June 26, 2013 CHARGES OF APARTHEID

June 26, 2013  CHARGES OF APARTHEID
I have ridden the light rail from one end of Jerusalem to the other--the entire route.  Both Arabs and Jews are on it.  You can identify the Arab women and the religious Jewish women by the type of head scarf each wears.  It's more difficult for a foreigner to distinguish Jewish from Arab men if they wear regular clothes. 

We went to the Zoo.  There were Arab and Jewish families and school classes of Arab and Jewish school children.  We rode the buses.  There is no "back of the bus" for Arabs, dark-skinned people, or women. 

The women in the police and army at the Western Wall were racially diverse:  White European/Russians, Dark Ethiopians, Black Africans, Arab, East Indian.  This year Miss Israel is a woman of Ethiopian descent.

At Liberty Bell Park, a few blocks from our rented apartment, many Arab families barbecue, especially on Fridays. Jewish and Arab children play in the playground.  Stan says the father does all the work of the barbecue while the women talk.

One of the signs of apartheid is different laws for different people.  In Israel there are two laws:  one establishes a way of marrying in the Muslim tradition and another exempting Israeli Arabs from serving in the armed forces. 

Israeli Arabs attend universities based on merit only and enter many professions including medicine, nursing, and especially pharmacy which is a mostly Arab profession acc to Stan's cousin.  Are things perfect?  No, but what country is ideal in this area?

When people make charges as serious as Apartheid, they should also look at the Arab nations.  This is where one can objectively apply this label.

Walking around in Israel whether in Jerusalem , Tel Aviv , or any other small cities one can appreciate the diversity of the people and just marvel how well it works for such a short period since statehood.