Affirmative action, before it's too late

There was a major missed opportunity in the short-sighted approach of Israeli governments which, for 25 years, have not addressed the anger of the Ethiopian community. Was there really a need for a video depicting police officers cruelly and incomprehensibly beating an Ethiopian soldier to spark the masses into action in the city squares? Did anyone really doubt that police were using this kind of force?

The Ethiopian community has traditionally behaved respectfully, with the occasional acts of legitimate violence during crisis situations. Its introduction to Israeli society led to two contradictory trends among Ethiopian-Israelis: On the one hand are Ethiopians with impressive accomplishments in the IDF, in education and in science; and on the other hand is the despair and frustration of the many who have been left behind, apparently because they did not adapt to their new situation, and especially because they have suffered from racial discrimination.

The Ethiopian community's claims receive widespread support, and not only from those who seek political capital following the distress. Still, over the last few days, mistakes have been made in the distance kept by the national leadership from the angry protestors. If President Reuven Rivlin, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Zionist Union leader Isaac Herzog had all stood together, or even individually, in the city squares, it would have been possible to send the message that a national step toward reconciliation is being taken. This did not happen. Maybe next time.

Unfortunately, there is no official, accepted and influential leadership of the Ethiopian community. At the end of the day, the police needed a soldier who was beaten up to speak out against police brutality. It's pathetic, really.

The reality is so difficult and bleak that there is a real need to provide affirmative action for those of Ethiopian descent. They are patriotic, they want to integrate into Israeli life and to remove themselves from any kind of economic or cultural ghetto.

But those who watched the second Ethiopian protest on Sunday; those who were stuck in their cars for two or three hours because the Ayalon highway was shut down; and those who understand that the police behaved appropriately and had no other choice but to use force, know that without Ethiopian leadership and direction the whole community will, God forbid, end up in a bad place. It won't be long before they find that widespread public support has given way to impatience. And if things reach that point, the sad victory of the racists will be complete.

The difficult images that emerged on Sunday must not discourage us. We must band together to support Ethiopian Jewry, so that there will be no more riots like these. As if there never were riots like these.

טעינו? נתקן! אם מצאתם טעות בכתבה, נשמח שתשתפו אותנו