Standing up for Equality and Democracy

28 January 2016

In response to the latest wave of right-wing attacks and political persecution, NIF’s campaign against incitement is gaining steam. The centerpiece of this campaign, NIF’s video exposing right-wing incitement and the potentially disastrous consequences of letting it go unchallenged, has received nearly one million views on Facebook and YouTube. The video is narrated by IC member and celebrity Shaanan Street, lead singer of the popular Israeli hip hop / funk group Hadag Nahash. In addition, the campaign has been covered on every leading Israeli TV channel, radio station, newspaper, and website, and has also featured billboard ads across Israel.

At the same time, more than two thousand NIF supporters from around the world have expressed their opposition to the proposed “NGO Transparency Law” with a special full-page ad in Haaretz. Although the first vote on the bill was postponed this week because of wintry weather in Jerusalem, these efforts have already led to Prime Minister Netanyahu to insist on dropping the humiliating “badge” clause (which would have required representatives of NGOs receiving funding from foreign governments to wear a tag when visiting the Knesset or meeting with any public servant). That clause may be re-inserted before the first vote, however.

The fight against extremism and incitement is far from over. As the anti-NGO bill vote looms in the Knesset and ultra-nationalists ratchet up their attacks on progressive NGOs, NIF is committed to pushing back against right-wing incitement and protecting the ability of these organizations to expose human rights violations connected to the ongoing occupation.