civil society
Civil society can be understood as the "third sector" of society, distinct from government and business, and including the family and the private sphere.Arab citizens in Israel. In
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
, "mossawa" means "equality". The organization works to promote the social, economic, cultural, and political rights of the Arab minority living in
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
.
Social and Economic Justice
Arab citizens have been left behind in the development of the Israeli state. Mossawa monitors the State Budget and prepares reports demonstrating the
discrimination
Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, relig ...
against Arabs implicit in the distribution of services.
The Mossawa Center lobbies the
Knesset
The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...
to increase budget allocations to the Arab community in Israel. In 2016, Mossawa director Jafar Farah met with members of the Knesset and held a conference with the Knesset Finance Committee to increase budgets for education, welfare, public transportation, and health services in the Arab community.
The Mossawa Center partners with and advocates for the needs of Arab localities in Israel. At the organization’s annual Conference on the Legal Status of Arab Citizens of Israel in 2016, the Mossawa Center recognized
Al-Araqeeb
Al-Araqeeb ( he, אל-עראקיב) is an unrecognized village of the Al-Turi Arab Bedouin tribe, five miles (8 km) north of Beersheba demolished and rebuilt over 197 times. Gideon Levy and Alex Leva'Drafting the blueprint for Palestinian ...
Martin Luther King III
Martin Luther King III (born October 23, 1957) is an American human rights activist, philanthropist and advocate. The oldest son and oldest living child of civil rights leaders Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, King served as the 4t ...
. Mossawa also honored Jabir Asaqla, Head of Graduate Programs at the Mandel Center for Leadership in the North, and
Nabila Espanioly
Nabila Espanioly is a Palestinian-Israeli psychologist, social worker, feminist, and peace activist. She is the founder and director of the Al-Tufula Center in Nazareth.
Early life and education
Espanioly grew up in a communist family in Naza ...
, founder of
Al-Tufula Pedagogical Center
The Al-Tufula Center (also the Al-Tufula Pedagogical Center or Al-Tufula Pedagogical & Multipurpose Women's Center) is a women's center in Nazareth which focuses on early childhood education and women's rights. It was established in 1989, and i ...
.
In September 2015, Mossawa helped to organize a student strike in advance of the start of the school year over government discrimination in terms of providing budgets to meet the needs of Arab citizens of Israel. Jafar Farah reportedly explained, “We want the government to take responsibility for the future of Arab citizens of Israel because we pay taxes like everyone else.”
Legal Advocacy
Mossawa takes on legal cases supporting the Arab minority as in the case of the unrecognized neighborhood, Wadi Suya'h, in Haifa. Mossawa joined other organizations in those arrested for demonstrating against the Prawer-Begin Plan in representing the Arab town of
Sakhneen
Sakhnin ( ar, سخنين; he, סַחְ'נִין or ''Sikhnin'') is an Arab city in Israel's Northern District. It is located in the Lower Galilee, about east of Acre. Sakhnin was declared a city in 1995. In its population was , mostly Musl ...
on July 15, 2013.
Advocacy in the Knesset
The Mossawa Center frequently advocates in the Knesset for greater budget allocations to the Arab community in Israel. Mossawa has been critical of Government Resolution 922, which was intended to close gaps between the Arab and Jewish sectors in Israel. The Mossawa Center argued that Government Resolution 922 was insufficient to close gaps in education, welfare, health, and other issues.
In 2016, the Mossawa Center argued that the so-called “NGO law” was detrimental to Arab organizations’ advocacy efforts in Israel and would disproportionately affect organizations sympathetic to Palestinians.
Mossawa denounced legislation in 2010, which would require that immigrants recognize Israel as a Jewish state, noting that this legislation would disproportionately affect Arabs and would threaten Israel’s democratic character.
Youth
Mossawa also works closely with youth. The Mossawa Center has hosted camps for international youth come to visit andvolunteer in local communities, and learn about Palestinian culture, customs, and heritage.