To mark half a century since Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories it conquered in June 1967, Women in Black will hold four special protest vigils on Friday, June 2, 2017 from 13:00 at locations around the country: in Jerusalem’s Paris Square; at the entrance of Kibbutz Gan Shmuel; in Tel Aviv on the corner of King George Street and Ben Zion Boulevard; and in Haifa at the corner of Ben-Gurion Boulevard and HaGefen Street. The organization has called upon the public: “Women and men, come join us in protesting 50 years of one long disaster! End the occupation!”
Edna Zaretzky Toledano, one of the founders of Women in Black and former Hadash member of the Haifa City Council, holds a placard reading “Enough Occupation!” in Hebrew and Arabic. (Photo: Activestills)
Israeli women in West Jerusalem formed the first group of Women in Black in 1987, following the outbreak of the first Intifada. Since then they have held a protest vigil every Friday at Paris Square in central Jerusalem (near the official residence of the Prime Minister), dressed in black to symbolize their mourning for all victims of the conflict and the illegal occupation of the Palestinian territories. Initially the group had no name, but it was soon identified with the black clothing they wore, which also helped create distinctive demonstrations which were hard to ignore. At the peak of the Intifada, there were thirty vigils in different locations throughout the country. The weekly vigils that started in 1987 still continue every Friday at four locations.
