End of the Year Greetings
By Yaniv Sagee, Israel Representative for Givat Haviva
December 21, 2011
Dear Friends and Supporters of Givat Haviva,
It has been my honor to have been the shaliach (Israel representative) for Givat Haviva in the U.S. for the past two and a half years.
During this time, I have learned about and greatly appreciate the community that supports our work. I have become familiar with your sincere concerns regarding the continued existence of Israel as a democratic state that is based on partnership and equality between all citizens.
We, at Givat Haviva, for the past 62 years, have worked daily against the stream to fulfill this vision.
During the years I have been in the U.S., we have turned to you in letters asking for your support for Givat Haviva’s unique programs. Each time, we focused on a different program: Face to Face, Children Teaching Children, and Through Others’ Eyes. More recently, we highlighted Givat Haviva’s new flagship project, Shared Communities, which pairs an Arab village, Kfar Qara with a neighboring Jewish town, Pardes Hanna-Karkur.
I am so thankful for your support. Due to your assistance, we have been able to continue these much needed and crucial activities, which continue to educate the young generation, the next generation, to live in a shared Israeli society.
This time you are receiving a different letter. It is a personal letter from me. I am turning to you regarding the severity of the situation in Israel so you can help Givat Haviva create a strong and comprehensive alternative - now and for the future.
An anti-democratic revolution has recently begun in the state of Israel. When we connect the racist laws against Arabs in Israel, to laws whose goal is to prevent foreign funding for left-wing non-profit organizations, to laws whose purpose is to prevent free speech, to laws that will give the right winged controlled Knesset the ability to dictate Supreme Court judges, it all leads to a frightening and ominous picture. Israel is in danger of losing its democratic character.
“Hunting” the left-wing has also touched Givat Haviva recently. In November, the joint Israeli-Palestinian radio station that Givat Haviva was in the forefront of establishing seven years ago, “Radio Kol Hashalom” (“All for Peace”), was shut down by the Israeli police. This occurred because of a demand by a Likud Knesset member to the Ministry of Communication.
My response to this intolerable situation in Israel was to accept the offer to take on the leadership of Givat Haviva, and become the next Executive Director, at the end of my shlichut (term) in the U.S. at the end of summer 2012.
I chose to do so because:
• Givat Haviva is the optimal platform to fight for the existence of democracy in Israel.
• Givat Haviva is the natural home for building alternatives to the current dangerous trends, and for building a shared and equal society between Jews and Arabs in Israel.
I write to you because as an individual, and we as an organization, need you now more than ever.
We need your partnership to spread the word about our mission and work to the wider public, as unfortunately, Givat Haviva is unknown to so many. We need partners to give us a “tail wind”, and connect us to new people and organizations that can influence public opinion and public policy makers.
We need your financial support because our response to this difficult reality is to develop and implement additional projects that will allow Arabs and Jews to see that there is another way, that there is a place for hope. Yes, it is possible to change the reality in Israel.
We need you to stand with us, in one line, facing the large wave that threatens our common values.
These past years there were many people and organizations in North America that decided that “Givat Haviva” is passé. According to their view, there is less value and meaning in supporting education and dialogue between people at the grassroots level. They think that advocacy and empowerment of the Arab sector will bring about change.
The reality has shown how much they have erred. Not investing in the education of the next generation and in genuine partnerships between Arabs and Jews created a social vacuum that allowed for the entrance of fear, hatred and an absence of hope. This is the fuel that led to the increase of right wing power in Israel, which threatens democracy, the Arabs, the Left, and the Supreme Court. This is the fuel that will make the Israeli occupation of the West Bank eternal.
Every year millions of dollars are contributed in the United States to non-profit organizations dealing with Arab-Jewish activities in Israel. Givat Haviva receives a negligible portion of these funds. Givat Haviva has opened new ways to change Israeli society, and is able to connect thousands of Arabs and Jewish citizens.
In order to accomplish our goals and change the reality in Israel, we need your generous contribution.
We need you because in fact, today Givat Haviva is more relevant than any other time in the past.
We will not stop fighting for a democratic and shared society in Israel.
Personally, I have decided to be there on the front line, to lead the effort. I am asking that you be there with me. My door will always be open; Givat Haviva is your home. Together we will triumph.
With appreciation,
Yaniv Sagee
Central Shaliach of Givat Haviva in North America
Incoming Director of Givat Haviva as of September 2012