Reply #51: Here's the thing...

[Shaktimaan]

as with most other issues, this one isn't exactly black and white either.

It's obvious that the defacto and official segregation between ethnicities in Israel are huge obstacles to unifying the country as a single nation. I mean it's ridiculous in this day and age to have separate schools for Arab and Jewish kids, different laws governing their marriage and divorces. The fact that they are unable to marry outside of their specific group is totally disgusting and runs counter to the ideals of any liberal democracy worth its salt.

While it is possible to get an ID card without a nationality labeled, they don't make it easy. Nor is any Arab kid who wants to go to an Israeli school exactly welcomed, even though it is technically possible. I actually know an Israeli Arab who served in the IDF and got an ID without his ethnicity being labeled. He was an orphan who was raised in a kibbutz by secular (but Jewish) Israelis, and he identified with being Israeli over Palestinian. But that isn't to say he didn't have any identity issues while growing up.

That said, in Israel there isn't any easy solution to these problems. The fact that there has been a very long running conflict there split down ethnic lines isn't exactly something you can ignore while discussing these issues. This isn't an problem of simple racism and can't be solved as easily as it might seem. I'll give you an example: The Israeli Army. Right now all Jews and Druze have to give a few years of their lives to the IDF and then be reservists for decades after. People who serve get certain benefits... the author is probably referring to some of these as some of the discriminatory laws which favor Jews. While Israeli Arabs can certainly serve if they want to, they aren't forced to. Nor are they encouraged to.

Now, any war that Israel fights would probably involve fighting Arabs. Serving in the territories would be seen by the Palestinian Arabs as a total betrayal. But equal rights also means equal responsibilities, right? And even before the civil rights era, black soldiers certainly fought and died for America, even though we treated them as second class citizens. Is it fair, (or realistic) to expect the same level of commitment from Arab citizens of Israel?

And this gets closer to the heart of the issues. If the Arabs collectively did decide to serve then it would demonstrate a commitment to the nation of Israel that would do a lot to change their perceptions among Israeli Jews. But could you imagine Israel trying to force Israeli Arabs to serve or face jail, as secular Jews do? Can you imagine Israeli Arabs deciding en masse to sign up for the IDF?

Of course not every issue is this problematic. I was just giving an example of an issue that lacks a clear ethical solution.