Nearing the end...

So Margaret has left and Dan, another good friend from Clark, has arrived. This past week I've been traveling all around the country, serving as Margaret's tour guide, and really taking the opportunity to see Israel from a "Tourist" view point; something that I have not had the chance to really do since I arrived.

While in Jerusalem with Margaret, I met with Mr. Aiman Seif, Head of the Department for Economic Development in the Arab, Druz and Circassian sectors in the Office of the PM. The Meeting went well, and I learned some more on the issue of economic development and the place of the Arab and other minority sectors in Israel. This meeting felt like a good concluding meeting of my summer research, especially after hearing from Mr. Seif that overall "the Arab sector is in a positive growth trend". Coming from a person who himself is an Arab Israeli, this felt like a very comforting statement.

Looking back, I can definitely say that the work I did this summer was a worthwhile experience. I have learned a lot about the topic I came to learn about, but also got reacquainted with Israel and Israeli society and its many facets. I am sure to remember many different little things I came across, saw, and learned throughout my almost two months back home.

On Monday I leave Israel to go back to the US, where, despite spending a good amount of my time continuing to work on my research, I will also have other obligation to fulfill. This will take some getting re-used to, but I am looking forward to another interesting year.

With that, I want to thank again all the people who helped make this summer possible, and especially those who were directly involved in the process, namely; Prof. Sharon Krefetz, Prof. David Bell, Dr. Yousef Jabareen, and of course the Steinbrecher family, who helped make this research idea a reality.

This may be my last entry before leaving on Monday, so thank you all who followed my blog throughout the summer, I definitely enjoyed writing it, and I know that it will help me in looking back at the work I did this summer and reflecting upon it.

I am posting more pictures than usual due to this being the last entry from Israel, and so I want to give a really good picture, literally speaking, of my last couple of weeks here.

So for now, Lehitra'ot!

I am now nearing the end of my time in Israel and my field research for the summer.
I have a friend visiting from Clark as well, and so I am using this opportunity to do some traveling and sight seeing I haven't had a chance to do yet this summer.

I have one more major event related to my research before I leave next Monday, and that is a meeting with Aiman Seif, who is the head of the department for economic development for the Arab, Druz and Ciracassian sectors in the office of the Prime Minister in Jerusalem this Tuesday.

I still have a lot of work to do, but had a very good concluding meeting with Dr. Jabareen on Wednesday and feel that I am in a very good place with my research right now, and know what to do in order to move forward.
I will post a concluding entry next weekend right before I leave.

For now, I will share a situation that my friend, Margaret and I noticed yesterday; as we were walking through a park in Haifa, a city known for its diversity, we saw a group of Arab children on a field trip playing in the park. Right in the same park, a few hundred yards away, was a Orthodox Jewish family. I said to Margaret "Now this is an image for you" and she replied "it would be even more of an image if the Arab and Orthodox Jewish kids were playing together", to which a replied with very pessimistic prospects of that happening.
Just thought I'd share.

Shabbat Shalom.

The Conference for the Promotion of Export Businesses in the Arab Sector

Yesterday I attended a conference in Nazareth on the promotion of export businesses in the Arab sector; a field that is becoming more and more popular in Israel, but still not as strong as it should be in the Arab sector, another consequence of all the issues that I have, and continue to look at in my research.
Among others, at the conference were the Minister of Industry, Trade, and Labor (MITL), Mr. Benjamin (Fuad) Ben-Eliezer; and the Head of the Department for Economic Development for the Arab, Druz and Circassian sectors in the Office of the Prime Minister, Mr. Aiman Seif, with whom I am meeting next Tuesday in Jerusalem.

At the conference were several business owners, economists, and other business people from both the Jewish and Arab sectors. The speakers discussed the above mentioned issues and the economic and political barriers to trade growth among the Arab sector. Some very interesting points were made at the conference. Among them; the MITL made note of the (unfortunate) fact that the problems are deep seated and old, thus changing them is not something that can be done in a day, and requires the support and work of many people and will take time. Mr. Dov Lautman, Chair of the Advising Committee for Investments in the Arab Sector in the Office of the Prime Minister, pointed out that an entrepreneur who isn't optimistic won't get anywhere. Dr. Safya Amin, CEO of Sarab Group, claimed that "if we look back, we will never go forward". These were only some of the notions introduced in the conference, which gave a sense of optimism and hope for business growth in the Arab Sector.

It was also interesting to note that many of the speakers with "success stories" in export had businesses relating to food; a fact that was also referred to at the conference as not being consequential, for the Arab communities are known for being strong in this field.

One of the things that I liked most in this conference, is the fact that there was an almost equal number of Jewish, Arab, male, and female participants, eluding to a real strive for equality in this field.

Something to think about...

So I'm back from the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee), where I had a great time relaxing with family, namely my two adorable nephews, and now its time to get back to business.

One of the things that I have become much more aware of while working with and around Arab citizens of Israel, is the unfortunate fact that, despite being the second official language in Israel after Hebrew, the Arabic language does not receive the same status and usage. This shows in many ways; for one, very few Jewish Israelis (including myself) speak fluent or even partial Arabic. In most public, and some private schools, studying the Arabic language is mandatory between the 7th and 9th grades, however, despite being offered in subsequent years in high-school, very few students choose to pursue it. On the flip side, in order to get by in Israel, the Arab citizens must speak fluent, or at least semi-fluent, Hebrew. This is explained by the fact that Israel is a JEWISH and Democratic state, and Hebrew is the language of the Jewish people.

This reality also translates itself in the higher use of the English language on street and road signs than Arabic. Arabic is only seen on road signs to central destinations on major roads and on road signs to Arab villages, while English can be found even on the smallest street sign in a small town, like Zichron-Ya'akov- my home town.

This is just one of many factors that frustrates the Arab population in Israel and causes for further schism in Israeli society. So, should something be done to change this reality, or, in light of much bigger problems, this should be left to a later time? Just something to think about...

Road sign with three languages

A street sign in Zichron-Ya'akov

Um El-Fahem

A view of Um El-Fahem
Yesterday I went to meet Dr. Jabareen in the Arab village of Um El-Fahem, to hear him and Dr. Ayman Agbaria speak to a group of Political Scientists Specializing in the Middle East and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from around the world, who have come to Israel through Bar-Ilan University in Tel-Aviv to see first hand the realities of Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, so that they can improve their understanding,

and thus their teaching of these topics.

Dr. Jabareen lecturing

Dr. Jabareen focused on the legal and political status of the Arab-Palestinian citizens of Israel, while Dr. Agbaria discussed the status of the Arab minority specifically in the educational sector, which is his specialty, as a lecturer in the Education Department at Haifa University. The lectures were very interesting, but also very interesting were some of the comments and questions that the audience had; for instance, a question one of the participants had on why the Arab citizens of Israel would prefer to stay in Israel, even if a Palestinian state were to be established, and another question on whether the demands of the Arab citizens of Israel were even realistic in the current state. To both questions Dr. Jabareen replied, suggesting that both situations are very complicated. Lack of time did not allow him to really delve into the questions.

After the event, one of the young women that works at the Art Gallery where the lectures took place was cleaning up in the lecture room. I was waiting for Dr. Jabareen and Dr. Agbaria, and so I asked if she needed help. Her response suggested a sort of shock at the fact that I was offering to assist her, even more so when I began picking things up and putting them away. Her reaction made me think that maybe my offer defied conventional power relations that may be entrenched in her; how is it that a man, and even more so, a Jewish man, is helping me? Sad, but true, reality.

On a more positive note, while talking to Dr. Agbaria I found out that he, too, was a student at Clark, and not only that- he was a student in the International Development & Social Change department; what are the chances? He reminiced a little on his time at Clark in 1998 and we compared past and current happenings.

Later this afternoon I am leaving for the Sea of Galilee in the North for a couple days of vacation with family. I will return on Friday and will be sure to share my adventures.

At the Gallery

Text Message

Here is a text message I received on my Israeli cell phone while on the bus coming back from the Dead Sea to Jerusalem. I'm posting it because I was surprised to receive it and found it kind of "cool", yet strange, and thought others may find it the same.

עקב קרבתך לגבול, מכשירך פועל תחת מפעיל ירדני בתעריפי נדידה. אם הינך בישראל, יש לבחור ידנית ברשת פלאפון. פרטים +972507077860. תרגום לערבית: نظراً لقربك من الحدود ، تم تشغيل جهازك من قبل شبكة أردنية وفقاً لتسعيرة تجوال . إذا كنت في إسرائيل عليك الاختيار يدوياً بشبكة بيليفون. تفاصيل +972507077860

Translation: Due to your closeness to the Border [with Jordan], your device is operating under a Jordanian service provider on roaming rates. If you are in Israel, please manually choose "Pelephone" as your service provider. Information [#]. Translation into Arabic:...


Makes one realize the closeness of these two "distant" countries, doesn't it?

Conference in Jerusalem

A view of Jerusalem from atop
a hill in the old city
Yesterday I returned from a three day conference in Jerusalem and the Dead Sea. The title of the conference, as I mentioned in my last entry, was "Local Government in a Changing World". The conference brought together scholars from all over the world; Israel, the USA, Germany, Switzerland, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, and France; all researches of local politics in its different facets, each specializing in issues pertaining to their respective countries.


Some of the lecture I found most interesting, among them ones which had parts pertaining to my research, included:

• Electoral Politics in Local Government in Israel
• Democratic Transformation and the City
• The US Housing Crisis: Challenges and Opportunities for Local Governments
• Councilors as members of representative body within the "three worlds of democratic action", their understanding of democracy and task perception
• Urban Governance and the Role Perception and Behavior of the City Councilors in Switzerland
• Neoliberalism or Welfare State Interventionism? Governance and Metropolitan Inequality

These were only a few of the lectures at the conference, which totaled 32 participants, most of them lecturers and a few who just came to listen and learn (like myself).

Maiersdorf Faculty Club at the

Mt. Scopus Campus of the HUJ

Besides the great food served all throughout the conference, the fact that the conference included scholars from such different places, made it all the more interesting and enjoyable, both from an academic standpoint, and from a personal learning one. For instance, discussing with one of the Polish participants who lectured on Cooperation of local government in Poznan metropolitan area, the topic of my research, and being given a comparison between the situation in Israel to the one in Eastern Europe, was eye opening; all the more so because it took place in a pool at the Dead Sea hotel.

My learning and personal experience from this conference was unprecedented for all the reasons mentioned above. It also made me think of some different angles I can take with my research as I move along with my work.

And on another note: I happened to be in Jerusalem just as the Gilad Shalit march reached Jerusalem, and settled in front of Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu's house on Azza Street, right up the street from my sister's apartment, where I stayed. I used this opportunity to stand and observe the gathering, which brought together local residents from all sectors of society; young and old, parents, students, religious and secular; and the entering of Shalit's parents to a meeting with the PM, which subsequently, according to news reports, was not very productive. The family and supporters are expected to remain in front of the PM's residence until a deal is struck with Hammas to release the abducted soldier. If and when this happens, we'll just have to wait and see.

People gathering in front of the

PM residence in support of the
Shalit family

I have nothing very interesting to say but to keep to my 2-3 entries a week. Since my last entry on Saturday, I have been mostly at home, catching up on some articles, reports, and books I'm trying to get through that I had piling up; not too exciting, but nevertheless important.
Tomorrow afternoon, however, I leave for Jerusalem (again) where I will spend two days there and one at the Dead Sea attending a conference titled "Local Government in a Changing World". I will be sure to report on my experiences there upon my return.
For now, I will leave you with some very nice planks that I saw lined up at the elementary school that I attended, as I was taking a walk through there. They have nothing to do with my research, but I still enjoyed finding them at a secular Israeli elementary school. I don't think any explanation is necessary, for the planks speak for themselves (if you can read the slightest of Hebrew, that is).

A day in Yerushalayim (Jerusalem)

Givat Ram Campus, HUJ
On Thursday I met at the Hebrew University-Givat Ram campus in Jerusalem with Anna Hazan, former head of the department for local development in the Ministry of Interior (MOI). Ms. Hazan had worked in the MOI for many years before deciding last year to leave her position due to professional disagreements. As one who had worked in the public sector for many years, she knew not only a lot about municipal boundary allocations, property tax, and local council dynamics, as part of her specific position, but also a lot about the Israeli political system in general. Thus, in our hour and a half conversation, I was able to get a very good inside scoop into the political realities of the state of Israel. Ms. Hazan expressed a lot of criticism but also a lot of hope for the Israeli system. She made clear that while Israel does have her problems, we must remember that we live in an area and in a strategic and political reality unlike, perhaps, ANY other country in the world; While striving to maintain a status of a modern democracy, Israel's geographical location and unique traits make life here much harder.

In our discussion of the status of the Arabs in Israel, Ms. Hazan stressed how complex the situation is and how many facets it holds. Her specific opinions on different issues I will not share here, for I will keep those for the actual thesis paper I will write on the topic. All I will say is that Ms. Hazan concluded our conversation on the topic by saying that the complexity of the situation may never lead us to move away from the status quo- whether this is a good or bad thing, again, I will leave for the actual paper.

While in Jerusalem I noticed with more distinction than in other places in the country the presence of two populations in particular; Orthodox Jews (Haredim) and soldiers. This was only a passing observation, but one which Ms. Hazan said was statistically also true, and in any case is interesting to note. The reasons for this many seem obvious, considering that Jerusalem is both the capital city and the "holy city", which would explain the high presence of Orthodox Jews.

On a different note, before leaving Zichron on Wednesday afternoon to Jerusalem, I attended a rally for the abducted soldier of four years, Gilad Shalit. The rally was well attended, indicating wide support for the family who is on a ten day journey by foot to Jerusalem in protest of the unsuccessful attempts in the past four years of bringing Gilad home. The issue of Gilad Shalit has become a big debate in public discourse, because of the divide and conflict between the need to free the abducted soldier at "all costs" and the need to maintain internal security and thus follow regular Israeli policy guidelines; thus not agreeing to "at all costs", a statement that PM Benjamin Netanyahu made clear just two days ago.

Rally for Gilad Shalit

Arab Built Heritage Preservation in Israel - שימור מורשת ערבית בנויה בישראל

A View of Haifa
"I am the first to say that I am Israeli, Jewish, Zionist; but there must be a separation between one's personal identity and important public topics, such as site preservation" (Prof. Yossi Ben-Artzi). These were the closing remarks by the opening speaker of yesterday's lecture series at Haifa University on the importance of preserving old buildings around Israel, focusing on those in Arab neighborhoods. The lecture series was sponsored by The Israel National Commission for UNESCO (The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization). Prior to these remarks, Prof. Ben-Artzi, who is the University Rector and a lecturer in the Israel Studies department, stated several challenges facing the efforts to preserve buildings, especially among Arab communities. Some challenges that he mentioned included: the individuals in said communities; the political and narrative society; the local authority, which deals with what is urgent and not with what is important. Ben-Artzi's
remarks proved very true as the following lectures were heard.

While combining many elements to it, including many relating to architecture and building style, this six hour lecture series held political nuances throughout all of the lectures. In fact, this point was reiterated with many oppositions to one speaker's remarks that "there is a need to remove political sentiments when talking about preservation" (Prof. Sa'adya Mendel). The lectures and attendees included Jews and Arabs; Professors, Architects, other academicians; and people working the the public sector. This variety really helped in having a wide range a viewpoints introduced and in creating a balance in opinion.

I found this lecture series especially interesting because it took an issue confronted in Israeli society that may not seem as political at first glance, but clearly is, and brought it to the forefront. It was clear that this was indeed a political topic not just because several speakers mentioned this, but also because as many of the speakers spoke, their personal and political views manifested themselves quite clearly.

Besides learning a lot about the topic of Arab-Palestinian building preservation in Israel, I was also reminded of how loud and opinionated Israelis can be; for not a moment went by during the day when someone from the audience wasn't talking or expressing an opinion while a lecturer was speaking on stage; especially the older man that was sitting right in back of me!

"גם אני ישראלי אמיתי"

While walking on one of the streets in Nazareth, I came across a car that had a sticker on it which stated: "גם אני ישראלי אמיתי"- "I too am a real Israeli".


Besides the interest I found in this specifically because the car was in Nazareth (whether it was owned by a Jewish or Arab Israeli, I do not know, although I could probably make a wild guess), I once again, as in other written and spoken references I have alluded to in my entries here, found it interesting, for I saw it as testament to the strong Israeli pride that can be found among some Israelis, manifesting itself the most in times when Israel as a state and Israeli citizens as individuals may feel threatened by international narratives and perceptions.
Comments and thoughts on this would be greatly appreciated.

Shabbat Shalom.

Nazareth (Natzeret)

Yesterday I spent the day in Nazareth (in Hebrew- Natzeret). Nazareth is the home to the Church of the Annunciation and the most vibrant Arab city in Israel. Being such, Dirasat, the Arab center for Law and Policy, which Dr. Jabareen is head of, is located there.


I spent the day with Dr. Jabareen in the Dirasat office, reading interesting articles and talking, and then at 4pm we proceeded to attend a gathering to celebrate the beginning of a Dirasat research project on Arab teacher training in Israel. The gathering had a majority of Arab participants who are educators in different capacities at the various colleges around the country, as well as a few Jewish educators. After a nice introduction by Dr. Jabareen and Dr. Ayman Agbaria, who is in charge of this specific project at Dirasat, each participant presented his, her, or their research (some were doing joint research) proposals, whose findings will later be combined in a book which will be published by Dirasat on the topic.


Some of the topics included:

• Positive and negative experiences of Arab students- Conclusions for teacher training
  
• Arab teacher training policy in Israel for dealing with students in distress and crisis
  
• How the pedagogical counselor perceives his/her position
• The limited number of Arab women candidates to teacher training colleges
• And many more...
  

We ended the evening with a nice dinner at a local restaurant. To be honest, I think the things that were discussed at the dinner are the ones that stuck with me most. We found ourselves sitting Jews with Jews and Arabs with Arabs; Coincidence? Most at my side of the table (let's see if you can guess on which side I sat) didn't think so; Ironic? I would say so!

To a question I posed as to why none of the research topics discussed the dealing from "above", that is, from the Ministry of Education (MOE) and other such bodies, with the problems Arab-Israelis face in the teacher training process, I was answered that "there is nothing to research; the MOE doesn't deal with anything". This I found to be a very pessimistic and unfortunate answer.

I left the restaurant with a good feeling of optimism of what people such as the ones who attended this gathering want and can do, but also with an acknowledgement that there is indeed still much to be done, especially from "above".

View of Nazareth

College educators meeting

West Bank Story

Yesterday, for the first time in my life, I stepped on the soil of an Israeli settlement in the West Bank. Even more than this, yesterday, for the first time in my life, I stepped on the soil of a Palestinian village- a village located in the West Bank which is ruled by the Palestinian authority. The experience was one that I still have not fully grasped. What I saw and heard is almost hard to put in words, thus in this entry you will find several pictures, which I think can tell of my experience better than I can in my own words. I will nevertheless try to present an outline of the highlights of my day in the disputed territories, which are (unbelievably) located 15 minutes from central Tel-Aviv, from where the bus left.

The single Palestinian house

We began our visit in the settlement [Hitnachlut] of Elkanah, located as I mentioned, 15 minutes west of central Tel-Aviv. There we received an explanation about the history of this settlement in particular and settlements in general, and had the first of many discussions regarding the separation fence and wall. The thing that struck me most in Elkanah was the image of a single Palestinian house fenced in between the houses in Elkanah on one side, and a part of the wall on the other.

From Elkanah we continued towards one of the biggest and most developed settlements in the West Bank, which even houses a college aspiring to be a university, and a big industrial center; Ariel. On the way to Ariel our guide pointed out a few other settlements and Palestinian villages, among them: She'arey Tikvah (Gates of Hope), Oranit (Small Pine) and Azun Atmah. I will leave it to you to guess which were Jewish settlements and which were Palestinian villages. If I did not know that Ariel was a settlement, and if it did not have a gate at its entrance to give that fact away, I would have never guessed that it was one. Ariel was as developed as any Israeli town/small city I'd ever encountered. We were also told that the university aspiring college was thriving (however, despite being right next to many Palestinian villages, it did not have one Palestinian student attending it). The images I saw and the things we were told made me a bit frustrated. I couldn't help but ask myself once again why the Israeli government and Israeli tax payers, whether they support it or not, continue investing in territories that are under such great dispute.

Our tour ended with a visit to a Palestinian village called Ein-Abus, located by the village Chawara and the settlement (which is in fact a stronghold [Ma'achaz] and not a recognized settlement) Itzhar. There we met with the head of the village council; a Palestinian member of "Combatants for Peace", the group which the trip was organized by; and other local Palestinian residents. They spoke to us about the realities of living in Ein-Abus and the hardships they face due to conflicts with settlers from Itzhar. They were all very nice and hospitable. They fed us lunch and in general were very friendly. I spoke to two local residents, both of whom attended the meeting. We spoke about our common goal of creating and sustaining peace and the problems created by extremists on both side. They outwardly acknowledged the detriment of having Hammas rule and the need for leaders on both sides who truly want peace.

The meeting in Ein-Abus and the trip in general left me with a bitter-sweet feeling. Bitter- for obvious reasons. Sweet- because of my finding of people on both sides who want to change the status quo.

I have only provided highlights of what I saw and experienced yesterday; for one, because if I were to write it all I could turn it into a book, and a blog entry is not the place to do this. Secondly, because I myself have not yet processed it all. I have a feeling, though, that throughout the summer, I will return to mention events from this day in future entries, for it has impacted me so greatly. Any specific questions will be more than welcomed, and I will do my best to answer them.

I ended my day on a very different note- going to see a concert of Beethoven's 9th Symphony with my Dad. A much needed relaxing activity after a day such as this.

Checkpoint outside of Ein-Abus

An Academic Day

The Promenade in Tel-Aviv
Yesterday was what I would call an "academic day". I started off by finding an article in the "Ha'Aretz" newspaper, one of Israel's leading newspapers, closely relating to the topic of my research, titled: "The Foolish March of Arab-Israeli Repression"; and later when I came home in the evening, two more articles from the same paper were waiting for me, them too relating to my research topic, titled: " The Opportunity for Young Arabs : National Services"; and "The State is Creating Ticking Poverty Bombs". On the previous day I also found an article in that day's "Ha'Aretz" relating to the topic. Based on all of this, it seemed as though I landed on the right summer to conduct research on this topic.

I then left for Haifa University, where I spent some hours roaming the library in search of books I was after for my research. I was only semi-successful, partly because some of the books I was after simply did not exist in this library, and partly because I was unsuccessful in finding books that were supposedly there. I nevertheless was able to extract some good material and sit down to review them.

A big question that has been lingering in my head for a while and had popped up as I was reading a statistical report was: How do we appease the Arab-Palestinian population of Israel while Israel continues to hold its identity as a Jewish state at its core? Should the state see itself in this way at all? and: Are psychological effects dating back to WW2 remaining at the core of Israel's defense of itself as a state for the Jewish people? Neither of these are easy questions to answer and to be honest I will probably not be able to come to solid conclusions on any of them, but they are nevertheless very important questions to address, even if an answer to them cannot be found.

I ended my day in Haifa with a visit with my friend Ari to the Haifa Educational Zoo- small zoo, but we had a very nice visit.

Tomorrow I am going on an organized trip to Nablus and its surrounding towns. I have never been to the West Bank so I am pretty excited, but also anxious, for obvious reasons. Reports from this experience will be reported in my next entry.

On another note, on Wednesday I went to Tel-Aviv to visit the city and a friend. As my friend, Amit, and I were walking down Dizengof Street, one of the main streets in Tel-Aviv, we came across a number of young people trying to "sell" their faith; they were Jews for Jesus. This fact is not really related to anything. I however, found it quite interesting to see. After inquiring with Amit, I was confirmed that this is in fact a new phenomenon in Israel-
Why? this question neither of us knew to answer.

"The Arab's Whinging Era is Over"

Kashrut Certificate at a
Local restaurant
My day begins with two lectures by Dr. Jabareen for students from American University, Washington DC, at the Colony Hotel in Haifa, about the Legal, Political, Social, and Economic Status of Arab-Palestinian citizens within the State of Israel. Being American students not very familiar with the topic, they (and their accompanying professors) asked all kinds of questions, some of which seemed to have pretty obvious answers. Nevertheless, both lectures were very interesting, and despite having read about a lot of what Dr. Jabareen talked about already, I did learn a lot. Two things that Dr. Jabareen mentioned especially caught my attention. The first was his pointing out that Giving rights to one group (i.e. the Arab-Palestinians) does not necessarily exclude another (i.e. the Jews)- or at least it shouldn't (Lecture, Dr. Jabareen- June 14, 2010). The second was that Palestinians in Israel are not struggling for an independent state, but for equal rights within the state of Israel (Lecture, Dr. Jabareen- June 14, 2010). In a sense, I feel as though these two points can sum up a lot of doubts for people who are skeptical about the place Arab-Palestinians hold in Israeli society, or the place that they should hold in Israeli society.

From Ben-Gurion street, where the hotel is located, I headed on a 24 Egged bus towards Haifa University, where I was going to meet my friend Ari Winograd, also a student at Clark, who is finishing a semester of study abroad in Israel. The bus ride took just around a full hour- the streets in Haifa are very congested and the bus makes many stops. On the way I saw a car with a sticker on it that said "חגרת? תפילת הדרך, אמרת?" ("Did you Buckle? Prayer for the road, you said?"), and once again was reminded of the uniqueness of Israel as a Jewish state. After having lunch at one of the University eating venues, Ari and I headed to his residence on campus. There I met his roommates, all native Israelis, and we began a long discussion (just around five hours, in fact) about political issues in Israel- from benefits to the Orthodox citizens of the country, to issues regarding the "Israeli-Palestinian conflict". It was very interesting to hear what Israeli university students, one of them studying Law, have to say about the political obstacles of their own country. We spent much of the time discussing Israeli perceptions of the different issues versus perception from abroad (mainly from the US). My overall perception was that young Israelis have adopted much more moderate views on controversial issues than their predecessors. A very interesting perception of the question of a solution to the "conflict" was made by one of the students I was talking with. So interesting, in fact, that I even asked his permission to record his statement (which he consented to). Perhaps I will use it later on in my research.

As I was heading back on the 202 Egged bus from one of the main bus stations in Haifa, Merkazit Chof Ha'Karmel, to my hometown of Zichron-Ya'akov, I was addressed by a young woman on the bus (maybe 20 years old), who noticed I was reading a book in English. She had noticed me because she works for a company called "Wall Street", which manages programs for teaching Israelis English at all levels. We briefly discussed the name of the company, whereby I mentioned that perhaps that name is not as appealing today as it may have been a couple of years ago. She also told me that, quote "these programs don't cost in the hundreds [of Shekels], they cost thousands". My interaction with her made me think of two things; for one, it made me think of how English in general and the United States in particular are still very valued in Israeli society, despite how they may not be as much any more in many other parts of the world. Second, it reminded me of a unique trait which the Israeli people have, of being very open and interested in the surroundings, for good and for bad.

I got home, sat down and read summaries of court cases regarding equal rights of the Arab-Palestinians in Israel, sent to me by Dr. Jabareen.

That was my day.

As I promised, I will continue to post, in edition to my entries, some pictures that I think capture the essence of the State of Israel in its different aspects. Enjoy.

Upside-down street sign

A First Glimpse from the Holy Land

It's now been almost two days since my arrival to Israel. My first reaction upon arrival was a sense of surrealism- a sort of disbelief that finally, I am actually here . My time here so far has been spent seeing my parents and some friends and reacquainting myself with daily life in Israel.

One of the first things I began to be reminded of was the type of personalities and attitudes which the Israeli people hold. Very open, very loud, and always saying what's on their minds. Yesterday, for instance, as I was taking a walk with my friend Tamir through the streets of Zichron-Ya'akov, we came across (another) house being built in the little bit of space still left in Israel to build. As we were walking past it, a man walked towards us; as he past the house that is being built he shouted at the construction workers (in Hebrew- loosely translated): "Why all this building?! we're gonna be breaking into war tomorrow anyway and everything will be ruined!" Despite this man's pessimism, I found his remarks quite intriguing, and perhaps a testament to Israeli sentiments towards the current situation in particular and the overall situation in general. At that moment, I really wished I had my digital recorder with me so that I could have recorded and shared his exact remarks with all of you.

Today is Friday (Yom Shishi), a day when the entire country operates on a half day schedule in anticipation for the Sabbath (Shabbat), whether for religious reasons or simply because its a day during which you don't go to work- one of the remaining ways in which Israel differ itself from most of the rest of the world because of her Jewish character. This factor has many good aspects to it, bringing the Jewish citizens of Israel together under a common cause. How this translates to the implications towards the other citizens of Israel (i.e. the Arab-Palestinian) can be debated. I hope to get better insight to this as I move ahead with my work this summer.

I will be spending the weekend with family and friends, and anticipating my first meeting with Dr. Jabareen on Monday at Haifa University.

They say a picture is worth more than a thousand words, so I will attempt to add some interesting photos I take with captions beneath them to each blog entry to give you a sense of what catches my attention as I go about my daily life in Israel.

Shabbat Shalom and have a good weekend.
















(Bottom) Sign on a fence at the side of a main street,

stating: "Stoping the disaster:

Moving the Gas Factories to the Ocean"

(Top) Artillery Tank at the Artillery
Display in Zichron Ya'akov

פוליטיקה של הרחקה או פוליטיקה של הסדרה? ישראל ואזרחיה הערבים
אליעזר דון-יחיא
"טיפול דחוף בשאלות הקשורות במצבם ובמעמדם של הערבים אזרחי ישראל במגמה להביא לשינויים מבניים על בסיס מוסכם בתחום זה חשוב אפוא גם לשם שמירת השלום הפנימי והיציבות הפוליטית של מדינת ישראל" (2003 עמ' 9).

A Politics of Distancing or a Politics of Resolution? Israel and its Arab Citizens/ Eliezer Don-Yehya
"Urgent attention to questions relating to the situation and status of the Arab citizens of Israel in the process of establishing agreed upon changes in this area are important also for the maintenance of internal peace and political stability of the state of Israel" [Loosely translated from Hebrew] (Don-Yehya 2003: 9).

Recent statistical research indicates that the Arab-Palestinian population of Israel currently stands at about 20% (1.2 million) of the total population. In contrast to this, the same research indicates that only around 6% (3,577) of people working in the different government offices identify themselves as Arab-Palestinian (Lis 2010). It does not take a mathematics student (which I definitely am not!) to figure out that the percentages don't match up.

Ever since beginning my studies at Clark University of International Development & Social Change (IDSC) and Political Science, my interests in both fields have grown tremendously. I have discovered the beauty but also the many faults in both of them. My specialization in Political Economy has brought me to focus in even more depth on issues relating to politics. Combined with this, as a native of Israel, ever since beginning to study these topics one of my natural inclinations has been towards looking at Israel and its politics through these lenses.

The process that led me to conducting the research I will be doing this summer began last April (2009) when I went for an advising session with my faculty adviser, Prof. David Bell in IDSC. I brought up the idea for the topic of the political representation of Arab Israelis in decision making bodies as a possible topic for my Honors Thesis, which I will be writing in the upcoming academic year. Prof. Bell then suggested that I might want to think of combining this idea with conducting field research on the topic, as part of my IDSC requirements. This idea appealed to me a lot and I immediately began in a process towards making this happen. With a suggestion by my dad, who is a professor at Haifa University, I got in touch with Dr. Yousef Jabareen, who is also a lecturer at Haifa University of Law and the Arab Minority, as well as the director of the Dirasat Arab center for Law and policy, centered in Nazareth. To my delight, Dr. Jabareen was happy to assist me with my research and thus my journey began.

It has been over a year since this idea came about. After spending the past year reading as much as I can on the topic and topics relating to it, and getting in contact with different scholars and political figures, I am now four days away from arriving in Israel, and eight days away from finally meeting Dr. Jabareen in person and beginning my field research on the status of the Arab citizens of Israel in relation to their position in the decision making process and all that it entails.

Recent unfortunate events in Israel (the Flotilla incident on May 31, 2010) have caused for renewed tension among the people of Israel and between Israel and several members of the international community. How this will effect my work this summer is something I will just have to wait and see.

Some (especially avid Jewish Zionists, in Israel and abroad- and don't get me wrong, I would be considered one too) may ask- why are you, a Jew, born and raised in Israel, who has been one of many recipients of all the rights and privileges given to Israeli citizens, looking at the issue of fair representation of Israeli Arab citizens in decision-making bodies? can't I just be happy to be a proud Jewish Israeli citizens with said rights and privileges? To all those who may ask this and other similar questions, I reply: read the quote I put at the top of this entry. It may begin to give you an idea of where I am coming from. If things are still not clear, feel free to ask; I am ready, willing and happy to answer any such questions.

At this point, I would like to thank a few people who helped make this long process reach where it has. First, I would like to thank Prof. Bell for coming up with the idea to combine my Honors Thesis topic with doing field research, and supporting me throughout the process. Second, I would like to thank Prof. Sharon Krefetz for agreeing to be my Honors Thesis adviser and helping me so much through this process. Third, I would like to thank Dr. Yousef Jabareen for agreeing to work with me through e-mails throughout this entire year, and mostly for agreeing to take me on this summer as I conduct my research in Israel. I would also like to thank all the other scholars and people involved in the Israeli political system who gave me advice, shared ideas, invited me to attend a conference in Jerusalem in July, and sent me important reading materials throughout this past year, namely- Dr. Fred Lazin, Dr. Eran Razin, and Ms. Anna Hazan. I would also like to thank my dad, Prof. Abraham Melamed, for getting me in touch with Dr. Jabareen and supporting me throughout this process; my mom, Paula Silberstein-Melamed, for continuously sending articles and correspondences that she thought would be of interest to me, and the rest of my family for their on-going support. Last, but definitely not least, I would like to thank the Steinbrecher family and selection committee for believing in this project and financially assisting me in making its execution possible.

To all who have been mentioned above- THANK YOU! I hope you enjoy following my research this summer as much as I plan to enjoy conducting it.

Works Cited
Don-Yehya, Eliezer. "Politics of Distancing or Politics of Resolution? Israel and Its Arab Citizens." The Israel Democracy Institute (2003): 1-9. [Published in Hebrew]

Lis, Jonathan. "Knesset Panel Criticizes Lack of Arab Employees in Government Agencies." Ha'aretz 5 May 2010. [Published in Hebrew and English]