At this moment in our weekly reading of the Torah, the Israelites stand at the border of the promised land. Borders have been all over the news related to Israel recently. From protesters at the Gaza border to Iranian military at the Syrian border, all eyes have been focused on those lines that separate Israel from its national neighbors. Living in Jerusalem over the past year as a Rabbinical student at HUC-JIR, I was blessed to feel very far from these borders.
But there is a different kind of border within Israeli society that I came to recognize – the invisible borders – those drawn by fear, ignorance, or a perceived lack of common ground. Despite my best efforts to experience Israel outside of my “bubble,” I often reified these invisible borders as much as anyone. I avoided the Damascus gate of the Old City because I was told to be afraid there. I never boarded an Arab bus because I didn’t know where they went. I even found it hard to build friendships with my Jewish Israeli peers, located as I was in a social world of diaspora Jews.
In Israeli society, these invisible borders often lead to discrimination against Israeli minorities – in education and the provision of public services, in media representation, and in everyday interactions among neighbors.
Because so much of my year was spent observing these invisible borders, I was particularly inspired by the NIF’s work in shared society. NIF grantees go beyond simply coexisting in their own places. They break through invisible borders to build social unity, fight discrimination, and realize their mutual interests.
As an Elissa Froman Fellow with the NIF, I was privileged to learn about many organizations working on shared society. We visited one of these organizations, Atid Bamidbar, on a trip to Yerucham, a city in the Negev. Atid Bamidbar works across all groups in society – it brings together Russian-speaking and Ethiopian activists, it trains students to work with new immigrants, and it coordinates partnerships between Jewish residents of Yerucham and their Bedouin neighbors from the unrecognized village of Rahme. About one third of the Bedouins in the Negev live outside of recognized towns and villages and are therefore continually threatened with housing demolitions. In the case of Rahme, the residents were moved to their current location 55 years ago by the IDF, but the Israeli government has not resolved the status of the land on which they live. The residents of Rahme and Yerucham crossed the invisible border between their communities to collaborate on plans that would address this issue as well as their shared economic marginalization. After initial support from the city of Yerucham, the Ramat Negev Regional Council, the IDF, and approval by the National Planning Commission, the recognition of Rahme was put on hold. Despite this hurdle, Atid Bamidbar continues to work with residents of Yerucham and Rahme to lobby for public services to be provided to the Bedouin town and promote education and economic development.
In this week’s Torah portion, Shelach, God provides instruction as to how the Israelites should govern the promised land. Amidst rules about offerings, God commands,
חֻקָּ֥ה אַחַ֛ת לָכֶ֖ם וְלַגֵּ֣ר הַגָּ֑ר חֻקַּ֤ת עוֹלָם֙ לְדֹרֹ֣תֵיכֶ֔ם כָּכֶ֛ם כַּגֵּ֥ר יִהְיֶ֖ה לִפְנֵ֥י יְהוָֽה
“There shall be one law for you and for the resident stranger; it shall be a law for all time throughout the ages. You and the stranger shall be alike before the LORD.” (Numbers 15:15)
No discrimination against minorities, no invisible borders keeping communities separate. While Israel is the Jewish nation, it is also a country of many peoples. In this lies great opportunity. As Atid Bamidbar staff expressed to me, “what drives us is a conviction that diversity is a source of strength for Israel.” The NIF’s support of organizations like Atid Bamidbar helps to ensure that Israeli society will truly be shared by all. This is how we fulfill the biblical injunction that everyone shall be equal before the law and alike before the Lord.