_a.jpg "Photo: Reut Hefetz")
Meeting in Montreal
Photo: Reut Hefetz
Thanks to Birthright
Jewish students returning from tours in Israel turn out to be extremely effective Israel advocates
It is unlikely that Bibi Netanyahu will forget that September day, three-and-a-half years ago.
In September 2002, Netanyahu was invited to lecture at Montreal's Concordia University - one of the most important educational institutions in Canada (and coincidentally, a very ugly building).
It was a time when Israel’s image was at an all-time low and hundreds of anti-Israel activists worked furiously to prepare a wild demonstration to “welcome” Bibi. Security forces could not maintain order, and ticket holders that tried to enter the lecture hall were hit, kicked, punched and even spit on.
At the same time, the demonstrators tried to enter the hall but were stopped by local police. They then began to shatter the windows at the entrance to the building. Police dispersed the crowd with tear gas, and in return were pummeled with a barrage of wood and metal object flying through the air.
University officials cancelled the lecture and the event was imprinted on the Jewish world as one of the worst cases of anti-Israel activity on a college campus.
Birthright: Program with a purpose
This week I was invited to Montreal to speak with students. One of the meetings was with Jewish students (some from Concordia University) that had recently returned from Israel, after participating in the Birthright program.
For those who haven’t heard of it - Birthright is a project with a purpose: To create a bond between Jewish youth and Israel by providing them with 10-day all-expense-paid visits to Israel. The program is funded by the Israeli-government, Jewish Agency, local Jewish communities, as well as a few extremely generous individuals.
What is the connection between Birthright and the Concordia University riots? Well, for a long time the Jewish organizations throughout the world have been trying to improve Israel’s image on college campuses. This trend has notched some success over the past few years, but at the same time our overall public relations have been getting worse.
There are many programs that bring Israel to students overseas - like volunteers from the “Israel at Heart” program that visit different universities to a speak about life in Israel. Other programs, like Birthright that bring students to Israel.
Effective initiative
This is a great initiative that is extremely effective: In general, most Jewish youth in the Diaspora have no connection to Israel and are not really capable of handling anti-Semitic propaganda. However, after an intense week in Israel, where they are faced with history, Zionism, Israeli culture and meetings with Israeli youth - they become “ambassadors” of sorts. True, this is more expensive than a lecture or presentation, but also a lot more effective.
Every Jew between the ages of 18 and 26 is entitled to this experience, and one can still find members of the most recent “wave” of visitors, from the winter of 2006, in all corners of the country.
Two weeks ago, on a lightening trip to Israel, I personally ran into a particularly happy (not to mention sexy) group from Rio de Janeiro that had come to see Rabin square.
To date, Birthright has brought approximately 100,000 Jewish kids to Israel, and there are many more on the waiting list.
A little more security
The conversation that I had this week with Birthright returnees in Montreal took place a few days after the group had returned from Israel. They all miss Israel (okay, not surprising, it’s 10 degrees below zero in Montreal) and they now carry with them not only a deeper understanding of the country, but also the ability to defend Israel from all types of false accusations. Don’t think this is easy for people who weren’t raised or educated in Israel.
One student, for example, spoke about a particularly annoying professor in the Middle Eastern studies department that refuses to recognize the existence of Israel. Until now, it was hard for her to confront him, but the visit to Israel gave her a little more confidence to explain the justification for the existence of a Jewish country.
Another student told me about friends of hers that asked her why Israelis act like Nazis towards the Palestinians. She answered them in a less direct way by showing them pictures of places that they visited in Israel, and showed them how similar Israelis are to Canadians.
A former Concordia student told me how a few years ago he was beaten and spit on by Palestinian activists on campus that didn’t like his pro-Israel stance. When he refused to back down when he was barraged with eggs and even received death threats.
This student decided to read as much historical documentation as possible in order to defend Israel. Time after time he lost in debates as his academic claims didn’t succeed in moving the hearts of the listeners. After actually visiting Israel, he told me, that he finally succeeded in infusing his activities with an emotional element also affected others.
No unthinking supporters
By the way, the fact that this group has been exposed to Israel doesn’t mean that they turn into unthinking supporters of the country. The opposite is true: A week in Israel exposes them not only to the beauty of the country, but also… how should I put it… to its less pretty sides.
One girl who traveled along the security fence, said that while she can now better understand its importance, she cannot understand why the fence sometimes has to run through fields of some Palestinians, cut off entire villages from their neighbors and turn life into a living hell for the residents.
Another person returned disgusted by the racial slurs he heard from Jewish Israelis: the language use by these people when they spoke about Arabs was so despicable that if any one spoke about Jews in that manner we would all attack. This is an important lesson for those that believe that all criticism of Israel comes from the ignorant.
Netanyahu-affair update
So, here is the update on the Netanyahu affair: Last week the Canadian court acquitted one of the demonstration’s organizers, Jaggi Singh, and cleared him of all charges. This in effect wraps up this entire wretched affair.
Singh, an outspoken anti-Israel activist in Canada and well-known trouble maker, convinced the court that the testimony against him was not definitive. In a previous trial he was acquitted on a conspiracy charge and last week he was cleared on charges of attacks and illegal gathering.
Singh is now able to operate against Israel as a free man. We can, however, be comforted by the fact that thanks to programs like Birthright, there are a few more students on campus that will have enough confidence in themselves in order to respond, and that they are also proud of their Jewish heritage.
Eytan Schwartz is Israel's first reality TV-appointed "ambassador" to the United States. He was dispatched to New York City in March 2005 after winning the popular television reality show "The Ambassador"
