Dear Friends,
As my first weeks as ACRI’s new Executive Director draw to a close, I want to take this opportunity to connect directly with you – ACRI’s friends, supporters and members – to thank you for your support and to share some insights that I’ve learned during my first days on the job.
For many years I have watched with pride as ACRI has gone from strength to strength – growing quickly into the pre-eminent human rights organization operating in Israel today. I have seen it succeed in overturning the Anti-Infiltration Law aimed at imprisoning African asylum-seekers, obtain access to free public education for residents of East Jerusalem, restore running water for impoverished Israeli families who fell behind on their water bills, prevent the demolition of Bedouin villages in the Negev and Palestinian villages in the West Bank, ensure freedom of speech on college campuses and in political campaigns, and more.
ACRI’s work has directly touched the lives of millions of people in Israel and the Occupied Territories.
Having worked as an ACRI attorney in the past, it is with great pride that I return to an organization that remained dear to me throughout my time away. Returning home to take responsibility for the continuation of this legacy is both exciting and humbling, and I look forward to confronting the many challenges that stand before us.
Following years of relative restraint, the Knesset has begun to debate a number of dangerous pieces of legislation that would potentially violate the civil rights of millions of Israelis.
Most egregious of these is a government-sponsored bill that seeks to constitutionally define Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people – a bill that would subordinate Israel’s democratic character to its Jewish character. ACRI steadfastly believes that democracy in Israel must not be a secondary value and we are utilizing all the resources at our disposal to defeat this initiative.
Concurrently, we are pursuing action to defend the rights to housing, health and education for all Israelis and expanding our human rights education programs to increase the discourse on human rights and anti-racism education in schools throughout Israel.
My return to ACRI is in many ways a pledge to recommit myself to the defence of human rights for all – without regard to religion, nationality or race. We at ACRI pledge to stand up for the values of a just and democratic Israel.
We pledge to stand together with the victims of human rights violations and work to ensure a better future for all.
As we recommit ourselves to the protection of human rights, we ask you to recommit yourselves along with us.
With your support, I have no doubt that ACRI can continue to overcome the challenges that lie before us and forge a path towards a more just and equal society.
As we embark on this new path, I wish us all the best of luck.
Sharon Abraham-Weiss
Executive Director
Association for Civil Rights in Israel
