As Israel clamped down in protest on Sunday for the immediate release of all 50 hostages Hamas continues to hold in tunnels in Gaza, an unfortunate trend raised its head once again regarding the dialogue surrounding the issue: Delegitimization and undignified conduct.
The questioning of the method of protest – blocking highways and streets in the ultimate act of public disruption – is a debate that is older than Sunday, and travels across Israel’s long and storied protest history. Many disagree with the tactic of disturbance.
But there is still dignity, there is still a way to hold dialogue about such a sensitive issue and on such a heartbreaking cause.
How to hold dialogue about the hostage protests with dignity
There is no question that an entire nation wants its children to come home, only the method. But what cannot happen is turning one another into the enemy, is allowing disagreements – deep and essential ones – to delegitimize us in one another’s eyes. That is precisely where the line lies.
Zvika Mor, the father of hostage Eitan Mor, said on Sunday morning, in a plea to his fellow hostage families, “My brothers and sisters, I make this plea from the bottom of my heart. You called to shut down the country... You did not miss the opportunity to ensure that the public is repulsed by us, the hostage families.”
He called for the strike to be canceled. “It cannot be that reservist soldiers who are on their way down to the Gaza Strip – to fight Hamas and bring our hostages home – can’t get to their bases because highways are blocked. This cannot be.”
Mor is a member of the Tikva Forum, a smaller representation of hostage families compared to the larger Hostages and Missing Families Forum. These two represent the true standard to which public dialogue is supposed to be; they disagree, but they respect and hold space for one another.
The act of protesting is one of the most sacred and vital tools in the hands of citizens in a democratic state to express their sentiments, wishes, and opinions. It cannot be stifled or curtailed, especially in an era where many feel and fear that democratic institutions in Israel are under attack.
But it is important to draw a distinction between the cause – freeing all of the hostages and bringing the security situation to a state of calm – and the method. Not everybody agrees with the method, and there is validity to both sides.
The heartfelt nature of a nationwide shutdown cannot be stated enough, especially after nearly two years of war. People dropped everything and followed their hearts and their consciousnesses out to the streets to join in pain and demand action. This has merit, and woe to Israel the day that citizens don’t care for their brethren.
Dialogue, though – healthy, respectful dialogue – cannot get lost in the shuffle.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir (Otzma Yehudit) – an elected official sworn to do right by all citizens – wrote on Sunday morning before the protests began to pick up, “The protest that failed today, from breeding grounds of Kaplan [left-wing anti-government protest bloc] is a direct continuation of the strikes and draft-dodging encouragement from before October 7.
“These are the same people who weakened Israel, and are trying to do so again today. This strike strengthens Hamas and pushes away the return of the hostages.”
This is precisely the kind of dialogue that is vile and has no place in public discourse. It delegitimizes the cause by attaching it to an unrelated one, and is tone-deaf to what thousands of people feel, and what 50 hostage families are fighting day and night for.
“Of course, they will then blame the government; this is what an ugly political spin on the backs of hostages looks like,” added Ben-Gvir.
There absolutely is validity to hurl blame at the government – this happened under its watch. This example shows what not to do, how not to speak, and what direction of dialogue not to take.
Even in all of this darkness, there is still the value of human dignity and holding space for those we disagree with; that is not a negotiable value to lose. Hamas wants us to fight with one another; let’s try to do the opposite.