“Racism and discrimination threaten not only those who are hurt by them, but rather society as a whole. It is not an issue of left and right, of coalition and opposition. In the war against racism and discrimination, all of us are a coalition – broad, united and strong.”

President Reuven (Ruvi) Rivlin today, Sunday 2 February / 7 Shevat, participated in a signing ceremony of a charter to eliminate racism in Israeli society with the Israelis Against Racism NGO.

The president began his remarks saying “We are all here together today because we understand one simple truth: racism and discrimination are not the problem of Ethiopian-Israelis or of any other group in Israeli society – it is our problem, all of us. Racism and discrimination threaten not only those who are hurt by them, but rather society as a whole. It is not an issue of left and right, of coalition and opposition. In the war against racism and discrimination, all of us are a coalition – broad, united and strong.”

The president spoke about the establishment of the unit dealing with complaints of racism and discrimination by the state that followed the Palmor Report, which is an important move and an example of how to fight institutional racism: “Firstly, recognition and then taking responsibility and taking practical steps to improve the situation, not only with regards to those affected, but also across society as a whole. We have not yet completed the job of tackling institutional racism but the trend is in the right direction and we should applaud that. At the same time, we must not put the responsibility for fighting racism and discrimination on official bodies alone, on ‘the state’. We must ensure that the crucial process that is still at its beginning and that has been started in official bodies, meets a parallel, wide-ranging and comprehensive movement in civil society.”

The president also noted, “the launching of the charter here today expresses that we all have a personal commitment to fighting this plague. Only by working on our perceptions and the way we talk, which form the constructs within which our children grow up, can we lead real change that will last for generations. Only by eliminating from our daily routines can we ensure the resilience of our society. Nothing less will do.”

The president signed the charter and thanked all those involved for promoting it, saying “Your success is our success and the burden of proof is on us, on every single one of us.”

Signatories to the charter:

Director-General of Beit HaNasi Harel Tubi

Deputy Commissioner of the Israel Police Maj Gen Alon Asor

Mayor of Jerusalem Moshe Lion

Mayor of Rishon Letzion Raz Kinstlich

Mayor of Hadera Zvika Gendelman

Mayor of Herzliya Moshe Feldman

Deputy Mayor of Tel Aviv-Yafo Tzipi Brand

Acting Mayor of Ashdod Gavriel Knafo

Deputy Mayor of Netanya Shiri Haguel Sidon

CEO of the Israel Electric Corporation and Chair of the Israel Marketing Association Ofer Bloch

Chairman of Bank Discount Shaul Kobrinsky

Owner of Beitar Jerusalem and on behalf of the Football League Administration Moshe Hogeg

CEO of the Israel Football Association Rotem Kamer

Chairman of the Israel Basketball Association Amiram Halevy

Chair of the Israel Basketball Super League Shmulik Frenkel

President of Levinsky College Prof Michal Beller

Chair of the National Union of Israeli Students Shlomi Yehiav

Secretary-General of the Israel Council of Youth Movements Naftali Deri

Chair of the National Student and Youth Council Nimrod Peperani

Chair of the New Histadrut-General Federation of Labor in Israel Arnon Bar David

Director General of the Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer Professor Yitshak Kreiss

Chair of the Israeli Association of Community Centers Avi Wortzman

Director-General of the National Labor Federation Yair Shalem

Chairman of the Israeli Association Against Racism Maj Gen (res) Eliezer Shkedi