Newsletters

HMW Quarterly Newsletter Issue no. 09, June 2007


Educating the Public and Raising Awareness as Strategies for Social Change

Background
The Hotline for Migrant Workers views public education as essential for creating social change and social justice in Israel. We use a number of strategies to educate the public including recruitment and retention of volunteers, intensive advocacy with the media, lectures and training seminars, public events and newsletters. The information below reflects our activities during the 2006 calendar year.


Volunteers
Volunteers not only significantly increase our organizational impact, they are also essential for educating the public about the issues.
175+: Total number of volunteers
75: Assist released Sudanese refugees
30: Assist detained migrant workers and refugees
25: Assist survivors of trafficking in persons
20: Conduct lectures
20: Assist with translation, special events and in-kind services
4: Full-time national service volunteers


Media
Media items include newspaper articles, TV programs, radio shows and films about the issues. They appear in the national and international media.
360: Total Items
160: Migrants including minors
120: Refugees
80: Sex trafficking


Lectures
Lectures and training seminars are held for government agencies, the army, schools and youth groups, the general public, international groups and our target populations.
151: Total lectures
120: Sex trafficking
26: Migrant workers and refugees
5: All topics


Public Events
We hold two annual events- one for fundraising purposes and the second in honor of International Migrants Day.
September 7th: Fundraising Event featuring lectures, performances and food.
December 23rd: International Migrants Day event featuring films, food, performances and a panel discussion.


Newsletters
Newsletters are sent to over 500 people in English and 600 people in Hebrew. Recipients include:
  • Embassies
  • HMW members
  • Jewish federations
  • Past and current volunteers
  • Foundations and trusts
  • Academics
  • Local and International NGOs

Nitza and Eviatar's Stories

As documented in our August 2006 newsletter, increasing numbers of unaccompanied minors are entering Israel. Many are orphans while virtually all are from African countries such as Sudan, Somalia, Guinea and Ghana. Some are labor migrants while others are refugees or survivors of trafficking in persons. Like adults from similar countries, they are detained in preparation for deportation. We are working to prevent their deportation and to advocate for a long-term and sustainable solution for them. Meanwhile, volunteers provide them with important humanitarian aid.

Nitza, a longtime volunteer, saw a need to work with these youth and realized she could be particularly helpful. Her car helps her get to prison while some knowledge of French, Arabic and English facilitates communication with the youth.

Nitza is a high school literature teacher in the upscale city of Ramat Aviv. She realized that by sharing the stories of youth she meets in detention with her students, she could expose them to issues of migration, human rights and the lives of the less privileged. Indeed, upon hearing her stories, the students were intrigued. Until that point, their primary relationship with migrants was as their house cleaners.

Following Nitza's example, the students sought opportunities to help. Nitza would request items, such as clothes, sports equipment or books, which the students then collected for distribution. But this was limited; the students wanted to meet the detained teens.

As the Jewish holiday of Purim approached last march, some of the students decided to plan a Purim party for the minors in detention. Attended by Nitza, the school principal and about 15 students, they distributed traditional gift packages, arranged a musical performance and brought food to eat. More importantly, they met personally, some of the youth whom they had heard so much about and listened to their stories.

These relationships continued after the holiday. When some of the youth were subsequently released, the students invited them to their school to play soccer, tutored them in English continued to collect donations on their behalf.

Eviatar was one such student. The head of the Dan chapter of his Scouts youth group, he is an 18 and preparing to graduate from high school. Through Scouts, he initiated a drive for donations of clothes and sports equipment for the youth.

This was not Eviatar's first foray into social activism; through Scouts he was active in advocating for citizenship for children of migrant workers. As a result of these activities, he has come to realize how fortunate he is in comparison to others. He said "I think every kid should enjoy equal opportunities and the kind of life I enjoy. Although we talk about democracy and equality, in practice many groups are prevented from realizing their potential for political or economic reasons. They also deserve to grow and develop. They should be given a meaningful role in society and not be shunted to the side." He added, "I understand the problematic nature of the issues but the temporary solutions currently being offered by the government are not appropriate." Due to his activities, Eviatar has a greater understanding of the situation. He has used his position of leadership to educate his peers and, ultimately, to assist migrant communities themselves.

This is a poignant example of how the activism of one person can create a significant ripple affect in Israel. Through discussions about minors, Nitza has opened her students' eyes to a variety of human rights issues. In many cases, it has impacted their political attitudes and in virtually all cases has increased their sensitivity towards people who they may have previously regarded as 'cheap labor.' The students have a deeper understanding of the human factors which motivate people to migrate and more sympathy for those less fortunate than themselves. Perhaps most significantly, as a result of this exposure, some of the students have expressed an interest in volunteering with the Hotline.