May 4, 2008

As part of its effort to raise awareness and advance solutions to the growing problem of domestic violence in the Ethiopian community in Israel, SHATIL’s Yachdav Coalition presented at a conference at Bar Ilan University last week.  Sponsored by Bar Ilan’s School of Social Work and the Association for the Establishment of the Inter-Cultural Center for Human Sexuality and Family Life, the gathering, From Impartial and Multicultural to Sensitive and Inter-cultural: Issues of Sexuality and Family Life, aimed to heighten inter-cultural sensitivity around issues of sexuality and family and to present the connection between culturally sensitive treatment, and tolerance and violence prevention. Coalition coordinator Shulamit Sahalo represented the Ethiopian community at the conference, which also featured representatives from the Israeli Arab, Former Soviet Union, ultra-Orthodox and native born communities. Shulamit spoke about the crisis in the Ethiopian family that leads to frustration and violence, the Coalition’s emphasis on the treatment of men and about the fact that not enough preparation is given to Ethiopian immigrants for the drastic change in cultures they undergo upon immigrating. She informed the audience of professors, managers and government officials about the Coalition’s dual focus: raising awareness in the Ethiopian community through seminars and public education and influencing decision makers, community workers and the government to make the issue a top priority.  

Shulamit Sahalo, left, greeting a participant at the Coalition’s national conference on Ethiopian domestic violence last July.