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| A scene from "Not By Bread Alone," a play performed by deaf and blind actors at Na Laga'at |
The Jim Joseph Fellows visited Na Laga'at, which he discusses. If we have not been discussing the needs of learners who encounter the world in ways radically different from the majority, we are not doing our jobs. Discuss. This is cross-posted from the URJ Blog and to Davar Acher.
"You shall not insult the deaf, or place a stumbling block before the blind. You shall you’re your God: I am the Lord."
-Leviticus 19:14
For
years we had a subscription to the theater series at the Karmiel
auditorium, which brought plays from the various repertory companies
around the country. But we got bored with the selection a few years ago
and decided to go it alone, and create an a la carte cultural schedule
for ourselves. But long days and frequent evening meetings make it
hard to keep up the resolve. We have been seeing more movies. And we
just made our Second Annual Excursion to the Opera in Tel Aviv. The Tel Aviv Opera House is elegant and impressive.
On
our way to a matinee of La Traviatta we went strolling in Jaffa port,
an old area in the process of gentrification. One of the attractions
there is the Na Laga'at ("please
touch") Center which produces a play in which all the performers are
blind and deaf, and offers a dinner served by blind waiters in complete
darkness.
We stopped for brunch at their Kafe Kapish, where all the waiters are hard of hearing. There's a white-board and marker on each table. It was pleasant (and delicious), and brought to mind the large number of such enterprises one encounters scattered around the country: For example, Nagish Kafe (a pun on "we will serve" and "accessible") here in the Galilee, that employs persons with mental handicaps and illnesses, and the cafeteria at HUC in Jerusalem which is run by a similar foundation.
We stopped for brunch at their Kafe Kapish, where all the waiters are hard of hearing. There's a white-board and marker on each table. It was pleasant (and delicious), and brought to mind the large number of such enterprises one encounters scattered around the country: For example, Nagish Kafe (a pun on "we will serve" and "accessible") here in the Galilee, that employs persons with mental handicaps and illnesses, and the cafeteria at HUC in Jerusalem which is run by a similar foundation.
Then there is Lilith, a high-end gourmet restaurant in Tel Aviv whose kitchen staff are trainees placed by Elem, an organization working with marginal youth. Also, in addition to Na Laga'at, the Holon Children's Museum has
both a "blind experience" involving a tour through a complex of
different spaces, including a snack bar, in total darkness with a blind
guide; and a parallel "deaf experience." The blind experience is so
popular that reservations must be made months in advance.
In Old Acco one can shop at "The Shop for Meaning,"
run by young people with physical and sensory handicaps, for craft
items made by the handicapped as well as various imported fair-trade
products. Kivunim, the foundation that runs the shop, also operates a
pre-army preparatory program for handicapped youth; we partnered with
them last fall to operate a circus project for visually impaired Arab
and Jewish teenagers. Maghar, an Arab village east of us, has a
disproportionate population of deaf, due to in-clan marriages.
The
answer of the director of the local community center? to host an
international festival of theater of the deaf. A few miles away in
Karmiel one encounters Alut-teva, a vacation village for families of
autistic children, where they can relax in a setting where they are
relieved of the tension and awkwardness that often beset such families
on vacation in more public places.
And
a particularly impressive story is that of Adi Altschuler, who, eight
years ago when she was 16, was moved by her relationship with a
neighbor with cerebral palsy to try to organize a mixed youth group of
handicapped and "normal" kids. The project succeeded beyond her wildest
expectations and today "Marshmallow Wings" is a national youth
movement with chapters all over the country.
It
has always been a source of some frustration that Israel, with its
history of wars, and the ingathering of refugees, was not more
conscious of the need for accessibility, and in general of the
requirement to accept and integrate the handicapped. Perhaps our
sensitivity was dulled by the strand in Israeli culture in its
formative years that glorified strength and self-reliance, and was
ashamed of helplessness and victimhood.
We still have many challenges in this regard. On the other hand, consciousness has risen a great deal in recent decades, and the number of heroes, both volunteer and professional, out there fighting on this front is really impressive, as is the creativity of their projects.
We still have many challenges in this regard. On the other hand, consciousness has risen a great deal in recent decades, and the number of heroes, both volunteer and professional, out there fighting on this front is really impressive, as is the creativity of their projects.
