KIBBUTZ MERAV'S "ALIZA BRIGADE": FLAGS IN THE WIND
by Hanan Singer
It's not Independence Day. It's not Memorial Day. It's not even Flag Day. But Israelis all over the country are flying the nation's flag again, just the same.
An initiative that began on a small scale has spread like wildfire. Just a short while ago, a group of young people from Kibbutz Merav in the north of Israel got together to try to think what they could do to help raise the morale of the country. The group, which calls itself "the Aliza Brigade," after their late friend Aliza Malka, a 16-year-old who was killed in a terrorist attack near the kibbutz last August, met with Rabbi Eitan Zucker, the spiritual leader of Merav, to discuss how they could contribute. Together, they came up with a simple, yet powerful idea-they would distribute Israeli flags.
The initiative started small, on the kibbutz itself. Together with the small flags, which attach to the outside of a car window, the high-schoolers distributed a letter (see box) calling on all Israelis to proudly wave the flag again.
"The letter really hit home," says a Merav member. "For so many months, we have felt as if things in the country have been on a downward spiral. But the simple idea of flying the flag symbolizes a lot to us in Israel. It makes us remember how proud we are to be Israelis, and how proud we are of the Jewish State. Does flying the flag wipe away the difficulties we are currently experiencing, or even the political differences between us? Of course not. But it does make us realize that we all have much in common, and that if we are united, we can stand fast and outlast even this current crisis."
As people near Merav began to see more and more cars flying the flag, interest in the campaign grew. Youth groups from the region joined hands with the youth of Merav and distributed flags at street corners and road junctions. People beyond the Beit Shean area surrounding the kibbutz started noticing the flags, and began flying the blue-and-white as well. The burgeoning campaign caught the eyes of the government as well, and even the Prime Minister himself, Ariel Sharon, phoned to find out more about Rabbi Zucker and the "children of the flags."
The project is snowballing, and Zucker hopes to see 500,000 flags distributed within the next month. That would place flags on the windows of nearly half of the cars in Israel. In order to achieve this goal, he has been in contact with school principals from around the country, and now hundreds of teenagers, from all over the country, are hitting the streets to sell a little national pride.
Today, more and more cars, businesses and even hotels all around Israel are unfurling their national flags, and flying them for all to see. As the flags snap and roll in the country's March winds, the association is clear.
"We have not yet lost our hope," says the verse from HaTikvah, Israel's national anthem. And so despite all the terrorism, the diplomatic impasse, and the seemingly lightless tunnel all around, Israelis of all denominations are waving the flag again, hoping, and praying, and believing in better times ahead.
An Open Letter to the People of Israel
Difficult, painful events have enveloped our country in these recent weeks and months. Each of us must confront many complex questions.
We are a group of young people who believe that, beyond any political arguments and any questions we may have, the nation of Israel must
Wave the flag!
The flag represents the laws of the State of Israel
The flag represents the ingathering of the exiles
The flag represents development
The flag represents the unity of the nation
The flag represents the longing for peace
The flag represents national pride
Let us all wave the flag we have inside us
"May God grant strength to his people, and bless them with peace."
Please wave the flag, and attach this flag to the window of your car.
Nisan 5762 - April 2002