February 4, 2012 Contact Us Donate Join Subscribe Calendar Store News RSS

You are here: Home / Archives for World Movement

Join AZM at TribeFest in Las Vegas – March 2012!

Join AZM at TribeFest for 2 exciting sessions!

Session 1

QUIZrael: Trivia and Pub Quiz
Sunday, March 25, 5:45-7:00PM

Did you know the first Zionist Congress took place in a casino? You’re not alone! Team up with friends for a fun trivia pub night event. Prizes up for grabs. Bonus: learn a bit about the history of Israel and Zionism (and a few fun Israel/Vegas facts). Click here to register your team in advance, or go stag and meet new friends.

Co-sponsored by JTA Archives

Session 2

Tzedek Hevrati! Israel’s Social Protests in the Global Context
Monday, March 26, 3:30-5:00PM

What do the Arab Spring, Occupy Movements, and Israeli Protests all have in common? Why were Israelis chanting Ha’am Doresh Tzedek Hevrati! meaning “The people demand social justice!” throughout the summer of 2011? How do the Israeli protests compare to the global protests movements that took shape throughout the year? Join us to investigate the parallels in the global protests movements and explore the unique aspects of Judaism and Zionism that encourage and support social justice.

Co-sponsored by JFNA and New Israel Fund

For more information about or to register for TribeFest, please visit http://www.tribefest.org.

For more information about AZM, please visit www.azm.org, or email vizion@azm.org.

Bookmark and Share

Watch Video Presentations on the Delegitimization of Israel

Hard Realities:
Addressing the Delegitimization of Israel and Anti-Semitism

Sunday, September 25, 2011 — New York, NY

Opening Plenary: An Overview of Delegitimization and Anti-Semitism

Welcome and Introductions:

William D. Hess and Yaakov HaGoel

William D. Hess
Yaakov HaGoel

Jan Schechter, Chair
Dan Mariaschin, Executive Vice President, B’nai B’rith International
Professor Ken Stein,Emory University and the Center for Israel Education
Brooke Goldstein, Director, The Lawfare Project

Keynote Address: The Delegitimization of Israel and Anti-Semitism
The Honorable Yuli Edelstein, Minister for Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs

RESPONDING TO DELEGITIMIZATION

Delegitimization: The Zionist Response
Morton Klein, President, The Zionist Organization of America
Marcie Natan, President, Hadassah; Member, WZO Executive
Kenneth Bob, President, Ameinu; Member, WZO Executive
Natalie Silberlieb, Helyn B. Reich Memorial Scholarship Recipient; Young Leadership Representative

Delegitimization: The Community Response
Malcolm Hoenlein, Executive Vice President; Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations
David Dabscheck, Deputy Managing Director, Israel Action Network

An Israeli Media Professional’s Perspective on Delegitimization
Nadav Perry, Channel 10 News- Israel

The Activist Response to Delegitimization
Talking to the Far Left and the Unions
Dan Fleshler, Strategy XXI Partners
Building Bridges to Other Communities
Michael Miller, Executive Vice President, JCRC-NY

How to Cope with Anti-Israel Sentiment on Campus
Zoe Jick, NY Area Director, Student Activities, WZO Dept, Diaspora Activities
Eric Schorr, President, LionPAC, Columbia University
David Dabscheck, Deputy Managing Director, Israel Action Network

Bookmark and Share

They Came to Denver “To Do the Write Thing”

Participatns and staff surround Natan Sharansky at Do The Write Thing

For three days, from November 6-8, twenty-seven college students and young professionals from across North America gathered at the General Assembly of United Jewish Federations of North America to discuss journalism, Israel, Zionism, and how to communicate their passions for each in an effective manner. The students were attending the 22nd annual Do The Write Thing (DTWT) seminar, a leadership track held during the JFNA GA, sponsored by the American Zionist Movement and the World Zionist Organization. The attendees were selected from an applicant pool that included undergraduate student activists, young Zionist leaders, and aspiring journalists. The elite group assembled represented each of these groups, all of whom came together to participate in workshops, listen to speakers, and gain professional experience while enjoying the experience of attending the GA.

The Do The Write Thing curriculum is broad and varied. Sessions that participants attended included workshops on effective uses of social media, Zionist history and identity, and the ins and outs of reporting and interviewing. There were also special opportunities and unique experiences that participants were able to enjoy as a benefit of being a part of this unique leadership track. In addition to attending the mainstream GA plenary sessions and breakout sessions, Do The Write Thing participants had exclusive sessions with noted leaders in the Zionist community, including Chair of the Jewish Agency for Israel Natan Sharansky and Col.(res) Miri Eisin, the Israeli government’s spokesperson during the Second Lebanon War. Eisin was able to share her experiences working with the press as a representative of the State of Israel, and discussed the challenges that she faced making the case for Israel to the global media. She was also able to explain some of the intricacies that go into Israel’s media image, noting that the broad scope of Israeli public opinion is mirrored in the number of different, sometimes contradictory statements coming from different members of the Israeli government. While for many this confusion might be seen as a detriment, Eisin emphasized the beauty of Israeli diversity of thought and freedom of speech, allowing for such open dialogue and discourse.

Do The Write Thing participants were able to participate in dialogues themselves, discussing topics relating to Zionism, Jewish identity, and Israeli policy. Notably, young professional attendees had the opportunity to attend a cocktail party with Aluf Benn, the new editor-in-chief of Haaretz. After hearing him speak, they had the

Three of the Young Professionals at Do The Right Thing having some fun at the Aluf Benn reception

opportunity to meet with him and have their questions about the current state of affairs in Israel answered. This, coupled with the opportunity to hear Ambassadors Michael Oren and Dan Shapiro address the GA from the front row of a plenary session, served as highlights of the experience for many of the participants.

Do The Write Thing brought together a diverse group of activists and leaders. In addition to benefiting from the high quality of speakers brought in to address them and the networking opportunities provided, participants had the opportunity to learn from their peers, with more experienced writers mentoring emerging leaders in the field and open discussion about how to appropriately and effectively combine passions for writing and Israel. This discussion will take on immediate importance as participants return to their home communities and bring the skills that they learned to the field, by writing for local and community publications, as well as the ViZions of Zionism blog. The American Zionist Movement and the World Zionist Organization provided the attendees with an amazing opportunity to attend one of the key gatherings of North American Jews, the GA, and put together educational programming and training that made the experience one whose effects will assuredly reverberate long after the closing session.

Bookmark and Share

Bring the Israeli Social Protest to Your Community

Zionism Poster

An excellent opportunity to integrate Tikkum Olam, Jewish Values, Israel education all while incorporating recent events of the modern Israeli society!

 

Bring the Israeli Social Protest to your community, synagogue or school!

Over the summer Israelis took to the streets to protest on various social matters ranging from housing & healthcare to education & animal rights. The World Zionist Organization Department for Diaspora Activity has created an amazing visual art exhibit that gives insight into the movement through imagery and provocative questions and discussion topics. The kit provides information on the goals of the movement and how social justice fit in, highlights Jewish values, what role Zionism played, and how people in the United States can relate to Summer 2011’s Tent City Tel Aviv activities.

The kit includes 10 posters, a leader’s guide on how to use the kit,  Jewish & Zionist texts, and articles connecting the US. Plus, some t-shirts for leaders and participants!  Here’s a brief overview of the posters and content:

Daily Routine & Culture- Experience the true Israeli counter-culture, alternative school, community kitchens, and intellectual gatherings! The “tent cities” were festive, there was no money to purchase food, everything was donated, people shared spaces, scheduled organized meetings and protests and used each other as resources to get their message heard.

Zionism – “No, Zionism would not have arisen–and will not stand–in a world that denies Justice, Law, and Freedom to all who are created in the Divine Image, and it won’t repudiate these human values, for in these [Zionism] will have to judge itself.”   Those are the words of Berl Katznelson, one of the most prominent leaders of the Zionist movement. Explore how the protesters sought to revive and re-connect with the Zionist dream.

Jewish Identity- On Yom Kippur it is custom to read from the Book of Isaiah, the passage- “share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter— when you see the naked, to clothe them,  and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood!”- Discover how the protesters came to understand the bond between Judaism and their call for social justice.

 

Social Justice- The overall theme of the protest, what is social justice and what Israelis want from it. Justice for animals, people, the environment and everything in-between.

Democracy & The Protest- Celebrating Israeli democracy all spectrums were heard. There was no political agenda in the protest, people wanted to forget the “Left & Right” and focus on the immediate needs for the Israeli people

Housing- Educate your groups about the living situations for Israelis in the cities. With soaring prices and not enough cheap places to live, Israelis made their concerns heard by creating “Tent Cities” in Tel Aviv and other areas to show their need for affordable homes is imperative to the future of Israel.

Health- Israel has one of the best public healthcare systems in the world, still, households are finding an increase in healthcare bills as costs rise and people are unable to afford treatment. Demanding for reform in this sector was a huge component to the protests.

Education- Education has always been a part of the Jewish life and now in the Jewish State , nearly 250.000 hours of classroom time has been cut over the last decade as budgets have dwindled, teachers are being paid less no matter their experience and classrooms are starting to fill up past capacity.

The Diversity of Protesters- The protest was composed of variety of social, political and ethnic groups. The ages spanned across young and old, college students to working class, but their were some perspectives missing. The kit explores those who were present but also begs the question- who was missing?

Collage – A collection of pictures taken from the protest that put the whole protest into one view

 

See with your own eyes what the Israeli Social Protest was all about…order today or schedule for one of our educators to come to you.

Contact Shoshanna Howard for more details and prices:

Bookmark and Share

Young Zionist Leadership Conference in Miami Beach

promo for YZL

Bookmark and Share

Do The Write Thing Completes 22nd Successful Year

Natan Sharansky with DTWT participants

Every year, the World Zionist Organization (WZO), together with the American Zionist Movement (AZM), brings elite Jewish journalism students and young professionals in North America to the Jewish Federation of North America's General Assembly for a conference within the conference aptly titled “Do the Write Thing” (DTWT). Participants are provided with the opportunity to interview high-ranking officials, hobnob with the who’s who of the Jewish world, and learn from seasoned journalism professionals. The young journalists are provided with all the necessary tools and connections to help further their careers in both the near and distant future.

Bookmark and Share

WZO and AZM Sponsor Conference Addressing Delegitimization

Yuli Edelstein, Minister for Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs

Yuli Edelstein addresses the Conference on Sunday, September 25 in Manhattan (photo credit: David Karp)

 

Pro-Israel supporters pledged to take action to counter the Delegitimization of Israel during a full-day conference  in Manhattan organized by the WZO Department for Activities in Israel and Countering Anti-Semitism and the American Zionist Movement (AZM).

MK Yuli Edelstein, the Minister for Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs, was the keynote speaker at the  conference, entitled HARD REALITIES: Addressing Delegitimization and Anti-Semitism.  In addition to Minister Edelstein, other speakers included Malcolm Hoenlein, Executive Vice Chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations; Professor Kenneth Stein, of Emory University and the Center for Israel Education; Brooke Goldstein of The Lawfare Project, Dan Mariaschin, Executive Vice President of B’nai B’rith International, and Michael Miller, Executive Vice President of the New York, Jewish Community Relations Council.

Ya’akov HaGoel, Chair of the WZO Department for Activities in Israel and Countering Anti-Semitism said “It is important to gather representatives from the United States who are facing false accusations concerning Israel’s right to exist. There is an escalation of anti-Semitism and anti-Israel events on college campuses, in the media and on the streets.”

William D. Hess, President of the American Zionist Movement added, “This conference was intended to help empower the Jewish community to fight delegitimization.  In the morning conference speakers analyzed the underlying issues that have brought us to this point. In the afternoon addressed the challenge of how to reverse negative trends and give people the tools to fight back.”  Hess added “we want to encourage the Jewish people to embrace the Zionist idea.  Zionism is the national movement of the Jewish people; getting people to say they are Zionists is the starting point for the struggle against delegitimization.

The conference took place less than a week after the United Nations General Assembly opened its 2011 fall session.  Hagoel said the timing was not a coincidence and that pro-Israel supporters need to “acquire legitimate arguments that empower both Jewish and non-Jewish activists, as well as influential people around the world.”

Bookmark and Share

“Do the Write Thing” Comes to Denver and the GA

DTWT_LogoDo the Write Thing (DTWT) is a prestigious three-day program held during the Jewish Federations of North America’s annual General Assembly (GA), taking place November 6-8th, 2011 in the “Mile High City”, Denver, CO.  The GA is an annual gathering for lay and professional leaders in the Jewish world to identify and address shared challenges and issues.  Historically, DTWT has been geared towards college students interested in journalism.  For this 22nd annual seminar, we are fine-tuning our programming, making it more professionally-oriented and opening it up to graduate students and  young professionals who already have experience in the areas of Mass Media, Journalism, and Communications.

AS OF SEPTEMBER 22, THE APPLICATION PROCESS IS FORMALLY CLOSED.  HOWEVER, IF YOU ARE INTERESTED, PLEASE SUBMIT AN APPLICATION AND YOU WILL BE CONSIDERED SHOULD MORE SPACES BECOME AVAILABLE.

IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, PLEASE CONTACT SBAUMOHL@AZM.ORG.  THANKS AND GOOD LUCK!

Application for Undergraduates

Application for Graduate Students and Young Professionals

Do the Write Thing is sponsored by American Zionist Movement, WZO Department for Diaspora Activities, and the Ministry for Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs.

World Zionist Organization

 


Bookmark and Share
Tagged With: , , , ,

Conference on Delegitimization of Israel in New York City

Click here or on the image to sign up

Program (Subject to Change)

Hard Realities: Addressing the Delegitimization of Israel and Anti-Semitism
Lighthouse International Conference Center
111 East 59th Street

Register: www.izionist.org/seminar-in-nyc

9:30 – 10:00 AM      REGISTRATION AND COFFEE

10:00 AM                  WELCOME

William D. Hess, President, American Zionist Movement
Ya’akov Hagoel, Chair, WZO Dept for Activities in Israel and Countering Anti-Semitism

AN OVERVIEW OF DELEGITIMIZATION AND ANTI-SEMITISM

Chair: Jan Schechter, Past President, AMIT

10:15 – 11:45 AM    OPENING PLENARY

Dan Mariaschin, Exec V.P., B’nai B’rith
Demonization and Delegitimization of Israel in an Age of  Global Anti-Semitism

Prof. Kenneth Stein, Emory University and the Center for Israel Education
The Intellectual and Political Assault on Israel

Brooke Goldstein, Director, The Lawfare Project
Lawfare: the Use of the Law as a Weapon of War to Delegitimize Israel and the Shared Implications for Democracies

11:45 AM – 12:30 PM   KEYNOTE ADDRESS

Chair: Marlene Post, Chair of AZM Board

The Delegitimization of Israel and Anti-Semitism

The Honorable Yuli Edelstein, Minister for Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs

12:30 – 1:15 PM      LUNCH

RESPONDING TO DELEGITIMIZATION

1:15 – 2:00 PM      AFTERNOON PLENARY

DELEGITIMIZATION: THE ZIONIST RESPONSE

Chair: Richard Stone, Chairman, Conference of President of Major American Jewish Organizations

Morton Klein, President, Zionist Organization of America
Marcie Natan, Member, WZO Executive, President, Hadassah
Kenneth  Bob, Member WZO Executive, President, Ameinu
Natalie Silverlieb, Helyn B Reich Memorial Scholarship Recipient, Young Leadership representative

2:00 – 2:45 PM     DELEGITIMIZATION: THE COMMUNITY RESPONSE

Chair: Leonard Cole, Co-Chair, Jewish Agency’s Task Force on Anti-Semitism

Malcolm Hoenlein, Exec. Vice Chairman, Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations

David Dabscheck, Managing  Director, Israel Action Network

2:50 – 3:30 PM     THE MEDIA RESPONSE

Chair: David Krantz, Green Zionist Alliance

Using New Media in Countering Delegitimization
Eitan Ori Behar, Director, WZO Communications Center


A Media Professional’s Perspective on Delegitimization
Nadav Perry, Correspondent, Israel Channel 10

3:30        THE ACTIVIST RESPONSE TO DELEGITIMIZATION

Co-Chairs: Judy Gelman, Ameinu and Stephen Wolnek, President, Mercaz Olami

  • Talking to the Far Left and Unions

Dan Fleshler, Strategy XXI Partners

  • Building Bridges to Other Communities

Michael Miller, Executive Vice Chairman; New York Jewish Community Relations Council

  • How to Cope with anti-Israel Sentiment on Campus .

Zoe Jick, New York Area Director, Student Activities, WZO Department for Diaspora Activities

Eric Schorr, President, LionPac, Columbia University

David Dabscheck, Managing Director, Israel Action Network

5:00 PM   CLOSING AND CALL TO ACTION

Chair: Philip Meltzer, Past President, ARZA
Yaakov Hagoel, Chair, WZO Department for Israel Activities and Countering Anti-Semitism

HATIKVA

Bookmark and Share

Identity. Zionism. Connection. Jewish. American….

Nir Braudo

Nir Braudo, representative of the WZO Department for Diaspora Activities, addresses the group.

These terms, and many others, were discussed in great detail during a day-long seminar on Zionism organized by the World Zionist Organization/American Zionist Movement. Over sixty leaders in the pro-Israel community gathered to discuss Zionism, participate in discussions and Zionist text study, and to hear from speakers about the various challenges facing the Zionists in America. The group that gathered was diverse with regards characteristics ranging from age to religious affiliation to political beliefs. With all of these differences, the one unifying factor that joined all of these individuals together was the overarching theme of the day: Zionism and Israel.

Zionism as an ideology has different meanings for many people, and can manifest itself in a variety of ways. The lack of one single form of Zionism is nothing new, and stretches back to the development of the movement when various thinkers and visionaries each took the idea of Jewish nationalism and the creation of a Jewish State and developed the various streams of Zionist thought and ideology. This diversity of thought and opinion that marked the beginning of the Zionist movement was mirrored in this gathering of professionals.

Organized by the staff of the American Zionist Movement and the World Zionist Organization, this day of learning and networking included speakers, Zionist text study, programming ideas, and multiple opportunities for the participants to speak with one another. These informal portions of the day allowed for networking and the developing of relationships between members of the Zionist community in the United States who might not normally interact with one another. For many present, it was the first time that they were able to hear such diverse perspectives on what it means to be a Zionist, and many expressed enthusiasm about having the opportunity to have so many different voices present in the discussion.

Headlining the event, in addition to the educational and interactive programming, were presentations given by Professor Gil Troy of McGill University, and Ambassador Ido Aharoni, the Consul General of Israel to New York. Having the opportunity to hear from both of these experts was an invaluable experience, and it provided participants with a better sense of reality in terms of the various challenges facing Israel advocates, as well as the numerous opportunities that there are to promote Israel and Zionism in an effective manner.

The concept of Zionism, how it factors in to ones own identity, what the connection is between an individual and Israel, and how all of this relates to being Jewish and American, is something that many struggle with. Declaring oneself as a Zionist often invites questions, criticism, or even condemnation. Still, over forty individuals of varying circumstances chose to do just that, while acknowledging that Zionism isn’t something that can be clearly defined. Rather, it must be explored and challenged by those who call themselves Zionists. Zionism today is a movement that spans religions, nationalities, age, and political affiliation. This was apparent at the seminar, and is something that the member organizations of the AZM/WZO exemplify by their broad reach. By unifying such groups under the banner of Zionism, we are able to truly demonstrate the diversity of the movement, and the wide span of individuals who support Israel.

Bookmark and Share
« Older Posts