Daphni Leef ( he, דפני ליף; born 7 January 1986) is an Israeli social activist, video artist, and editor. In July 2011 she initiated the
2011 Israeli Social Justice Protest that took place in
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
and were the largest social protests in Israel's history.
Following the civil protest Leef focused on issues regarding fair
housing
Housing, or more generally, living spaces, refers to the construction and assigned usage of houses or buildings individually or collectively, for the purpose of shelter. Housing ensures that members of society have a place to live, whether it ...
in Israel and established various independent social projects.
In 2017 Leef debuted the first movie she directed named ''
Before My Feet Touch the Ground'', which is a documentary about the 2011 protest from her personal perceptive. The film was chosen to open the Docaviv - Tel Aviv International Documentary Film Festival in May 2017, and was part of the official selection of the 2017
International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam
The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) is the world's largest documentary film festival held annually since 1988 in Amsterdam. Over a period of twelve days, it has screened more than 300 films and sold more than 250,000 tic ...
.
Biography
Daphni Naomi Leef is the daughter of the Israeli composer Inam Leef, and the great-granddaughter of the Israeli engineer Zalman Leef. Leef was born in
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
and raised in the
Rehavia
Rehavia or Rechavia ( he, רחביה, ar, رحافيا) is an upscale Jerusalem neighborhood located between the city center and Talbiya.
Since its establishment in the 1920s, the area has always been associated with German-Jewish culture and tra ...
neighborhood of the city. She attended
Gymnasia Rehavia
Rehavia Gymnasium or the Jerusalem Rehavia Gymnasium, by its Hebrew name Gymnasia Rehavia ( he, גמנסיה רחביה, Gimnazya Rehavya), is a high school in the Rehavia neighborhood in West Jerusalem.
History
The high school's initial name wa ...
junior high. In 2002, at age 16, she moved with her family to
Kfar Shmaryahu
Kfar Shmaryahu ( he, כְּפַר שְׁמַרְיָהוּ, ar, كفار شمرياهو) is a local council in Israel, within the Tel Aviv District.
History
Kfar Shmaryahu was founded in May 1937, during the Fifth Aliyah. The founding members ...
, a local council within the
Tel Aviv District
The Tel Aviv District ( he, מָחוֹז תֵּל אָבִיב; ar, منطقة تل أبيب) is the smallest and most densely populated of the six administrative districts of Israel with a population of 1.35 million residents. It is 98.9% Jewi ...
ranked very highly on the Israeli socio-economic scale. During her high school period Leef majored in Film Studies at a high school in
Ramat Hasharon
Ramat HaSharon ( he, רָמַת הַשָּׁרוֹן, ''lit.'' '' Sharon Heights'', ar, رمات هشارون) is a city located on Israel's central coastal strip in the south of the Sharon region, bordering Tel Aviv to the south, Hod HaSharon t ...
.
In September 2002 Leef signed a public letter along with dozens of other pre-army-aged youths that declared their
refusal to serve in the "army of occupation". Leef did not serve in the IDF, but claimed in an August 2011 interview that she did not serve in the military due to medical reasons.
[
In 2005, after she finished high school, Leef moved to ]Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
and began studying in the film department of Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University (TAU) ( he, אוּנִיבֶרְסִיטַת תֵּל אָבִיב, ''Universitat Tel Aviv'') is a public research university in Tel Aviv, Israel. With over 30,000 students, it is the largest university in the country. Locate ...
. Leef graduated from the university in 2008. She became a professional video editor
A video editor is involved in video production and the post-production of film making. The video editor's responsibilities involve decisions about the selection and combining of shots into sequences, as well as the addition of accompanying sou ...
and has created many short film
A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...
s, music videos for Israeli singers (such as Eran Tzur
Eran is an ancient town and archaeological site in the Sagar district of Madhya Pradesh, India. It was one of the ancient mints for Indian dynasties as evidenced by the diverse coins excavated here. The site has 5th and 6th-century Gupta era ...
, Michal Amdursky
Michal Amdursky ( he, מיכל אמדורסקי; born in 1975) is an Israeli dancer and singer.
Biography
Michal Amdursky was married to Assaf Amdursky, with whom she has two children. She is one of the pioneers of the Israeli Dance Music genre. ...
and Noam Nevo
Noam ( he, נועם) is a Hebrew name which means "pleasantness", and although it started as the male version of the female ''Na'omi'' (English: "Naomi" or "Noémie"), today, it is a very common Hebrew name for both males and females alike. The co ...
) and films for various political NGO
A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...
s, including a short work for the "Free Israel" association ("ישראל חופשית"), which promotes civil marriage in Israel
Marriage in Israel is restricted to religious marriages performed by recognized confessional communities. However, civil marriages entered into abroad are recognized in Israeli law, including same-sex marriages.
History
In 1951, the Supreme Co ...
.
2011 protests
During June 2011 Leef received a notice to vacate the apartment that she had rented in Tel Aviv for the previous three years. After several weeks of searching to no avail for a new apartment within reach of her film-editing job, Leef discovered that the rental prices in the entire Tel Aviv metropolitan area
Gush Dan ( he, גּוּשׁ דָּן, ''lit.'' "Dan bloc") or Tel Aviv metropolitan area ( he, מֶטְרוֹפּוֹלִין תֵּל אָבִיב) is a conurbation in Israel, located along the country's Mediterranean coastline. There is no sing ...
had doubled in the previous five years.
As an act of protest Leef decided to open a Facebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...
page and ask people to help her in organizing a protest. Ten people, among them Stav Shaffir (later to become MK in Israeli Parliament), Regev Contes Regev or Regeb ( he, רגב) is a Jewish name that may refer to:
* Amitai Regev (born 1940), Israeli mathematician
*Aviv Regev (born 1971), Israeli computational biologist
*Eldad Regev (1980–2006), Israeli soldier
*Mark Regev (born 1960), Israeli ...
(filmmaker) and other activists, replied and attended a preparation meeting, in which they decided to pitch tents in Tel Aviv, claiming young people in Israel have no way to pay their rent. Two weeks later, on 14 July, they pitched five tents at the Rothschild Boulevard
Rothschild Boulevard (, ''Sderot Rotshild'') is one of the principal streets in the center of Tel Aviv, Israel, beginning in Neve Tzedek at its southwestern edge and running north to Habima Theatre. It is one of the most expensive streets in the c ...
in Tel-Aviv, while police warned them against camping in the public sphere without permission. Soon afterward the protests gained momentum as thousands joined the protests, pitching tents in the central streets of cities across Israel. sparking off the 2011 Israel housing protests. On 29 August 2011, in the context of aspersions about Leef's background and intentions, Leef abruptly ended an interview when asked about not doing mandatory military service
Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...
or Sherut Leumi
Sherut Leumi ( he, שירות לאומי, lit. ''National Service'') is an alternative voluntary national service in Israel for those who are ineligible for service in the Israel Defense Forces or object to serving in the army, mostly for relig ...
, her affluent upbringing, what the Trajtenberg Committee The Trajtenberg Committee (Hebrew: ועדת טרכטנברג) is a commission appointed by the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on August 8, 2011, in order to examine and propose solutions to Israel's socioeconomic problems. The committee ...
was dealing with, and a question about her lack of presence or if she has even slept in the Tel Aviv tent area. She revealed that she received an exemption from the army for having epilepsy
Epilepsy is a group of non-communicable neurological disorders characterized by recurrent epileptic seizures. Epileptic seizures can vary from brief and nearly undetectable periods to long periods of vigorous shaking due to abnormal electrical ...
but had volunteered in a children's shelter, and that she had not slept in the Rothschild Boulevard tents the preceding week.
2012 protests
At 22 June 2012, Leef and several other activists tried to restart the housing protests by re-erecting a tent encampment in the Rothschild Boulevard in Tel-Aviv. The municipality had not issued a permit and as a result Leef, along with eleven other activists, were arrested when they resisted the 20 policemen and municipal inspectors who arrived to dismantle the tents. The protesters' tents were confiscated by the police forces as well.
"Before My Feet Touch the Ground", 2017 Movie
Leef's debut film as a director came out in 2017 in the opening of the Docaviv - Tel Aviv International Documentary Film Festival. The documentary movie uses news clips and Leef's own video footage, as she looks back on the turbulent period in 2011 when she was transformed from a somewhat naive young woman into a celebrated and controversial national icon. The movie was produced by Yael Abecassis
Yael Abecassis ( he, יעל אבקסיס; born 19 July 1967) is an Israeli actress and model.
Biography
Yael Abecassis was born in Ashkelon, Israel, to parents of Moroccan Jewish descent. Abecassis married Israeli actor Lior Miller in 1996 an ...
and Hillel Roseman, and was edited by Tal Shefi.
Controversy
As the housing protests continued, personal criticism of Leef and her political views mounted. Opponents charged that Israeli left-wing media and political organizations were exploiting the demonstrations and economic distress of the Israeli public for political purposes, with the intention of overthrowing the right-wing Netanyahu government.
On 15 July 2011, demonstrators drove Likud Knesset member Miri Regev
Miriam "Miri" Regev ( he, מִרְיָם "מִירִי" רֶגֶב; born Miriam Siboni on 26 May 1965) is an Israeli politician and a former brigadier-general in the Israel Defense Forces, in which she served as IDF Spokeswoman. She currently s ...
out of the tent encampment. Regev responded by saying that Leef "represents the extreme left." Leef denied this, claiming her protest was first and foremost a social struggle. On 20 July 2011, Im Tirtzu
Im Tirtzu (Hebrew: אם תרצו, lit. 'If you will it') is a Zionist non-governmental organization based in Israel. Its name is derived from an epigraph appended to the frontispiece of Theodor Herzl's novel '' Altneuland'', 'if you wish it, it ...
announced it would no longer take part in the housing protests because the New Israel Fund
The New Israel Fund (NIF) is a United States-based non-profit NGO established in 1979. It describes its objective as social justice and equality for all Israelis. The New Israel Fund says it has provided $300 million to over 900 Israeli civil so ...
and anti-Zionist left-wing groups were being directly involved. Im Tirtzu said, "Daphni Leef, who is perceived in the media as the initiator of the struggle, is actually a video editor for the New Israel Fund and Shatil."
At a press conference held on 26 July 2011 Leef responded: "What hasn't been said about me in the recent days? When we came here with our tents about ten days ago, some said we are spoiled children from Tel Aviv, some said we are leftists, but after more cities from across the country and as more people from across the entire political spectrum in Israel joined the protests — all understood that we represent all the people."
In an interview with the Israeli radio network Galei Tzahal
Army Radio ( he, גלי צה"ל lit. IDF waves) or Galei Tzahal, known in Israel by its acronym Galatz ( he, גל"צ), is a nationwide Israeli radio network operated by the Israel Defense Forces. The station broadcasts news, music, traffic reports ...
on 3 August 2011, Leef referred to the "tent representation" group, which seeks to democratically replace the leadership of the housing protest: "It hurts me, things have been said about my character, I hope it would be resolved."
On 3 November 2011, Yedioth Ahronoth
''Yedioth Ahronoth'' ( he, יְדִיעוֹת אַחֲרוֹנוֹת, ; lit. ''Latest News'') is a national daily newspaper published in Tel Aviv, Israel. Founded in 1939 in British Mandatory Palestine, ''Yedioth Ahronoth'' is the largest paid n ...
reported that Leef and partner Stav Shaffir decided to officially establish a fund so that they could fundraise money to pay for the continuing efforts.
In popular culture
* In October 2011 the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra
The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (abbreviation IPO; Hebrew: התזמורת הפילהרמונית הישראלית, ''ha-Tizmoret ha-Filharmonit ha-Yisra'elit'') is an Israeli symphony orchestra based in Tel Aviv. Its principal concert venue ...
premiered Matti Kovler
Matti may refer to:
* Matti (given name), people with the given name
* Matti (surname), people with the surname
* Matti, Karnataka, a village in India
* ''Matti: Hell Is for Heroes'', a 2006 film about Matti Nykänen
See also
* Masa (disamb ...
's "Fanfare to Israel," inspired by Daphni Leef, and quoting from Eviatar Banai
Eviatar Banai (also spelled Evyatar or (incorrectly) Evitar; he, אביתר בנאי; born February 8, 1973) is an Israeli musician, singer and songwriter.
Biography
Early life
Banai was born in 1973 in Beersheba. The extended Banai family is ...
's song "Yesh Li Sikui." The performance took place at the closing Gala concert of the Israeli Music Celebration at the Henry Crown Symphony Hall, Jerusalem Theater
The Jerusalem Theatre ( he, תיאטרון ירושלים, The Jerusalem Centre for the Performing Arts) is a centre for the performing arts in Jerusalem. The theatre opened in 1971. The complex consists of the Sherover Theatre, which seats 9 ...
, with Leef's father, composer Yinam Leef in the audience.
* In 2011 the Israeli poet Apollo Braun recorded the song
A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetitio ...
"Inspired By Daphni Leef". The song appears in his spoken word
Spoken word refers to an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a late 20th century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics of ...
CD "The Obsessive Poet".
* In May 2012 the Israeli rock band The Giraffes The Giraffes can be one of the following bands:
*The Giraffes (Brooklyn band)
** The Giraffes (album), ''The Giraffes'' (album)
*The Giraffes (Seattle band)
See also
*Giraffe (disambiguation)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Giraffes, The ...
released the song "Daphni Daphni" (דפני דפני), "as a homage to the person who ignited the protests".
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leef, Daphni
1986 births
Living people
2011 Israeli social justice protests
Anti-corporate activists
Israeli activists
Israeli women activists
Israeli Ashkenazi Jews
Israeli video artists
Israeli people of Latvian-Jewish descent
Jewish women activists
Israeli documentary filmmakers
People from Jerusalem
Tel Aviv University alumni