Peace and paint in the park
PUTTING an ancient Talmudic passage about the impact of good deeds into practice, Zionist youth movement Hineni teamed up with Jewish Aid Australia last month to encourage positive social action.
PUTTING an ancient Talmudic passage about the impact of good deeds into practice, Zionist youth movement Hineni teamed up with Jewish Aid Australia last month to encourage positive social action.
The two organisations hosted what they termed a meeting of the communities, bringing together parents and children from Melbourne’s Sudanese community with their Jewish counterparts.
“We fired up the barbie, played sports in the park and ran art stalls for the young kids,” Hineni federal education officer Joel Lazar told The AJN.
“And the only point at which language barriers presented complications [was when] a group of budding artists took the guided suggestion of one of our leaders, ‘if you need help for ideas, just paint me’, as an invitation to do just that. It was a colourful, intercultural exchange to say the least.”
In addition to the art, Israeli and Sudanese cultural dancing followed, with the two communities teaching the other the steps. Drumming, singing and football also featured.
“We were surprised by the sleek footy skills of the Sudanese kids, some of whom may pose a serious challenge to future Brownlow medal counts,” Lazar said.
Members of the Darfur Australia Network were also present, filming the communal drumming for Beat For Peace, an online campaign to raise awareness of the conflict in Sudan.
More than 180 people enjoyed the festivities, capped off with a presentation from a group of young people who, in conjunction with Jewish Aid, raised money to help the Sudanese community purchase equipment to establish their own sports team.
“When a Sudanese community turns to local Melbourne communities of various ethnicities and religions to be met with apathy, only to turn to the Jewish one and be accepted with open arms, this is justice,” Lazar said. “This is the Jewish people realigning the scales of the world to their just equilibrium.”
The intercultural initiative will contribute to Hineni’s Target 360 program, a goal of 360 combined hours of community service to honour the memory of Ashley Levi, a former leader who passed away earlier this year.
AJN STAFF
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