On Jerusalem Day, I volunteered with Ir Amim to document any racist incitement, violence and/or police refusal to allow the movement of Palestinians. I am happy to report that the march was calmer than previous years. However, it is still hours of high tension, street and shop closures, minor violence and hateful speech. My photographs from the march are at the bottom of this post.
I interviewed Rabbi Yehiel Grenimann, who works at Rabbis for Human Rights as the Head of Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, about his thoughts surrounding Jerusalem Day. Following up on my previous podcast with Ruth Edmonds (of the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions), we discussed issues pertaining to the Bedouin groups in Israel and Palestine.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS
More about Rabbis for Human Rights (in its own words):
Founded in 1988, Rabbis for Human Rights is the only rabbinic voice in Israel that is explicitly dedicated to human rights. Representing over 100 Israeli rabbis and rabbinical students from different streams of Judaism, we derive our authority from our Jewish tradition and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Our mission is to inform the Israeli public about human rights violations, and to pressure the State institutions to redress these injustices. In a time in which a nationalist and isolationist understanding of Jewish tradition is heard frequently and loudly, Rabbis for Human Rights give expression to the traditional Jewish responsibility for the safety and welfare of the stranger, the different and the weak, the convert, the widow and the orphan.
For more information about Rabbis for Human Rights activities pertaining to the Occupied Territories, see their Department of Palestinian Rights page.
Leave A Comment