’s Youth Seminar “The Battle against Racism”

On Friday the 24th of January 2012 Sadaka Reut held a 2 day youth seminar with more than 75 Arab and Jewish participating youth from Jaffa, Lyd/Lod, Kalansawa, Natanya, Kufr-Kasem, Musmus, and Tel-Aviv.  Like always, the youth were randomly divided into bi-nationally mixed groups co-facilitated by a Palestinian and a Jewish facilitator. During the seminar, that was held in Givat Haviva as part of  ”From margins to Mainstream” project , the youth participated in several workshops on the topic of racism focusing on their personal day to day experience of racism, as well as on racism on the institutional level. These discussions were based on racist events that unfortunately become more and more prevalent in Israeli society.

On the evening of Yom Kippur, the most sacred day in the Jewish faith, Christian and Muslim cemeteries in Jaffa were vandalized with slogans like “Death to Arabs.” A few weeks later, a famous restaurant was sprayed with similar slogans and was then burnt. Those two sad events made it clear that racism has crossed over from being a form of speech to direct violent action. Also, while tension between Arab and Jews communities is growing, Jewish Ethiopian citizens find themselves facing racism and discrimination from the general public and the institutions.

In the seminar the youth concluded that direct action is needed to work together against racism.  Therefore they created an anti-racism sticker which they will distribute in their home towns in the coming months. Some of the slogans that the youth came up with demonstrated their commitment to battle racism: “Caution: Racism in dangerous to your health” and “We are all… different”.

Adi Maoz, the Co-CEO of the movement said: “In Sadaka-Reut we claim that ignoring or silencing racist action in fact acts as a sign of approval or cooperation with these actions. Therefore, this year we decided to have the seminar focus on racism to give highest importance for Arab-Jewish actions against racism that is relevant to us all.”

Apart from the workshops focused on racism there were many fun activities allowing the participants to get to know each other better and to create a basis for mutual work.  Adan Tatour, an Arab 9^th grader from Jaffa mentioned that the seminar was a moving experience for her. “In all of the workshops we learnt new things and managed to see things from many different perspectives” she recalled. Maya Goner, a Jewish participant from Tel-Aviv, also in the 9^th grade, enjoyed best the workshops that dealt with stereotypes, and “Ad-Busting”. Tatour summarized the seminar as a rare opportunity for an encounter of deep conversations between Arabs and Jews.

Lisa Hanania, the seminar coordinator, was very pleased from the results of the seminar and said “We truly managed to enrich the youth and allow them to be actively engaged with issues concerning racism. The fact that Arab and Jewish youth can also hang out together and deepen their friendship is also important.”

Sapir Hadad, age 17, wrote a moving letter 2 days after the seminar and posted it on the youths’ bi-lingual facebook wall. This exceptional personal letter says it all:

“When I boarded the bus that took us to the bi-national seminar there were many kids that I didn’t know before, but because I have been participating in Sadaka Reut’s activities for three years now I immediately introduced myself without fear of being judged or not welcomed. When we arrived in Givat Haviva for the seminar, the gate closed behind us and left us all together for 2 days in a parallel exceptional world. In this world everybody understands everybody, even though we speak different languages. In this world we all stand at the same level, we are all equal. An awesome atmosphere of unconditional love, that God would have been proud to see, was felt. I can be myself a 100%, no masks needed. This overall feeling of acceptance created a sense of tranquility in my heart but also a disturbing feeling… that this is all temporary… that I will wake up at home when the seminar is over to a confused reality… a reality of helplessness that characterizes my country and my society… the “real” reality, out side of the Sadaka Reut’s seminar. Who knows… Sometimes dreams do come true.

Sapir Hadad

Dora Group, Natanya

Indeed, the Sadaka-Reut seminars present a unique chance for action and dialogue. Brave Arab and Jewish youth working together against the different forms of racism will hopefully set the tone to a new reality, where racist actions, whether towards Arab or Jews is not acceptable.

Disclaimer: This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of Sadaka Reut and in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.

These are some of the moving comments that the youth posted right after the seminar.

On the 6^th of December 2011, 49 Palestinian and Jewish youngsters came for all across the country to participate in an afternoon of activity, partnership and fun. They are the participants of Sadaka-Reut’s group – Jewish and Palestinian youths working on a weekly basis in their communities with Sadaka-Reut’s team of committed facilitators. They came from the Palestinian communities of Qalanswa, Kufr Kassem and Lid and from the Jewish cities of Natanya, Tel-Aviv andBat Yam.

Read more »

Sadaka Reut’s Summer Camp of 2011 was one of a kind. Instead of a regular summer camp, a huge role-playing game took place, with the participation of 30 youths and 20 volunteers and staff members. The game began from the moment the youth arrived at the camp’s zone on Friday noon and ended with their departure on the eve of the day after.

Thirty members of Sadaka Reut’s youth groups gathered in Tabeetha School in Jaffa that agreed to host the camp. Every participant received a new identity that defined who he will be during the game. Read more »

Sadaka Reut June 2011 Newsletter Final