From the moment the war broke out, there has been talk of the leftist "concept" that collapsed. about the concept of "land for peace" that yielded nothing, about the "Oslo disaster" and, as a result, about having to live by the sword; A somewhat oxymoronic statement, since a life of war is fraught with many deaths.
Therefore, it is important to note, especially in light of the imagined discourse of unity, whose imaginary discourse became even clearer to us about the opposition of Otzma Yehudit members to the deals to release the hostages, that the left is still here, and that the war has not made it disappear, despite the consensus on its necessity.
Thinking about the disappearance of the left is wrong because of a (Israeli) misunderstanding of the essence of the left, its role and the perceptions (as opposed to conceptions, we leftists love Hebrew) that it holds. The left espouses liberal and pluralistic values. No leftist will vote for a party whose leaders initiated the "cattle parade" against the LGBT community, and will not support parties that do not allow women to vote. No leftist will give power to those who believe that the rabbinical courts should replace the family courts. That won't happen.
For years, parts of the left have been engaged in discourse on political solutions to conflicts with our neighbors. They found a pretty good dialogue with right-wingers, and not for nothing – the peace treaty with Egypt was signed by Begin, the Madrid talks were held during Shamir's tenure, and even the Abraham Accords were signed by Netanyahu. In other words, it was not only the left that "sinned" in thinking that a life of war was not the only option available to us, and strove for a more peaceful life.
Since Netanyahu's rule, the word leftist has become a derogatory word, denoting unpatriotism, detachment, affiliation with the elite, and of course a synonym for lovers of Arabs. The negative tagging worked. Most Israelis do not define themselves as leftists, just as the negative labeling of feminism in the Middle East has been successful, and most Israeli women do not define themselves as feminists. Still, who would give up her right to vote? About her right of inheritance? On her right to make decisions about her body?
The core of the left believes in freedom of expression, is not afraid of demonstrations (even against the current war, which is extremely justified), and certainly does not try to harness academia for nationalistic purposes, but rather keeps it critical and fearless of the regime
However, the core of the left is not afraid of labels. Values are more precious to him than "what will they say." The core of the left does not see the Arabs living in Israel as enemies and does not think that because of the atrocities of Hamas we must set the country on fire from within. The core of the left is disgusted by the Nation-State Law, which has no place in a democratic state, like most of the regime coup initiatives that the government engaged in when Hamas planned to destroy us.
The core of the left does not think that the pinnacle of the LGBT community's achievements is the enactment of the names of two mothers on a memorial, but rather the regulation of the lives of LGBT people who remain alive, those who want to get married, have children - those children who in Israel are not considered Jewish. The core of the left believes in freedom of expression, is not afraid of demonstrations (even against the current war, which is extremely justified), and certainly does not try to harness academia for nationalistic purposes, but rather keeps it critical and fearless of the regime.
It's easy to portray the left as a wayward kid who got the slap in the face, but it's a shallow show that has nothing to do with reality. Just like turning Gaza into a parking lot.
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