In Israel, the office of president is largely symbolic, a fact that Shimon Peres was wont to forget. President Reuven (Ruby) Rivlin, on the other hand, seems to have a good grasp on what is and isn’t possible to achieve as president of Israel. So far, he’s staying out of politics and using his office for good works, such as with this video he created with 11 year-old George Amira of Jaffa.
George became a victim of a bullying campaign over his manner of dress and appearance. Instead of responding in kind, the boy posted a video to Facebook holding up signs with all of the names he’d been called on a daily basis: homo, girl, cheerleader, and the like.
The video went VIRAL and the buzz reached Rivlin’s ears, which in itself tells us something about the new Israeli president: he’s got his finger on the pulse of social media (or else he’s got a damned good social media director).
Rivlin reached out to George and asked to create a new video together. In the film, George and Pres. Rivlin take turns holding up signs which translate as follows:
Do not judge me / Who I am
Look at me / Then at yourself
We are just / The same
Violence / Hostility
Bullying / Racism
These are just some of the bad things / People encounter
Every day / Here in Israel
These are just some of the bad things / The should not be in our country
Let us promise ourselves / That this year we will practice
Tolerance / Empathy
Unity / Equality
Values ??we /Must adopt in the State of Israel.
The President then posted the collaborative video to his Facebook page with the following comment:
When I saw the amazing and moving video George Amira posted I asked to meet with him and thank him for this amazing initiative. We must not stay silent in face of violence, regardless of its form. This is not just a problem for the education system, but for society as a whole–we must stop it.
As a mother of children, I am so grateful to President Rivlin for adding his voice to the cry against bullying in the schools and streets of Israel. We suffer enough violence from our enemies. We have no need of more of the same from within, even when it takes the milder form of mere words. Despite the old sticks and stones verse of my childhood, it is all too clear that names can indeed HURT.
President Rivlin thus begins his term championing the disenfranchised: kids who get picked on. It’s a breath of fresh air to see this kind of presidential style. It’s also a wonderful way to start the year for Israel and Israelis!
