‘Everyone in the government works with the New Israel Fund’

Mickey Gitzin, who grew up in a national right-wing home, is not quite the natural choice to head the New Israel Fund. Now, after establishing himself in the role, he no longer listens to online commentators and has started instead to focus on the objectives: bring the NIF into the consensus, but also fight back against detractors.

Shatil’s Public Housing Forum Saves Disabled Holocaust Survivor from Eviction

On a recent dreary day in Beer Sheva, a disabled 77 year old Holocaust survivor returned to her home of 20 years to find her lock had been changed. An eviction order had arrived the day before with no court order, no explanation, and no discussion with the tenant.

The very day the Forum reached Housing Minister Yoav Galant, the ministry sent a special envoy to Beer Sheva who put the Holocaust survivor up in a hotel. The next day, they started renovating the apartment and promised she would return to it within a week.

Keeping Israel’s Cities Pluralistic and Free

Shatil organized a November gathering of the Free Cities Forum, a platform for activists and organizations to coordinate strategy, share best practices, and learn from each other’s experiences in their efforts to keep their cities pluralistic and free. The gathering was the opening shot of the forum’s work for the year ahead of the 2018 municipal elections and was organized by Shatil in partnership with Be Free Israel, the Secular Forum, the Israel Movement for Progressive and Reform Judaism, and the Masorti Movement’s Jewish Pluralism Watch