Israel

Justice, Justice You Shall Pursue

These are some Israeli organizations that work for social justice.

You are invited to learn more about them and join in their work.

Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI)    www.acri.org.il/en

Litigation, counseling, monitoring, education and legislative consultation to establish and protect civil and human rights in Israel. Israel’s leading civil rights organization.

Association of Bedouin Women to Promote Education    www.alnuhud.blogspot.com

Promotes education among young Bedouin women in the Negev through activities to enlist community support, high school and university enrichment programs and financial aid.

Bizchut (by right) –Israeli Human Rights Center for People with Disabilities    www.bizchut.org.il/en

Works to enable people with physical, intellectual, sensory, mental and learning disabilities to participate as fully and independently as possible in the life of the mainstream community.  

Breaking the Silence    www.breakingthesilence.org.il

Raises public awareness about the moral dilemmas faced by soldiers serving in the occupied territories by collecting and publishing soldiers’ testimonies, public events and advocacy.

Bridging the Gap    http://www.english.imjnet.org.il/page_1297

An Israel Museum program in which Jewish and Arab youth create art together, enabling the participants to forge personal ties and integrate universal human values. WCT had a first-hand intro to the program when its director joined us at Shabbat services several years ago.  

Center for Women’s Justice    www.cwj.org.il

Litigation and advocacy activities advancing the status of Jewish women whose rights have been violated as a result of the legal system’s dependence on religious laws.

Center for World Religions, Citizen Diplomacy, and Conflict Resolution (CRDC)    http://crdc.gmu.edu/about/

Part of George Mason University, the goal of CRDC is to inspire and generate successful incremental steps of positive change in intractable conflict situations that can become the basis for new approaches to diplomacy and foreign policy. Co-executive director Aziz Abu Sarah participated in WCT’s 2011-12 Celebrate Israel Program.

Galilee Foundation for Value Education    www.makom.bagalil.org

Develops and executes programming in three main areas: Jewish-Arab cooperation, Jewish pluralism, and Israel-Diaspora relations, working with youth and adults, in a range of activities including the arts, leadership training, direct encounter, and community building. The Galilee Circus is part of this organization. The Foundation’s Executive Director, Dr. Marc Rosenstein, visited WCT in 2011.

Gesharim Letikvah – Bridges for Hope    26a Einstein Street, 34604, Haifa, Israel; email: rabbiedgar@gmail.com

A new social action group in the Haifa area dedicated to interfaith dialogue and activities among Jews, Christians, Muslims, Bahai and Druze. Headed by Rabbi Edgar Nof, who is the main contact person.

Hagar Association – Jewish-Arab Education for Equality    http://hajar.org.il

Educational and cultural outreach program to promote cooperation, mutual trust and understanding in the Negev.

Hiddush    www.Hiddush.org

A transdenominational organization working to implement the basic values of freedom of religion and equality guaranteed in Israel’s Declaration of Independence. Headed by Uri Regev, former president of the World Union for Progressive Judaism and founder of IRAC, who participated in WCT’s 2011-2012 Celebrate Israel Program.

Israel Religious Action Center of the Movement for Progressive Judaism (IRAC)    www.irac.org

Policy analysis, litigation and public campaigns on issues of religious freedom and social justice.  Keren B’Kavod: an arm of IRAC, addresses the problem of poverty through holiday food drives, ongoing charity work, humanitarian aid to refugees, and advocacy efforts to combat hunger.

Kibbutz Lotan    www.kibbutzlotan.com

A Reform kibbutz in the Arava, special in its approach towards ecology as a way of life.

Leket Israel    www.leket.org.il/english

Israel’s largest food bank and food rescue network, working to alleviate the problem of nutritional insecurity among diverse populations.

MASHAV    www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Mashav

A government program that brings expertise in irrigation, water technologies, agricultural production and climate change helping African farmers thrive in their arid climate.

Migrant Health    www.migranthealth.org.il

An umbrella organization for harnessing low-cost and effective innovation to improve the health of the migrant community in Israel.

Neve Shalom/Wahat al-Salam    http://nswas.org/rubrique22.html

A cooperative village of Jews and Palestinian Arabs of Israeli citizenship between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

New Israel Fund (NIF)    www.nif.org

A fund dedicated to religious pluralism and civil rights in Israel.  Shatil, an NIF initiative, provides organizations working for social justice with training and other support.

Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI)     www.aspni.org

Israel's leading environmental non-profit organization. For the past 60 years SPNI has been dedicated to protecting and preserving Israel's natural resources, environment, natural assets and unique landscape.

Tebeka – Center for Legal Aid & Advocacy for Ethiopian Jews in Israel    www.tebeka.org.il

Legal assistance and empowerment activities to advance the rights of citizens of Ethiopian origin.

Women of the Wall    www.womenofthewall.org

This organization’s central mission is to achieve the social and legal recognition of the right of women to wear prayer shawls, pray, and read from the Torah collectively and out loud at the Western Wall.

Yad Lakashish    www.lifeline.org.il

An organization based in Jerusalem that helps elderly and disabled artisans by providing a creative work environment and invaluable support services, giving them a sense of purpose and community as well as financial assistance.  

Yad Sarah    www.yadsarah.org

Largest voluntary organization in Israel, providing a spectrum of free or nominal cost services designed to make life easier for sick, disabled and elderly people and their families – the world’s largest lender of medical devices. Its mission is to keep the ill and elderly in their homes and out of institutions as long as possible.