Questions Being Asked: People and Protests
-
-
-
-
-
Civic Unrest: Who, What, and Why
INTRODUCTION: WHAT IS (A) PROTEST? WHY PROTEST?
Note to educator: These activities introduce learners to critical thinking about the phenomenon of social protest. Learners will consider what a protest is, as well as why, when, where, and how people protest.
Begin by asking learners:
- What makes something a protest?
Note to educator: Encourage learners to develop a comprehensive brainstorm list. Additional questions to ask, if needed:
- Does a protest require a specific number of people? Is there a minimum number?
- Where do protests take place?
- How long does a protest last? Does a protest need to last a specific length of time?
- Is a protest always in opposition to something or someone, or can people protest in favor of something?
- What makes a protest successful? The number of participants? Public recognition? Achieving the desired changes?
Next, move the conversation from the hypothetical to the personal.
Ask learners:
- What is something (an issue, an event, etc.) or someone that might inspire you to protest?
Note to educator: Alternatively, you can ask: What is something or someone you have protested for or against?
- What are the parameters of a protest you would be willing to join?
- In other words, how long or how frequently would you be willing to demonstrate? Where would you be willing to demonstrate? When would you be willing to demonstrate? How would you be willing to demonstrate? Would you be willing to violate laws or go against widely held public opinion in your protest?
- What is it about that “something” or “someone” that would make you want to protest in the streets? In other words, why would you protest?
- What are the parameters of a protest you would be willing to join?
WORDS MATTER: THE TERMINOLOGY OF PROTEST
Note to educator: This activity encourages learners to identify synonyms for the term “protest” and to unpack the differences between them.
OPENING ACTIVITY
Come up with a list of synonyms for protest (i.e. rally, demonstration, riot, parade, etc.), even if they are not exact.
For each term, ask learners:
- What is the difference between a protest and the synonyms listed?
- Why might these terms be used interchangeably?
- When do you think it is inaccurate or inappropriate to use these terms interchangeably?
As a wrap-up, ask:
What is unique about the term “protest”? What do you think protest means that these other terms do not capture? On the other hand, where does the term “protest” fall short for you?
POST OCTOBER 7: HOSTAGES AND CEASEFIRE
Note to educator: These activities deal with sensitive issues and content that may not be suitable for all groups. They explore the protests that emerged in the wake of the October 7th, 2023, attacks, the support for and opposition to a hostage deal, as well as a larger question: is it appropriate to protest during a war or a moment of acute national crisis?
DISCUSSION
Begin by sharing the following information:
Months after the October 7 attacks, growing numbers of Israelis began to protest in the streets. Some of the protests were led by families of hostages calling on the government to make a deal to free their loved ones; others called for new elections and for the resignation of Prime Minister Netanyahu and other political leaders; still others called for the Israeli government and military to stop sending humanitarian aid to Gaza and to prosecute the war more aggressively. Many Israelis argued that protesting against the government or the military during a time of war and national crisis was inappropriate and immoral. At the same time, others felt that immediate action needed to be taken in order to repair the deep fractures in Israeli society. As time passed, the number of people attending the protests increased dramatically. The protests, especially those in favor of a hostage deal, have come to include government officials, former hostages, politicians, and other prominent figures in Israel.
Ask learners:
- What do you think? Is it appropriate to protest during a time of war and national crisis?
- If so, do you think there should be limits? Are there certain topics, people, places, or times that protests should avoid?
- If not, how much time do you think should pass after a war or crisis starts before people begin protesting again?
- What do you think? Is it appropriate to protest during a time of war and national crisis?
Note to educator: These two questions are not intended to evoke confident, definitive answers, but rather to encourage learners to grapple with the complexity and imperfection of protest, in general and especially during times of crisis.
Background on the January 2025 Ceasefire Deal:
Throughout the war that has raged since October 7, 2023, negotiators from Israel and Hamas have struggled to secure a conditional ceasefire through the mediation of Qatar, Egypt, and the United States.
The iteration that yielded agreement in January 2025 envisions three phases during which a series of conditions must be met for the deal to proceed. During phase one, over the course of six weeks, 33 hostages (most of whom Israel believes are alive) will be released in exchange for more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees. Hundreds of truckloads of humanitarian relief are entering Gaza daily, while Israeli troops have pulled back to a buffer zone along the edge of the territory. As a result, displaced Palestinians are returning to the north to begin the process of rebuilding Gaza. The details of phases two and three are much murkier and must be approved upon the completion of phase one.
Why did the talks gain momentum when they did? There are several reasons. Israel reached a separate ceasefire agreement with the Lebanese terrorist group and Iranian proxy Hezbollah, which began firing rockets into Israel immediately after the Hamas-led attack of October 7. This deal further isolated Hamas. The death of Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas and an architect of the October 7 attacks, made compromise more plausible. Some political analysts have also suggested that the change in U.S. administrations put pressure on Israel and Hamas to accelerate their decision-making after months of delay.
After successful votes by Israel’s security cabinet and the full cabinet, the first of close to 100 hostages that remain in Gaza were safely released on January 19 in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and detainees. Scores in Israel, Gaza, and around the world are cautiously optimistic, awaiting the release of the remainder of the hostages and trying to hold onto hope that the deal will continue into its next phases.
DISCUSSION
Not everyone is celebrating the plan. Far-right Israeli protestors and some families of hostages took to the streets upon news of the deal, blocking highways to demonstrate their opposition. Prime Minister Netanyahu is dealing with hard-line members of his government who ardently oppose the deal and have threatened to cripple his coalition for passing the deal. With this threat in mind, many have accused Netanyahu of sabotaging previous ceasefire efforts to preserve his coalition and remain in power. Plenty question the morality of the decision to release those guilty of violent crimes, including murder, even if it means the return of the hostages.
Other voices critical of Israel’s conduct in Gaza are lamenting how many Palestinian civilian lives were ruined or ended before a ceasefire deal was reached. Many Gazans have expressed mixed feelings: outrage at the injustices they have endured, eagerness to return home, worry as to what they will find, distrust that the deal will hold, and sorrow for what has been lost. Israelis too are internally divided; many have maligned the 15 months of war that have cost them the lives of their loved ones in service and/or as hostages taken on October 7.
Begin by sharing these images and videos with learners:
"Yes to Victory, No to Surrender"
Activists representing families of Israelis killed in the war in Gaza blocked a road in protest against the ceasefire deal in Jerusalem. The banner reads: “Yes to victory, no to surrender!” For more, watch here (0:00-1:19).
Image Source: American Family News
"Hostage Deal Now"
Relatives of Israeli hostages held in Gaza have urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to secure an urgent deal for their release. For more, watch here (2:27-3:27).
"Only Pressure on Hamas Will Return the Hostages"
Members of the Tikva Forum, a right-wing group of relatives of hostages held in Gaza, protest the deal for alleviating military pressure on Hamas without securing the release of all of the hostages at once. Tzvika Mor, whose son Eitan was taken hostage on October 7, is a member who shares his story on the Israel Story podcast here.
Image Source: The Times of Israel
"Yes to Peace; Yes to Ceasfire"
A rally organized by Standing Together, a progressive grassroots movement organizing Jewish and Palestinian citizens of Israel. Their signs read: “Yes to peace” and “Yes to ceasefire.” For more, watch here.
"We Must Return to War and Destroy Hamas"
The leader of the far-right Jewish Power party, Itamar Ben-Gvir (center), resigned from his position as national security minister, thus imperiling Netanyahu’s coalition, after Israel approved the first phase of the ceasefire with Hamas. For more, watch here (1:19-1:49).
For each image, ask:
- Why are these people protesting? What are they protesting? What are their goals?
- What values and/or strategic goals are being prioritized? How are they in tension?
- How does each group interpret the ceasefire in terms of the war?
- Consider: is the ceasefire a victory, a surrender, a pause, etc.?
Note to educator: For example, Ben-Gvir claims to be prioritizing security (military pressure on Hamas and not releasing dangerous prisoners), while most families of hostages are prioritizing the lives of their loved ones. Ben-Gvir would interpret the ceasefire as a surrender.
“THE WHAT”: VALUES, MESSAGING, AND SYMBOLS OF PROTEST
Note to educator: A similar version of this activity can be found in Questions Being Asked: The Supreme Court. In this activity, learners explore how to identify what motivates protesters and how they conceive of their cause, while also examining how protesters on opposite sides of an issue often share strategies and values.
DISCUSSION
Present learners with the following brief description of the Israeli government’s 2023 efforts to overhaul the judicial system and the protest movement that emerged to oppose those efforts:
In 2023, Israel’s government proposed a set of reforms to the judicial system. These reforms sought to curb the power of the Supreme Court by, for example, legislating that the Knesset could override Supreme Court decisions and control the selection process for Supreme Court justices. In the end, only one of the reforms (arguably, the least significant one) was passed and a few months later the Supreme Court struck it down as unconstitutional. Throughout the year (before October 7), opponents of the reforms launched weekly protests attracting hundreds of thousands of Israelis; a pro-reform movement, albeit less active than that of the anti-reformers, also emerged and organized protests.
Encourage learners to examine the images below. The first images are from protests against the judicial reforms.
Ask learners:
- What do you think the Supreme Court symbolizes to these groups?
- What do you think these Israelis see as the role of the Supreme Court?
- What is the relationship between the Supreme Court and Israeli democracy, according to these protesters?
Note to educator: Two overlapping points (among any others that might be raised) to highlight are the importance of maintaining a strong Supreme Court in preserving Israeli democracy and the perceived role of the Supreme Court as a guarantor of minority rights.
Next, show learners these images of pro-reform activists. Ask:
- What do you think the Supreme Court symbolizes to these groups?
- What do you think these Israelis see as the role of the Supreme Court?
- What is the relationship between the Supreme Court and Israeli democracy, according to these protesters?
Note to educator: The idea of these questions is to help learners “read” a protest. The Supreme Court is only a case study—the goal is for learners to unpack what the protesters are saying, more than it is to accurately describe the judicial reform debate. With that being said, some important points to highlight include the need to reform the Supreme Court in order to strengthen Israeli democracy, the notion that the reforms are justified given that a democratically elected government proposed them, and the infringement of the Supreme Court on religious rights.
Conclude by asking:
- Do you see any overlapping symbols, language, messages, or values shared by pro-reform and anti-reform activists?
Note to educator: The very use of protest as a form of civic activism is a shared feature, even though the movements are diametrically opposed in their ideas. For more resources related to the 2023 protests, see here.
MEANS OF PROTEST
Note to educator: Using case studies, this activity encourages learners to consider multiple manifestations of protest in Israel. Learners will discuss what they think is legitimate and illegitimate, as well as what means they think are effective and ineffective.
SMALL-GROUP DISCUSSION
In this activity, we will compare and contrast various protests in Israeli history. Rather than focusing on the content of the protest—the “what,” as we did in the previous activity—we will shift our attention to the who, where, when, and how. We will try to identify differences between protests—in terms of numbers, location, protest style, etc.—as well as similarities.
Split learners into smaller groups and share this document with them. Ask each group to review the case studies and answer the following questions about each one:
- How many people attended the protest?
- Where was the protest held?
- When was the protest?
- How did people protest? What form did the protest take?
Next, while remaining in small groups, ask learners:
- Which protest do you think was the most successful?
Note to educator: Encourage learners to (re-)consider what success means when protesting. Is it about big numbers, a central geographic location, effective timing, the protest’s methodology?
- Which protests do you think used legitimate means? Why?
- Which protests do you think used illegitimate means? Why?
Note to educator: Encourage learners to think critically about what they think makes a protest legitimate and why.
Return to the larger group and discuss.
אולי יעניין אתכם גם
You Might Also Like
TAGS