The Hidden Israel

By Symi Rom-Rymer A chubby young African boy dressed head-to-toe in an Israeli police officer’s uniform looks defiantly into the camera.  A teenage girl in a pink room solemnly faces the camera under her hijab.  A transvestite clad in a rhinestone studded bra and panties dances with abandon in a Jerusalem night club.  These are the faces of another, less visible Israel.  Their stories and struggles are often overshadowed by the sexier tales of relentless violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.  But for one night, African guest workers and their children, Arab Israelis, members of the transgendered community and other marginalized groups are the center of attention. The Envisioning Justice exhibit featuring Israel's marginalized groups was part of a social justice-themed benefit for the New Israel Fund, a New York-based non-profit organization that focuses on civil society and...

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Sderot and the Negev: The Strength of the Israeli Spirit

Placing his hand on the walls of the Kotel during his short visit to Jerusalem, Sen. Barack Obama shared his hopeful spirits with the people of Israel. In Sderot, the Amar family, the same host family to welcome Sen. John McCain back in March, was impressed by Obama's optimism and wants to see him as the next president because of a certain promise. " said if he did become president, I would be among his first guests in the White House," Pinhas Amar said, adding: "Obama has this personal charm, and it looks like it's going to get him elected." Obama reciprocated the warm reception and the gracious remarks of the Moroccan Jewish family, calling them an "example of the resilience of the people of Sderot and the people of Israel." The resilience he referred to is...

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