The Jerusalem Post, November 20, 2009 Halo-halo, the Filipino dessert of American-style shaved ice, Spanish dulce de leche, and Asian mung beans is an edible example of the Philippines’ unique layering of cultures. On the weekends, you’ll find halo-halo at impromptu stands in Tel Aviv’s Tachana Merkazit—and if you take a stroll through the surrounding …
The Jerusalem Post, November 6, 2009 The pulse of drums pounded through Levinsky Park Saturday evening, kicking off the opening of The Garden Library for Migrant Communities in Tel Aviv. The project was initiated by Arteam, an Israeli nonprofit organization, in an attempt to address the intellectual and cultural needs of the many foreign workers …
The Jerusalem Post, October 30, 2009 A Star-of-David-wearing Batman chased a Hebrew-speaking Spiderman. The pair wove their way through a crowd of dancing ghouls, singing witches, and smiling princesses—including a blonde Snow White. Orange balloons bobbed overhead and children toted pumpkin-shaped plastic buckets full of candy, reminding the partygoer that it wasn’t Purim, it was …
Mondoweiss, October 24, 2009 South Tel Aviv, home to foreign workers and African refugees, is in turmoil again after Interior Minister Eli Yishai recently indicated that children of illegal residents will be deported by the end of the school year. They won’t be going alone—their parents will be deported, too—but that’s beside the point. Many …
Israel is at war again Zeek at Jewcy.com, July 20, 2009 Israel is at war again. This time, the frontline is deep within the country’s borders—South Tel Aviv. Home to African refugees, foreign workers, and economically disadvantaged Israelis, South Tel Aviv was once a picture of pluralism and coexistence. Indian, Nepali, Chinese, and Filipino workers …
Clothes like days The Jerusalem Post, July 17, 2009 “It’s a kind of a dance,” says Michal Bassad. The designer is perched on a table next to her sewing machine. Her studio, which also serves as her store, has only a few racks of clothing, reflective of her artistic approach to fashion. Though the space …
Fokara’s law The Jerusalem Post, March 27, 2009 Pinto Baptist, an Indian worker currently living in Tel Aviv, was desperate for help in December of 2008. In India, he’d borrowed $9,000 from friends and family to pay the agency fees it cost to come to Israel to work. But when he arrived here, in July …
Stranded Mid-Aviv Outlook India, March 16-23, 2009 print edition Lily Devi paid 8000 dollars to make the journey from India to Egypt so that she could pass into Israel illegally via the southern border. The Indian man she paid had promised that work would await her on the other side. Instead, he abandoned her in …
Gambling on Israel The Jerusalem Post, July 4, 2008 Colorful Bollywood movie posters and richly-hued spices in red-lidded jars crowd the small storefront of Om Indian Store – The Taste of India, located on Lewinsky Street at Tel Aviv’s Central Bus Station. It’s a warm Shabbat in early summer and the glass door is propped …
Meeting God in the middle The Jerusalem Post, June 6, 2008 Say the words “secular yeshiva” to most Israelis and they’ll scratch their heads. A secular yeshiva? What does that mean? The words shouldn’t appear so close to each other in a sentence. Maybe they shouldn’t be in the same sentence at all. And yet, …