Standing Together (movement)

Standing Together (Hebrew: עומדים ביחד, Omdim Beyachad; نقف معًا, Naqif Ma'an) is an Israeli grassroots movement that aims to bring together Arab-Israeli and Jewish-Israeli communities. It is the largest Arab-Jewish grassroots movement in the country. Standing Together first became active in 2015, and has about 5,300 members as of April 2024. The movement opposes neoliberalism and the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land. It aims to further LGBT rights, women’s rights, workers' rights (including disability benefits) and full equality for Palestinian citizens of Israel. Since October 2023, the movement has played a leading role in the anti-war and pro-ceasefire protests within the Israeli society.

They are known for their purple paraphernalia and branding. Standing Together has received funding from the New Israel Fund.

Alon-Lee Green and Rula Daood are the National Co-Directors of the movement.

Organization
Standing Together founders have cited Podemos, Momentum, Syriza, and the Democratic Socialists of America as inspirations, but have stated they do not want the movement to become a political party. The movement's focus on both economic and social justice has been called a strength.

The movement has nine chapters, called 'circles', across Israel: in the Sharon, the Triangle, and in the Negev, in the major cities of Haifa, Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem, and in the college campuses of Tel Aviv University, Ben-Gurion University, the University of Haifa, and in the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

The movement tries to make sure Arab and Jewish-Israelis are treated equally. The leadership has roughly equal representation of each group, and the movement publishes all their materials in both Hebrew and Arabic. However, as of 2018 the movement had more Jewish-Israeli members than Arab-Israelis.

Alon-Lee Green and Rula Daood are the National Co-Directors of the movement, Uri Weltmann is the movement's national field organizer, Sally Abed is the head of the resource development department. They are all elected leaders with the movement's leadership.

History
Standing Together was founded in late 2015, primarily by individuals who had also been active in Israel's 2011 social justice protests. Many of the founders were members of the political party Hadash.

They have protested political arrests, evictions in East Jerusalem (including Sheikh Jarrah), the Gaza border protests, during which the IDF killed 17 civilians, and the planned demolition of Bedouin villages in the Negev.

In the summer of 2017, Standing Together protesters blocked several major highways to protest disability benefits being less than minimum wage. They also subsequently helped raise money for protesters who had been fined.

On December 11, 2017, Standing Together held its first National Assembly, during which they voted on the movement's leaderships and on suggested proposals.

In 2018, Standing Together worked to spread awareness of, and protest against, Israel’s deportation of African (specifically Eritrean and Sudanese) asylum seekers. The movement was able to organize a 20,000 person strong protest in South Tel Aviv against the planned deportations. In May 2018, they protested the IDF response to Palestinian protests at the Gazan border, which had resulted in the deaths of more than 60 protesters. That month, they also organized protests against the move of the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem.

By 2018, the movement had about 2,000 registered members, and between 20,000 and 30,000 people participated in Standing Together events that year.

In 2019, a small group of activists from Standing Together protested a policy of Barzilai Medical Center that required Arab bus passengers to be questioned before they could enter the hospital. Although the policy exempted Arab-Israeli citizens, anecdotal reports had reported Arab-Israeli citizens had also been singled out over the policy.

In September 2020, the group organized a protest against the Israeli government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic - which the group deemed ineffective - in Tel Aviv. The group filled Rabin Square with 1,019 empty chairs, each representing an Israeli death from COVID-19.

In January 2023 Standing Together organized a 20,000-30,000 person strong protest in Tel Aviv against the new government; later that year, they participated in the 2023 Israeli judicial reform protests against the 2023 Israeli judicial reform enacted by prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

in August 2023, a radio show hosted by the movement's national co-director, Alon-Lee Green, was censured after a right-wing pressure campaign. A week later, the show was leaked and published online.

In late September 2023, the movement held a protest at Dizengoff Square in Tel Aviv to bring attention to the Arabs killed under the policies of security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

Work during the Israel-Hamas war
Following the onset of the Israel-Hamas war, Standing Together collected aid for communities affected by the attacks on October 7. They organized the Solidarity Convention, which spearheaded anti-war and pro-ceasefire rallies in Israel. They also created a hotline for Arab-Israelis, particularly university students, who were affected by anti-Palestinian sentiments. Standing Together leadership also traveled to the United States to speak to synagogues and other organizations about their work.

In January 2024, the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel criticized the movement, saying it was a "normalization outfit that seeks to distract from and whitewash Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza". This characterization received counter-criticism online from academics and activists, including Gazan blogger Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib. Arab Israeli members of Standing Together later released a statement in which they denounced PACBI's suggestion that the group be boycotted, saying such calls "serve the interests of Israel’s political establishment, which is also attempting to silence us".

In March 2024, some activists from the group organized a 30-car convoy in an attempt to deliver humanitarian aid to the Kerem Shalom border crossing into the Gaza Strip. Police forced the convoy to turn around about three kilometers from the crossing.

In May 2024, the group announced they would be forming a group to protect humanitarian aid trucks bound for the Gaza Strip from attacks by "far-right [Israeli] activists and settlers" while they were moving from Jordan through the West Bank. According to Standing Together leadership, the presence of the Standing Together activists allowed all the aid trucks "to pass without the settlers stopping or attacking them".

In June 2024, the movement's Humanitarian Guard was active in protecting the Palestinian residents of the Muslim quarter in the old city of Jerusalem who were attacked by Israeli settlers during the annual Flag March.