Where is the center of Jewish identity? Israel or the Diaspora? Can we have a thriving Hebrew language and culture without a Jewish majority country? World Jewry seems to be standing at a critical junction in history. While more than half of us still remain in the Diaspora, intermarriage will probably tip the balance towards Israel in the next two decades. Ironically, Israel is pursuing expansionist and settlement policies that will most likely result in one state, where Jews will be a minority, the Palestinian population the majority. At the same time, the discourse surrounding Israel’s history vis a vis…

Former allies in fight against occupation are battling over the meaning of the tent protest. Can the relationship be rescued, and should it be? The tent protest, also known as J14, already had an effect on many groups in Israeli society, forcing them to re-examine their political positions and alliances. And while we have yet to see what comes out of this process, it is safe to say that in the last few weeks a new conversation has emerged. One of these developments, perhaps an unwelcome one, was a growing rift between Israeli left-wing activists and some progressive bloggers and…

The leaders of a civil society organization working for equality for the Palestinian citizens of Israel spoke on Tuesday before the Trachtenberg committee  – the government-appointed panel charged with recommending steps to improve economic and social justice in Israel. The committee's invitation to Ron Gerlitz and Dr. Mary Totry of Sikkuy, the Association for Civil Advancement in Israel, might be partly a response to claims that the committee does not sufficiently represent Arabs in Israel. Headed by Harvard-trained economist Professor Manuel Trachtenberg, the panel was appointed by Prime Minister Netanyahu and has generated widespread criticism. One sort of criticism actually…

by Roi Ben Yehuda Over at Tablet, Joseph Dana writes an important piece on Israel’s problematic relationship with the Nakba narrative (the expulsion/dislocation of over 750,000 Palestinians from their homes in what is now Israel) and the imperative of integrating this narrative into Israel’s public discourse. He concludes: Including the Nakba in Israeli public discourse, newspapers, and textbooks hardly means the unqualified embrace of one version of history over another. But open discussion of competing narratives with reference to the historical record is clearly a precondition for any wider kind of social and political understanding between Israeli Jews and Palestinian…

Watch 972's Joseph Dana in an interview for GRITtv "There's a lot of Palestinian Gandhis," says writer and filmmaker Joseph Dana.  But up until recently, it was nearly impossible for everyday people around the world to hear their stories. That's changing with social media, he points out, and with this week's release of more diplomatic documents from WikiLeaks, the world has more information than ever about what really happens both on the ground in Israel and Palestine and in diplomatic channels. Joseph stopped in to the GRITtv studio before heading back to Israel, and spoke with Laura about WikiLeaks, about…

Palestinian popular resistance to the Israeli occupation, settlements and the wall are a regular occurrence in the West Bank. Despite this, the overwhelmingly non-violent protests, often put down harshly by occupation forces, rarely make the mainstream news. In this video, Joseph Dana, +972 blogger and one of the only journalists who covers the protests, discusses being on the front lines of the Palestinian popular struggle. [blip.tv ?posts_id=4379893&dest=-1]