Journalism by Jewish college students, for Jewish college students.
A couple nights a week in downtown Tel Aviv, a group of young people pay a small cover charge to dance late into the night. They move energetically for hours, before eventually getting tired and going home. It might sound like the nightlife Tel Aviv is famous for, dancing in the city’s clubs to the latest hip-hop beats. But this group prefers a different scene, and some much older music.
Israel is largely a nation of immigrants. However, as many African refugees discover, some foreigners are less welcome than others.
First-time visitors to Tel Aviv are often greeted by an unexpected sight. In Levinsky Park, immediately outside the city’s Central Bus Station, dozens of young African men hang around at almost all hours. They are not simply loitering; most are refugees from war-torn North African nations with nowhere else to go. They endured terrible hardship before arriving in Israel, but found little sympathy or support when they arrived here.
Their problems are also far from over.