Article: Arab Citizens Call on Israel to Shed Jewish Identity

This article in the New York Times discusses the tensions between Israel as a Jewish state and its relationship with its 1.3 million Arab citizens. This is especially relevant to the upcoming lecture by Dr. Jamal Zahalqa, a Palestinian member of the Israeli Knesset at Concordia University. (See post below for more information.)

New York Times

Noted Arab Citizens Call on Israel to Shed Jewish Identity

By ISABEL KERSHNER

JERUSALEM, Feb. 7 — A group of prominent Israeli Arabs has called on Israel to stop defining itself as a Jewish state and become a “consensual democracy for both Arabs and Jews,” prompting consternation and debate across the country.

Their contention is part of “The Future Vision of the Palestinian Arabs in Israel,” a report published in December under the auspices of the Committee of Arab Mayors in Israel, which represents the country’s 1.3 million Arab citizens, about a fifth of the population. Some 40 well-known academics and activists took part.

They call on the state to recognize Israeli Arab citizens as an indigenous group with collective rights, saying Israel inherently discriminates against non-Jewish citizens in its symbols of state, some core laws, and budget and land allocations.