Washington, DC: The New Israel Fund (NIF) is proud to offer its heartfelt congratulations to the Tag Meir Coalition, one of three recipients of the 2012 Emil Grunzweig Human Rights Award. NIF’s flagship grantee the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) presents the annual award to individuals or organizations that have made a unique and outstanding contribution to the advancement of human rights in Israel.

Tag Meir activists visit the home of Suhad Abu-Zmiro,
the victim of a racist assault in Jerusalem.

The awards for 2012 will be given out on June 24 at a ceremony in Jerusalem.

Tag Meir is the leading voice against racism and intolerance in Israel. An NIF-convened coalition, Tag Meir is comprised of 26 organizations, including NIF’s action-arm SHATIL and six NIF grantees. Founded in 2011 in response to the “Price Tag” phenomenon – referring to the price radical extremists exact in response to any government attempt to close down settlements – the coalition organizes solidarity visits to sites where mosques, churches, homes, and army bases have been torched, defiled, and vandalized. Tag Meir shows the victims that the vast majority of Jews respect other faiths and peoples.

The coalition is led by Gadi Gvaryahu, an Orthodox activist who has dedicated his life to eradicating religious extremism. Dr. Gvaryahu has sought, over the course of his career, to build a national religious movement working towards a Jewish and democratic state.

As disturbing and increasing incidents of violence make the front pages, Tag Meir continues its mission to heal the divisions in society and speak out for the majority of Israelis who condemn these acts of violence as antithetical to Jewish values and a shared society. Recently, the coalition organized a visit to the home of an Arab teacher who was assaulted in Jerusalem while paying a shiva call to a Jewish colleague.

In presenting the award, ACRI commended Tag Meir for “their resolve and their ability to connect different groups in Israeli society in the battle against this despicable phenomenon, as a part of the wider struggle to eradicate racism and violence.”

NIF also congratulates the two other award recipients, accomplished civil rights attorneys Gaby Lasky and Michael Sfard, for their dedicated efforts to promote human rights.