💱 History of two economies: BloombergGwen Ackerman sheds light on Israel’s Economy Minister Orna Barbivay, who turned to politics in 2019 after a career in the military, where she became the first woman to hold the rank of Major General. “Born in the mixed Arab-Jewish town of Ramla to an Iraqi mother and Romanian father, Barbivay grew up poor in Afula, a northern city that was once home to three large transit camps for newcomers. It has since seen waves of immigrants from Ethiopia and former Soviet republics. As Economics Minister, she calls it an “existential necessity” to better prepare the less affluent sections of the population – including Arab women and Orthodox Jewish men – for the labor market and to bring jobs and investments to where they live. “Looking at the two economies, I see the business minister’s job as boosting productivity and starting the engine of growth,” she said. “We have to set goals. We need to get to the periphery.’” [Bloomberg]
🗳️ Ra’am Descriptions: In which financial times, James Shotter takes to the streets of Nazareth to meet residents on how the Arab Ra’am Party’s landmark decision to join the current Israeli coalition could impact the upcoming elections. “Ra’am’s decision to break ranks deeply divided Palestinian opinion – both in Israel and in the Palestinian territories it conquered in 1967, with critics arguing that the move helped legitimize the Israeli occupation. “We have Jewish Zionists and Christian Zionists, and now we also have Muslim Zionists,” a Palestinian official said. However, [Ra’am leader Mansour] Abbas’ supporters argue that with the remote prospect of a political solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the institutionalized discrimination faced by Palestinian citizens in Israel, it was worth joining the government as an opportunity to advance a policy that would improve their daily life . “The Zionists want us to be invisible all the time. The question is how do we change this situation so that it becomes visible to the public,” said Rassem Khamaisi, urban planner and professor at Haifa University. ‘Now [following Ra’am’s decision to enter government] We are in the Israeli salon in Tel Aviv. Nobody can ignore us.’” [FT]
👭 20th Century Heroines: In which New York Post, Isabel Vincent highlights sisters Ida and Louise Cook, honored by Israel as Righteous Among the Nations for saving some 29 families from the Nazis, the subject of Vincent’s book Overture of Hope: Two Sisters’ Daring Plan that Saved Opera’s Jewish Stars from the Third Reich. “‘We’ve built a good reputation,’ Louise Cook told two US reporters after the war. “The customs men used to giggle, ‘Here come these two crazy (crazy) English ladies. They are just poor office workers and spend their money to come here to hear German operas.” When they returned to London after a weekend of opera in Munich, Vienna or Berlin, they did so laden with the glittering jewels, Swiss watches and Furs from refugees who would otherwise have had to hand over their valuables to the Nazis when leaving the Reich. They wore gold pendants and cast diamond brooches on their Marks & Spencer dresses, betting that the expensive jewelry would certainly look fake. They played their part as ‘a couple of nervous British maids’, but their simple, practical looks hid romantic souls – real heroines in the darkest opera of the 20th century.” [NYPost]
🖼️ Art History: That Associated PressMaysoon Kahn highlights a new law that requires museums in New York that display Nazi-looted art to put up posters explaining the history of the stolen items. “New York [State] Senator Anna M. Kaplan, who sponsored the law, said the new law aims in part to educate younger people unfamiliar with the Holocaust. “As Holocaust survivors are a dying generation, this becomes much more important,” he said [Wesley] Fisher of the Claims Conference. ‘Become the object[s] much more important. The idea that students and the general public should walk through museums to understand where these items came from is important.’” [AP]
💊 Medical Affairs: In The hill, US Israel Education Association founder and executive director Heather Johnston, who appeared on last week’s JI podcast Limited Liability, offers her thoughts on how the Abraham Accords can help the US gain better access to essential medicines. “Although there have been drug and medical device shortages in the past, COVID-19 has exposed the alarming vulnerability of America’s pharmaceutical supply chain and its over-reliance on China since the U.S. began tracking the issue in 2001. The good news is that the global pandemic, coupled with diplomatic breakthroughs in the Middle East, presents a unique opportunity for the United States to relocate some of its pharmaceutical operations near Abraham Accord countries – notably Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco.” [TheHill]
