Stem The Tide Of Human Trafficking In Israel
Israeli NGO holds event to educate the public on human trafficking
ATZUM’s Task Force on Human Trafficking has planned a public awareness event to change public opinion about the reality of human trafficking within Israel. The event: “You can change the way this picture ends” will take place at 6:00 PM on December 1, the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery, at the Tel Aviv Cinemateque.
At any given time, at least 3,000 victims of trafficking are being forced to work in the sex trade within Israel’s borders. Women are smuggled into Israel, often through the Egypt desert, and sold to brothel owners throughout the country. Defenseless to rape, violence, and psychological torture, they are forced to work off debts through involuntary sexual servitude. The Government of Israel still does not fully comply with the minimum international standards for the elimination of trafficking.
The Task Force has brought together a wide range of Israelis – students, artists, media figures – to help launch this issue into the national debate. Students from Tel Aviv Broadcasting schools ACC and Jumpcut have participated in creating 17 public service announcements. Leaders in human rights, politics and national media will gather to screen the competing campaigns at the Tel Aviv Cinemateque. The winning campaign will be aired on the national television networks Keshet, Reshet, and several other networks for the coming months. View one example here.
The Task Force works to address this problem on a national level, working with government offices and private citizens to find systemic solutions to this violation of basic human rights. Over the last two years, the Task Force on Human Trafficking (ATZUM) and the Kabiri Nevo Keidar Law Firm, have launched a comprehensive strategy that includes: providing legal assistance to victims of trafficking; lobbying in Knesset to change the existing laws; working to influence the decision makers; and educating the public at large about this enormous problem.
Please join is on December 1, as we begin a new era in the fight against human trafficking in Israel.
This issue is such a chilul hashem – thanks for featuring it.
We must do something about this – both on the policy level, and on the values level.
What is “chilul hashem”? I got the hashem part.
chliul hashem means “desecration of the name” … it’s the opposite of kiddush hashem, “sanctification of the name”
more practically, it refers to something done which reflects poorly on the Jewish community, so that outsiders would look and say “look what is done by those people who worship Hashem,” whereas with a kiddush hashem they would be impressed. think of it as “caring what others think about you” on a communal scale. but it’s actually a pretty deep theological concept if you explore it further.
Chilul Hashem does not just reflect the “what will the gentiles say” aspect of it.
This is a Chilul Hashem WITHIN our community because of what these actions say about our values. The people being forced into prostitution are created in the image of G-d. These actions negate that, and thus negate G-d’s presence among us.
The root of the word “Chilul” is Ch-l-l which means “empty”. A “Chilul Hashem” is an action, cultural norm, or situation that “empties” our reality of G-d awareness.
The opposite is “Kiddush Hashem” – an act that asserts G-d’s presence in the situation.
If you’re going to be in the NY area on Dec 7, there will be a symposium/call to action on the topic of Human Trafficking at Hebrew Union College in the West Village.
“Freeing the Captives: The Jewish Response to Human Trafficking,†a symposium addressing the nearly one million women each year (20,000 in the U.S) who are trafficked across international borders. Speakers include lobbyist Rabbi David Saperstein; HUC-JIR Professor of Codes and Responsa, Dr. Alyssa Gray; and NGO representative, Sister Clare Nolan, MSW. 6:30 PM, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, One West 4th St. FREE. Photo ID required.