The youth proves that it is possible for things to be different. Under the leadership of Sovereignty Youth, a youth forum has been established from all right-wing parties, both coalition and opposition, under the “Land of Israel” banner.
While politicians from right-wing parties deal with internecine strife and difficulty cooperating around one ideological vision, the younger generation proves that it can be otherwise.
Under the leadership and initiative of the Sovereignty Youth, a group of hundreds of youths from all parts of the Land and all right-wing parties gathered for joint ideological activity under the banner of love for the Land of Israel.
Youths from the Likud, Yamina, Tikva Hadasha, Religious Zionism and others joined the new forum, initiated, as mentioned, by youths from the Sovereignty youth Movement.
Eliahu Friedman, head of Sovereignty Youth, tells of the impetus behind the initiative and joint activity:
The Land of Israel Youth Forum in the Knesset consolidates within it the youth staff of all parties that believe in the vision of the Land of Israel, from the coalition and the opposition.
Led by Sovereignty Youth, the forum promotes a discourse among the political youth that says – The Land of Israel is above political disputes”.
“The forum is prepared for activities of hasbara and consciousness-raising in the Knesset and outside of it, around the various challenges that are posed for lovers of the Land of Israel at this time – governance in the Negev and the Galilee, the challenge of Jerusalem, the Palestinian takeover of Area C, governance in south Tel Aviv, etc.”, says Friedman, noting that “The activity is accompanied by a tour and learning about the topic and afterward, activity to make a clear statement on the topic by all parties from the coalition and the opposition”.
As a first step, the forum gathered a thousand signatures of youths from all over the country, members of various right-wing parties, to a petition calling for the Land of Israel to be a substantial value above all political controversy.
The youth's petition opens with a quote from the first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, who stated that "without Jewish land, Zionism becomes a band-aid and a false vision."
The petition itself reads: "These days, when most of the Jewish people live in their country around its united capital, the Arabs of Judea and Samaria steal dunam after dunam, the Bedouin terrorize the Negev, and the Jewish residents in the mixed cities have lost their security.
To this end, we, the heads of the different youth parties, gathered in a joint call for the restoration of the values of Zionism, the Land of Israel, settlement and security. In order to raise the Land of Israel to the top of the agenda. We understand the magnitude of the hour, and its importance, and shout together the cry of our land.
Together we established the "Youth Forum of the Land of Israel", a forum that works for the return of the Land of Israel to the top of national and political priorities. The forum unites youth from a variety of youth groups, in one common call for a sovereign and complete Land of Israel.
We call on you, the youth, to join us, and together we will work for our country. Because the Land of Israel is not a political issue. It is the essence of our existence and the essence of our people! "
The forum intends to hold monthly meetings and its activity is encouraged by the parties themselves. Regarding the discourse in the joint meetings, Friedman says: “In the meetings that the forum holds, we keep the discourse civil and focused; sometimes it strays into arguments about parties and such, but even these arguments are done with mutual respect. We do not deal with questions of coalition and opposition; we act in a focused way on behalf of the Land of Israel”.
Among the participants to the forum meetings, one may find youths who volunteer in the offices of members of Knesset and others, who view themselves as partners and are involved in political activity.
As a first step, the members of the forum published a call to youths from all parts of the Land to join the activity and for updates.