Rockefeller Hall 200 was nearly full at 4 p.m. last Sunday, Oct. 4, when students, faculty and Hudson Valley residents gathered to hear Maya Wind, a 19-year-old Israeli conscientious objector, give a talk entitled “Why We Refuse,” about her reasons for refusing to participate in the Israeli Military. Wind is a member of the Shministim, a group of Israeli high school seniors who refuse to join the military on the grounds that they do not support “the policy of occupation and oppression of the Israeli government in the occupied territories and in the area of the state of Israel,” according to a 2008 letter stating their reasons for not serving.
In Israel, conscription in the military is mandatory for all Jewish and many non-Jewish citizens, male and female, upon graduation from high school—unless they are exempted from service for reasons such as mental and physical disabilities or religious objections. Wind, who began her talk by discussing Israel’s conscription policies, said that the military also makes allowances for conscientious objectors, but they must be universal pacifists—that is, categorically opposed to all violence, not specifically opposed to Israel’s actions in Palestine—and must go through an interview with a committee to establish conscientious objector status. “Mentioning words like ‘occupation’ or ‘Palestine’ to the committee fail you pretty much automatically… [the Shministim] cannot get conscientious objector status because we are considered ‘political’ or ‘selective’ refusers,” said Wind.
Because of their specific disagreement with Israeli policies, said Wind, the Shministim were left with two options: to enlist, or to go to a military jail on a charge of disobeying orders. They chose the latter as a “public statement” of their ideas. Wind and nine other Shimistim members were tried and imprisoned.
The bulk of Wind’s talk focused on the reasons why she opposes the Israeli occupation of of the West Bank. She detailed the history of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and the ways that, in her view, Israel benefits economically from them. She also spent time discussing why she believes that Israeli policies are bad for Israel. “I’m an Israeli, and this is not just bad for the Palestinian society,” she said. She said that the militarism of Israeli society increases sexism: Women are generally given clerical jobs in the military, and since one’s military career is important for later job applications and political campaigns, women are less likely to become leaders in society without prestigious military pasts.
Another effect she mentioned was that issues like the economy and the environment are rarely considered by voters; campaigns, she said, focus mainly on security and Palestine.
“Being a refuser in Israel is a very difficult position, a very isolating stand,” said Wind. “I don’t represent the majority of Israeli society; in fact, I’d be generous if I said [I represented] one percent. This opinion I’m presenting to you is not how most Israelis view the conflict.” And just as her positions are unpopular in Israel, Wind has also faced opposition on her U.S. tour. “Today was a very friendly audience, relatively,” she said after the talk. “A lot of times I get yelled at.” When she opened for questions, Wind said that she welcomed disagreement, though the questions ended up being fairly mild: A few audience members clearly disagreed with her, but their questions explored specific policies rather than disagreeing outright. The lack of strong opposition was surprising at Vassar, where debates of the issue can get heated on both sides.
Wind has been touring the United States for sa few weeks, giving talks at colleges and community centers, some of them with another Shminstim member, Netta Mishly. She was brought to Vassar by Nadine Souto ’11, a friend of hers from high school, who contacted several Vassar groups when she heard that Wind was doing a U.S. tour and asked them to sponsor her talk. It was sponsored by the Student Activist Union, the Vassar Green Party, the American Culture Program and the Department of Earth Science and Geography.
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