So this (the title of this post) is my most recently acquired Hebrew. It means (roughly translated) "The People Demand Social Justice." Last night Sarah and I joined 20,000 (you read that right) others at a demonstration in Be'er Sheva. This was the rallying cry (with the first word being switched out on occasion for "Ha-Negev" or "Ha-Darom" (the South). The "agenda" was, as I described earlier, more money to be spent on housing, education, and health care and less on security. [If you haven't already done so, you can check out Day 5 of this blog for a more complete description.] The energy was electrifying! Took me right back to my anti-Vietnam war protest days. It was fascinating to see the diversity of the folks joining in this demonstration. First, there were folks from all over the country. The organizers (very loose, and possibly, although no one seems willing to talk about it, receiving some financing from NIF) of this whole business identify 2 cities each week to be the special focus for Saturday night and this week was Be'er Sheva's turn so people came from Tel Aviv, J'm (Jerusalem), Sde Boker, even Eilat. The demonstrators were of all ages -- and I do mean all. There were plenty of school age kids but also a number of babies, teens of course, and adults ranging up to very, very senior citizens. Finally,there were Jews, Israeli Palestinians and, I would imagine -- although obviously they are not identifiable -- Christians. The Jews were of every "stripe" -- secular (lots), Progressive (Reform/Conservative), and Modern Orthodox (the ones who wear the knitted kippot). The only group that I did not see represented was the haredim (= black hats). No comment -- but certainly not a surprise.
As I mentioned yesterday, Sarah and I marched with the Negev Coalition Forum for Civil Equality (again see Day 5 for an explanation). What an interesting group! Certainly there were a number of old "hippies" like my sister-in-law, then there were younger, Jewish Israelis. There were also Bedouins and other Israeli Palestinians. This is the same group that we will be celebrating an "iftar" with tomorrow evening. It was so enlightening to meet Palestinians who have no desire whatsoever to destroy Jews or the State of Israel. I had a very long talk with one, Faisal, in which we both agreed that fanaticism is fanaticism no matter what mask it wears. As I said to Laurie later, I can easily imagine having this guy as a neighbor and having my kids play with his. While it was a wonderful experience, it also made me quite sad. Just imagine how different things would be if people could just get to know one another and connect around their many, many shared experiences and values. Kind of gave a new sense of importance to John Lennon's "Imagine." If people (Jews and Arabs) like the ones I met last night were making the decisions there could easily be a peaceful -- even cooperative -- two-state solution. It might even be possible for all of us to share one common state in which all religious beliefs and practices were honored. Yes, I know, as Lennon said, "You may think I'm a dreamer" and I am sure that I am but this is a wonderful dream! We can only pray, and work, for it to come true. The beginning is, I feel certain, more groups like the one that I was with last night coming together and breaking down the imaginary walls which divide us.
In addition to the speeches, several very big name Israeli performers were on hand. Most notably, Noa, who is coming to Rochester for the big Federation event this fall. She was terrific despite the fact that they were obviously using gigantic amps and speakers which tend to distort things. Toward the end of her "set" she started the gathering chanting, "Ha-Am Doresh Tzedek Chevrati" and then gradually added in musical accompaniment and, before you even realized it, the thing had turned into a song!
Today, we set out to see the crater at Mitzpe Ramon. This crater is a geological one, not one formed by a meteor. It is often referred to as Israel's Grand Canyon and I can see why. Unfortunately the visitors' center was closed but we drove down to the bottom of the crater (this also happens to be the "scenic route" for going to Eilat) and climbed up like 130 stairs to a lookout. Well worth it, but the equivalent of something like 8-9 flights. Those of you who know me will be impressed :-).
Afterwards we went to an Alpaca farm which is owned by a friend of my sister-in-law's. We fed the Alpacas and the llamas. Most were in pens but a few were roaming free. We were warned not to feed these or they would follow us. Well, one was so cute that I gave him a handful of food. You can imagine what happened. Every time I tried to walk on, this guy moved so he was in my way. Provided great entertainment for Sarah and Laurie. Then, after finally losing this guy, I was feeding one of the llamas when he SPAT at me!!! Apparently they do this if they think that you aren't giving them enough food or aren't giving it to them fast enough. Again, much entertainment for Sarah and Laurie. As we were leaving the farm, we walked past the ticket booth and the woman there exclaimed :Oh, you got spat on!" like I had won some sort of a prize or something.
A piece of Negev trivia/advice to end with: "You never dry anything in the desert". So the other night I offered to dry the dishes which my niece was washing. I was told the above with the added info that by the time I got the towel they would probably be dry. Same goes for laundering clothes. Like many others in the desert, my sister-in-law has a washing machine but no dryer. She assured me that if we hung them outside (at about 11 PM) they would be dry by morning -- and they were!
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