Corner of Tahrir Square in Tel Aviv
SepriadiBlog : Among the tents and posters that meet the famous highway Rothschild in Tel Aviv this summer, is a very prominent banner with the words "Rothschild, corner ut-Tahrir." This is just one of the many similarities between Tahrir Square, which has become symbol of the liberation of the people of Egypt, and various events that shook Israeli society and politics.
For example, the shouts of the protesters who filled the streets in various cities of Israel night last weekend, "People demanded social justice", is a local variation of the slogan in Tahrir, "The people demanded the dissolution of the regime." (Although I'm sure that many of the demonstrators in Israel does not care about these similarities).
It's hard to deny precisely the time of the widespread protests that erupted in Israel a few months after the wave of revolutions that began in Tunisia and spread to many countries in the Arab world, a revolution that also inspire mass protest movement in Spain and Greece.
Agenda Israeli demonstrators may differ from the agenda of the Egyptian people, just like the character the Israeli regime is also not the same as the Egyptian state, but I did not hesitate to say that without Mohamed Bouazizi - Tunisia traders who burn themselves and then ignite the fire of revolution - and without the Tahrir Square, Rothschild will remain known as a modern highway but quiet.
This ideological similarity should be grateful. For many Israelis, the fact that Israel was in the geopolitics of the Middle East was an accident of history that does not reassure.
Supposing we all are living in an apartment, we do not greet each other while walking on stairs, and also did not knock on doors to ask for a cup of milk when we need. Outside of fights among neighbors, many of those living in the room whose door reads "Israel" is not interested in the people who lived in another room. Stately homes across the street from this apartment (Europe and the United States) is more interesting, and we tend to think that we will have more in common with the people who live there only if we can be closer to them.
In fact, quite many Israelis regard the fact that their country lies at the heart of the Middle East are noisy as a misfortune, not only from the geographical point of view but also from a cultural standpoint. When we see ourselves as an integral part of the advanced Western world - our feet in the eastern Mediterranean waters while our eyes facing Europe and the United States - then we also have the same attitude with the West against the "other side", including the Arab world.
This is a rough generalization, of course, but the Arab world is generally not considered a party that could help a lot for the people of Israel. This is not because Arab culture does not contribute significantly to the culture of Israel over the years, ranging from language to food, music and movies - but as in many other cases, here too the reality is not enough to change deep-rooted perception that often dictate the attitude of alienation and feeling superior to our neighbors.
Then came the Arab Spring and along with the political revolution and regime change, we can also welcome the beginning of another revolution, which although small but significant, here in Israel. We do not yet know what the outcome will be like the social justice movement recently in Israel, but we know that this summer could have been written with gold ink in the history books about the civil society of Israel.
For people who watched from outside, what may appear to be forgetting the demonstrators will be issues related to the occupation and foreign policy may seem odd and an escapist attitude, but the fact that hundreds and thousands of people were taken to the streets brings civil issues could indicate that Israeli society is becoming more healthy and marks a major change in perception.
Another major change in perception is likely to occur when we the people of Israel look back and look at what's happened since mid-July on the streets of this country. Then we will understand that one of the factors that sank this mass movement is a community effort in the Arab world to stand up for what they believe in and change their lives. This is an opportunity to change our attitude towards the human and geographical space in which we we live.
Maybe in a corner of Tahrir in Rothschild we will find a way to open a dialogue face to face, dialogue that respects both sides, with partners who both inhabit this hemisphere.
For example, the shouts of the protesters who filled the streets in various cities of Israel night last weekend, "People demanded social justice", is a local variation of the slogan in Tahrir, "The people demanded the dissolution of the regime." (Although I'm sure that many of the demonstrators in Israel does not care about these similarities).
It's hard to deny precisely the time of the widespread protests that erupted in Israel a few months after the wave of revolutions that began in Tunisia and spread to many countries in the Arab world, a revolution that also inspire mass protest movement in Spain and Greece.
Agenda Israeli demonstrators may differ from the agenda of the Egyptian people, just like the character the Israeli regime is also not the same as the Egyptian state, but I did not hesitate to say that without Mohamed Bouazizi - Tunisia traders who burn themselves and then ignite the fire of revolution - and without the Tahrir Square, Rothschild will remain known as a modern highway but quiet.
This ideological similarity should be grateful. For many Israelis, the fact that Israel was in the geopolitics of the Middle East was an accident of history that does not reassure.
Supposing we all are living in an apartment, we do not greet each other while walking on stairs, and also did not knock on doors to ask for a cup of milk when we need. Outside of fights among neighbors, many of those living in the room whose door reads "Israel" is not interested in the people who lived in another room. Stately homes across the street from this apartment (Europe and the United States) is more interesting, and we tend to think that we will have more in common with the people who live there only if we can be closer to them.
In fact, quite many Israelis regard the fact that their country lies at the heart of the Middle East are noisy as a misfortune, not only from the geographical point of view but also from a cultural standpoint. When we see ourselves as an integral part of the advanced Western world - our feet in the eastern Mediterranean waters while our eyes facing Europe and the United States - then we also have the same attitude with the West against the "other side", including the Arab world.
This is a rough generalization, of course, but the Arab world is generally not considered a party that could help a lot for the people of Israel. This is not because Arab culture does not contribute significantly to the culture of Israel over the years, ranging from language to food, music and movies - but as in many other cases, here too the reality is not enough to change deep-rooted perception that often dictate the attitude of alienation and feeling superior to our neighbors.
Then came the Arab Spring and along with the political revolution and regime change, we can also welcome the beginning of another revolution, which although small but significant, here in Israel. We do not yet know what the outcome will be like the social justice movement recently in Israel, but we know that this summer could have been written with gold ink in the history books about the civil society of Israel.
For people who watched from outside, what may appear to be forgetting the demonstrators will be issues related to the occupation and foreign policy may seem odd and an escapist attitude, but the fact that hundreds and thousands of people were taken to the streets brings civil issues could indicate that Israeli society is becoming more healthy and marks a major change in perception.
Another major change in perception is likely to occur when we the people of Israel look back and look at what's happened since mid-July on the streets of this country. Then we will understand that one of the factors that sank this mass movement is a community effort in the Arab world to stand up for what they believe in and change their lives. This is an opportunity to change our attitude towards the human and geographical space in which we we live.
Maybe in a corner of Tahrir in Rothschild we will find a way to open a dialogue face to face, dialogue that respects both sides, with partners who both inhabit this hemisphere.
0 Response to "Corner of Tahrir Square in Tel Aviv"
Post a Comment