As Israel’s government pushes an anti-democratic agenda, there is also real hope for change.

As Israel commemorates its 75th anniversary this month, the country is facing one of its most significant challenges since its establishment. Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is pushing forward an extremist, ethnonationalist, anti-democratic agenda that would undermine judicial independence, strip rights from Palestinians, and target members of the LGBTQ+ community. From my perspective as an Israeli, lifelong peace activist, and New Israel Fund representative, this is a critical moment in Israel’s short history.

The plan to overhaul the judiciary and limit individual rights in particular has sparked a profound civil awakening amongst Israelis, with hundreds of thousands taking to the streets across more than 100 cities. The weekly protests in Tel Aviv draw upwards of 200,000 people every Saturday. That’s 2 percent of the population in a country of 9.5 million citizens. If a similar protest were to take place in the U.S., 7 million people would be protesting every week. People who have never protested before in their lives are out in the streets. Israel has not seen such massive civil protests, protests now in their 15th week, in all its 75 years of existence. 

And while the pressure from these protests forced the government to press pause on legislation that would remove major checks and balances from the Israeli system, the fight for democracy is far from over. The government is poised to resume the legislative blitz as soon as the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, returns to session on April 30.

Amid these challenging times, there is also hope. The activists and leaders pushing for change on the ground in Israel are inspiring. The unprecedented momentum of the protest movement in Israel has brought together diverse groups: high-tech workers, academics, military reservists, women's organizations, human rights advocates, and groups that operate on the premise that the only future for Israel is one that is shared between Jews and Arabs. The reason that so much of this has been possible is Israel’s vibrant and active civil society, which the New Israel Fund has funded and helped organize for more than forty years.

The activists and organizations that we support have responded quickly, and have been able to bring communities and sectors together that usually have nothing to do with each other. In this moment, these groups share something powerful in common: They are all threatened by the government’s actions. Many, among them Palestinians—both citizens of Israel and those living under occupation—would be the first to be affected negatively by the judicial coup.

For example, NIF is funding and coordinating a coalition of dozens of groups demonstrating together under the banner of the “Anti-Occupation Blocc.” Their increased participation and visibility in the protests is enabling a vibrant conversation that has been absent for a long time: a conversation about what the word “democracy” really means. Israel, they are saying, won’t be a democracy until it is a democracy for everyone—Jews, Arabs, women, LGBTQ+ people, and Palestinians in the occupied territories. 

These protests offer a rare moment in which a majority of Israelis, alongside growing numbers of Jewish people around the world, are joining forces to fight for Israeli democracy, both recognizing that they no longer identify with the Israeli government as it acts against their core values of equality, justice, and democracy. In addition to my work at NIF, I’m active with the Bay Area’s UnXeptable organizers and have been moved to see growing crowds at our protests. Seeing so many Israelis in the Bay coming out on Sundays to join the local protests is incredible. Just like Israelis living in Israel, many of the participants have never been active like this before. And they are joined by local rabbis, community leaders and members of the American Jewish community.

It has been heartening for me to see Israelis in the U.S. and American Jews joining hands and stepping up to push back for Israeli democracy. The protests around the world are also making a difference! American political leaders are noticing and referencing them, and perhaps even more importantly—Israeli protesters are energized and buoyed by the international support.

As we observe Israel's 75th Independence Day, we must remember that its Declaration of Independence ensures “complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex” to all. We cannot let this government erode these basic principles of democracy. The powerful civil awakening in Israel, alongside the work of the New Israel Fund and its grantees, give me hope that this is an opportunity to build a better, just and democratic Israel for all.

SHIMRIT BRAUN KAMIN is associate director of the New Israel Fund in the Bay Area, part of the UnXeptable organizing group, and a native Israeli. She speaks at 3-5pm Sunday, April 23 at Congregation Beth Israel, 5716 Carmel Valley Road, Carmel. Learn more at nif.org.

Note: This is a longer version of a story that appeared in print in the issue of April 20, 2023.