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Join the Intergenerational Dialogue with Muki Tsur

Muki Tsur, educator and raconteur, will address the theme: Gazing from Mount Nebo, with former students and youth movement participants from across the generations.  This is an  extraordinary opportunity to hear one of Israel’s leading educational thinkers and story-tellers.  This Yom Ha’atzmaut (Israel Independence Day) Muki was one of the 12 individuals who was asked to light one of the torches on Mount Herzl at the official public celebration, a high honor.

Join us for an evening to savor and  remember.

There is no charge to participate, but you must register.

Muki Tsur invite sml

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Voices Fellowship Program in Philadephia and New York

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Progressive Jewish communities in North America are often concerned about certain phenomena occurring in the Jewish State that they recognize as counter their conceptions of Jewish social justice.

It is time for us to come together and build an open and safe space for learning, questioning, and discussing the conflicts that arise in our commitments when we attempt to actualize various ideologies and values.

Four partners (AZM, Ameninu, World Zionist Organization and Binah) have joined together to bring these issues to the table. We believe in the importance of voicing opinions and listening to others’ opinions through learning ancient and modern text, meeting with academic speakers and organizational leaders, and engaging in respectful provocative conversation.  Through the process, we will find new and meaningful ways to grapple with the problematic realities facing world Jewry and the Jewish State.

The Voices Fellowship is a pilot program being launched in New York and Philadelphia this spring. The program is designed to engage its selected participants in a deep discussion about Judaism, Zionism, social justice and Israel. The questions raised will include issues of religious tolerance, human rights and democracy, as well as relations between Israel and Diaspora, Jewish values and collective responsibility.

If you  would like to see a program like this in your organization or community please contact AZM to explore the question.

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Mark Tisha b’Av With A Zionist Perspective

Tisha b’Av and Zionism

Romans Sacking JerusalemThe observance of Tisha b’Av Saturday night July 28 and Sunday, July 29, gives us the opportunity to focus on the connection between the destructions of the Holy Temples in Jerusalem and, thus, our connection to the Land of Israel.  Zionism arose out of the longing of exiled Jews for their Homeland.  Our leaders kept the exiles focused on what they had lost and have not let them forget. And we did not forget.  We returned from exile to Eretz Yisrael many times, building a country 2,000 years later.

The American Zionist Movement and the World Zionist Organization presents this series of readings that emphasize the connection of Zionism to the messages of Tisha b’Av.  Despite the proximity to 9 Av, please add them to your readings this year or use them in your private contemplation. In every case, please disseminate them to your members as soon as possible.

May the fast for those who so choose be an easy one.

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Some More Questions for Your Passover Table

Mt Herzl Flyer

Will you be in Israel this Passover? Join the WZO Passover festivities on Mount Herzl this year.

An important part of the Passover tradition is the discussion and debate of the haggadah. It is also a tradition to add new elements into the haggadah.  To provide additional Zionist context to this year’s seder, the World Zionist Organization and AZM offer some songs and texts to be read and considered, as well as some questions to help families put the materials into the Zionist context.

The texts are part of David Ben-Gurion‘s speech at the Peel Commission; the song Out of Egypt (hear it and see it on YouTube) by Alma Zohar, which connects the Jews’ departure from Egypt to the Promised Land to today’s African refugees in Israel; and a reflection by Ze’ev Jabotinsky on the “Four Sons” from the Haggadah. The themes and questions raised in the materials include the collective memory of the Jews, whether Israel helps or impedes the concept of peoplehood, whether the Jews living in Israel and those living outside of Israel are one people,  if Jews throughout the world share a “common denominator,” and more. These questions will help your family and friends reflect on their Zionist identity and their connections to Israel and the Jewish People.

The supplement is available in English, Hebrew, and Spanish. Click below to download yours! Use it at your seder and share it with your friends and neighbors.

 

Passover 2012-English

Passover 2012-Hebrew

Passover 2012-Spanish

Also download the Zionist Dayenu, available here.

See the Alma Zohar video Out of Egypt here:

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A Passover Haggadah for the Youngest Zionists!

Haggadah CoverThe World Zionist Organization presents a Passover Haggadah for Children.

This Haggadah was created by the WZO Center for Spiritual Services in the Diaspora.

Please feel free to print out and share this full-color haggadah for children. Simply download it here.

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World Zionist Organization Mobilizes for Southern Israel

Following the escalation in rocket attacks on southern Israel, the WZO brought hundreds of schoolchildren from the south to Jerusalem, where they will have a good time, tour the city and enjoy some quiet. The students, from grades 1-12, will explore the city with a guide to accompany them. Among the places the students will visit are the Knesset, the Western Wall, Mount Scopus and more.  The young visitors from the South will also visit the WZO’s Herzl Museum and Educational Center, located on Har Herzl (Mt Herzl).

Additionally, for those who can’t make it to Jerusalem, the WZO and its daughter-company Tarbut L’Yisrael (Culture for Israel), have sent performing artists to southern communities to try to help relax the residents as much as possible while they seek protection in bomb shelters.  Tarbut L’Yisrael has been in continuous contact with cultural activities coordinators throughout the year and especially during these times of distress.  With funding from the Ministry of Culture and Sports, the WZO and Tarbut L’Yisrael made preparations and have sent performing artists to help relax the southern residents as much as possible and make their lives even a little bit more pleasant.

According to Gusti Yehoshua-Braverman, Head of the WZO’s Department for Diaspora Activities, “With the renewed eruption in southern Israel, and the repeated nonstop rocket attacks on the south’s residents, this department and the WZO’s Herzl Center ask to strengthen the hands of the Israel Defense Forces’ soldiers, its commanders and the south’s residents.  We are happy to host the south’s residents and children at the Herzl Center and hope that these activities will be significant, even a little calming and allow them to enjoy a bit of happiness.”

To help in this effort, please give now.

Many of the stricken communities have been the focus of  AZM’s Purim Connection drives in the past.  Thus, AZM feels a special affinity and concern for those living under this stress.  AMIT, one of AZM’s member organizations and a part of the World Zionist Organization runs many of Israel’s school and is closely monitoring the situation.

Thousands of AMIT students in Beersheva, Ashkelon, Sderot and Kiryat Malachi remained home today from school as hundreds of rockets continue to be fired from Gaza into southern Israel for a fourth day. On Sunday, a Grad missile struck the AMIT Hazon Ovadiah Elementary School in Beersheva, which thankfully was empty. Additionally, a rocket fell very close to the home of an AMIT Beersheva student. The principal of her school has been in close contact with the family.

Most families in the affected area are sleeping in bomb shelters at night, and heavy damage has been reported to buildings and vehicles. As in the past, AMIT has quickly responded with a variety of special services to its students, including offering classes and distance learning via the internet.  You can learn more about AMIT and help them provide these services.

Wherever you are, whatever your resources you can help the people in southern Israel.

  • Keep informed about the situation Don’t be afraid to speak up with your friends, neighbors, and colleagues. Tell them what is going on in Israel
  • When you see media imbalance, don’t be silent. Send a letter to the editor; call-in to talk radio programs; know the facts and speak your mind (don’t antagonize –inform and educate)
  • And please, contribute to efforts on behalf of Israel’s citizens in the south of Israel.
We wanted to keep you in the loop on the latest from Israel’s cities under siege.  I know you will want to help now!
Thank you.
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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.

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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.

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“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

 


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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.

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