Mickey Gitzin

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Gitzin in 2011

Mickey Gitzin (born 1980/1981)[1] is an Israeli peace activist and current executive director of the New Israel Fund, and director of its Tel Aviv branch.[2]

Early life[edit]

Gitzin was born to secular Russian-speaking Jewish parents who immigrated to Israel from the Soviet Union in the late 1970s.[1] They settled in the Dalet neighborhood of Beersheba, but Gitzin was born in Azor, where he was raised in a public housing apartment.[1][3] His parents and grandmother raised him and his sister with Soviet Russian influences and right-wing politics.[1]

At age 13, he began keeping kosher fully to fit in with his peers, and as a form of rebellion against his parents.[1][3]

Gitzin was active in his school's student government, becoming president of the student council.[1] He also became involved with right-wing politics; during the 1992 elections, he handed out Likud flyers.[1] However, he soon became involved with left-wing politics as part of a teenage rebellion against his parents.[1]

Gitzin graduated from Hebrew University, and attended University College London on a scholarship for a master's degree in public policy.[1][3]

Gitzin served in the Intelligence Directorate for his mandatory service in the Israeli Defense Forces, during which time he continued to develop his left-wing politics.[1] After his service was completed, he became a Jewish Agency shaliach to an American Jewish community in South Bend, Indiana,[3] where he was reassured that his secular beliefs were not in conflict with his Jewish worldview.[1]

Activism[edit]

Upon returning to Israel after working in the United States, Gitzin was hired to establish Be Free Israel, a coalition of left-wing organizations active in religious and state matters.[1][4]

In 2012, Gitzin protested draft exemptions for ultra-Orthodox Israelis.[5]

In 2015 and 2016, Gitzin was a member of the Tel Aviv Municipal Council.[6][7]

In late 2017, Gitzin became executive director of the New Israel Fund.[1]

In 2018, Gitzin's criticism of the Israeli government drew scrutiny on social media from Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.[8]

In January 2023, Gitzin called the proposed Israeli judicial reforms "an attack on all of democracy".[9]

Gitzin has written for Haaretz[10] and Ynet.[11]

Personal life[edit]

While working in the United States, Gitzin began dating a Catholic American woman.[1] She returned with him to Israel, and they lived together for three years before separating, after which Gitzin came out as gay.[1] Gitzin has been with his current partner since the early 2010s, with the two living in Tel Aviv.[1][3]

As of 2016, Gitzin was a member of the Meretz Party.[7]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Nevo, Ziv (2017-10-12). "'Everyone in the government works with the New Israel Fund'". Ynetnews. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  2. ^ Cohen, Roger (2023-10-22). "Peace, a Forgotten Word, Renews its Claim in the Holy Land". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  3. ^ a b c d e "How Mickey Gitzin Became a Household Name". New Israel Fund UK. September 2018. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  4. ^ Khan, Imran. "How 'Jewish' should Israel be?". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  5. ^ "Israel's military service law for ultra-Orthodox expires". Reuters. 2012-08-01. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  6. ^ Avivi, Yuval (2015-05-22). "Secular Jews rediscover Jewish heritage". Al-Monitor. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  7. ^ a b Lavers, Michael K. (2016-11-17). "Tel Aviv councilman criticizes Israel policy towards Palestinians". www.washingtonblade.com. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  8. ^ Maltz, Judy (August 23, 2018). "Israel's Public Enemy No. 1 or the Poster Boy for Zionism?". Haaretz. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  9. ^ Rosenbaum, Alan (2023-01-26). "Gitzin on proposed reforms: An attack on all of democracy". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  10. ^ "Mickey Gitzin". Haaretz. 2020-06-18. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  11. ^ Gitzin, Mickey (2017-08-09). "Left-wing NGOs working for all Israeli citizens". Ynetnews. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
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