WATCH: The housing protest – a new national identity?

Dahlia Scheindlin By Dahlia Scheindlin July 26, 2011 | Edit

A sound and slideshow by Eyal Warshavsky, with national anthem Hatikva as the crescendo, illustrates the powerful sense of a shared national cause emerging from the demonstration last Saturday night.

What began as an outcry over high housing prices is taking on ever-larger dimensions, and Israelis of all stripes have rallied to the cause of economic injustice surrounding a range of issues. In the past, wars and security issues have always been the greatest unifying factor of Israeli identity, but there is a powerful bond forming around the protests that could perhaps even transcend left and right. At the 20,000-or more  demonstration last Saturday night, illustrated in Eyal Warshavsky’s sound and slideshow, Israeli flags were prominent, the ubiquitous and repeated rallying cry was “The people want social justice!” and the crowd sang a rousing Hatikva.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdiHr9NycgE[/youtube]

Proof of emerging unity was evident this morning in numbers: in a Haaretz survey, when asked if the protest was about genuine distress, or a political stunt to topple the government, 81% said the protests are about real economic woes – and a near-consensus of 87% support the efforts. Is Israel witnessing a shift in the defining national identity that unites its people? Could the economic and social vision of the people become a more inclusive national narrative than the military/security dimension ever was?

Dahlia Scheindlin

Dahlia Scheindlin is a leading international public opinion analyst and strategic consultant specializing in progressive causes, political and social campaigns in over a dozen countries, including new/transitional democracies and peace/conflict research in Israel, with expertise in Eastern Europe and the Balkans. She works for a wide range of local and international organizations dealing with Israeli-Palestinian conflict issues, human rights, peacemaking, democracy, religious identity, and internal social issues. Dahlia holds a PhD in political science from TAU, and she is the co-host of The Tel Aviv Review podcast.

End of article module for Members

TEST TEST GAL Our team has been devastated by the horrific events of this latest war. The world is reeling from Israel’s unprecedented onslaught on Gaza, inflicting mass devastation and death upon besieged Palestinians, as well as the atrocious attack and kidnappings by Hamas in Israel on October 7. Our hearts are with all the people and communities facing this violence.    We are in an extraordinarily dangerous era in Israel-Palestine. The bloodshed has reached extreme levels of brutality and threatens to engulf the entire region. Emboldened settlers in the West Bank, backed by the army, are seizing the opportunity to intensify their attacks on Palestinians. The most far-right government in Israel’s history is ramping up its policing of dissent, using the cover of war to silence Palestinian citizens and left-wing Jews who object to its policies.   This escalation has a very clear context, one that +972 has spent the past 14 years covering: Israeli society’s growing racism and militarism, entrenched occupation and apartheid, and a normalized siege on Gaza.   We are well positioned to cover this perilous moment – but we need your help to do it. This terrible period will challenge the humanity of all of those working for a better future in this land. Palestinians and Israelis are already organizing and strategizing to put up the fight of their lives.   Can we count on your support? +972 Magazine is a leading media voice of this movement, a desperately needed platform where Palestinian and Israeli journalists, activists, and thinkers can report on and analyze what is happening, guided by humanism, equality, and justice. Join us.

Make a Donation