from 5 August, 2008:
As you've noticed, I usually don't write about things that happen to me until well after they've occurred. Part of this is procrastination, part of it is the time to write it well, and part of it is remember that I even have this blog in the first place. Well, I'm going to switch gears today and write something off the cuff because I'm having a bad day, and it's my blog, and I can pretty much do whatever I bloody well please.
About a week ago I sent out an e-mail on a listserv called Janglo, which caters primarily to the English-speaking community in Jerusalem (which is huge). I was asking about anyone who had gone through the process of applying for a work permit (Jews get an automatic 6 month work permit; the rest of us have to submit a pile of paperwork that requires most of the average lifetime to collect). One guy responded with this list of materials he had to submit for his visa:
- Four letters of recommendation and one letter from my potential Israeli employer stating the following:
1)I am a specialist in my field.
2) My skill sets are unique and required many years of training to acquire.
3) There is no person in Israel with similar skill sets, nor was there likely to be in the foreseeable future.
4) That my specialty was needed to advance the field in Israel, and that the field would suffer without them, as a result.
They also require, at a minimum:
- copies of my university degrees (not transcripts, official copies of the degrees themselves)
- a criminal background check
- photocopies of my passport and driver's license
- bank statements
- various other supporting documents which they decide on as they feel that day
After all this, it took eight months for them to decide whether or not to issue him a work permit. This in and of itself doesn't bother me; if I was applying to work in any country in which I'm not a citizen, I would probably have to submit a very similar set of materials. My issue is that, if I were Jewish, this is what I'd have to submit:
- letter from potential employer saying they're willing to hire me
- letter from my Rabbi stating that I'm Jewish
That's it. You can get it the same day you apply for it.
This isn't meant to sound anti-Israel. I think Israel is great. The more I learn about the history of the Jewish people, the stronger my convictions that Israel is a vitally important entity for Jews worldwide. I'm fucking thrilled that people I know and love have a place where they can live free of persecution and discrimination based on their religion/nationality.
A number of people also responded with "If you're Jewish, what's the problem?" and I explained that I'm not Jewish and why I'm here and want to stay. Here's one of the responses I got:
Daniel,
you sound like a nice person, with a good set of values. I am sure there are many organizations for the deaf in non-Jewish countries that need a talented, compassionate person like yourself. Here, however, it is only the "State of Israel" because it is the "Land of Israel", as I am sure you are aware of. So, let a talented, compassionate, educated Jew help his/her own here, and go and spread the good stuff you have in surroundings that are for you. I am sure you are aware of the Noachide Laws. They are so important that they are in the Torah. If you can help yourself and other non-Jews to arrive at these values - you will have done work of the righteous, to be sure.
I wish you all the best, and may Hashem take care of you.
A number of things about these kind of responses bother me.
- if there was a "talented, compassionate, educated Jew" who had my skills, I wouldn't have been invited and funded by the Israeli government to come here with my skills.
- the Deaf community here needs my help, and this woman thinks that I should let them flounder simply because I'm not Jewish. In other words, this woman is wishing ill on her fellow Jews/Israelis because I'm not Jewish.
- the way she explains how Israel is the Jewish state and that it's for Jews, as if I haven't been hit over the head with that daily for the past twelve months.
- after telling me, essentially, to "fuck off", she has the gall to wish blessings on me. "Get out, and God bless".
What I don't get is this: I want to stay and work with Israelis. Deaf Israelis. Deaf Israelis who don't have equal rights, who don't have equal accessibility, who don't have someone to advocate for them, who need someone to fight for them when society at large ignores them and what they need. I want to help Israel and Israelis, and people want me to leave. People are willing to let their own people suffer to get me out of the country.
I mean, last time I checked Israel was surrounded by countries that hate it, expanded itself in a way that most governments' think is illegal, and is being threatened regularly by Iran with nuclear annihilation. And you're going to be choosy about who comes to your aid? To me, that's dumb.
Now, maybe this has been happening for centuries and I just haven't felt it before because I'm a white, middle-class male. Maybe this is some kind of karmic retribution for the Inquisition, or something. I don't know. But it certainly doesn't make any kind of sense to me.
Israel is certainly not the most popular country in the world, and I've been doing nothing but talking its praises while I've been here. As one of my fellow MDA volunteers said, "you're the best PR we've got". I'm a non-Jew talking about how great I think Israel is, trying to change peoples' perceptions to something that's not based on CNN's coverage of the Gaza Strip.
So tell me, people: am I right? Wrong? Missing the point of Israel? Overly sensitive?
Now if you'll excuse me, my bacon cheeseburger is ready.
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