For Immediate Release: January 19, 2022
Contact: Katie Wysong, NCJW@westendstrategy.com 

National Council of Jewish Women Announces 2022 Grantees Serving Women, Children, Families in Israel

NCJW regularly funds programs and organizations in Israel advancing women’s empowerment, gender equality, strengthening democracy

WASHINGTON – National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) announced three outstanding recipient organizations for their 2022 Israel Grant Program: Al-Baqour for an early childhood education program for Bedouin women in the Negev; Physicians for Human Rights for providing sexual health and reproductive care to Palestinian women and women without permanent legal status in the Tel Aviv/Yafo area and Isha L’isha, a civic engagement effort in Haifa to encourage and train underrepresented women, including those with disabilities, to run for municipal office. 

NCJW commitment to promote policies that support the empowerment of women, gender equality, equal access to reproductive health care and democratic participation extends to Israel through NCJW’s Israel Grants Program. This program supports and sustains diverse, pioneering projects that serve women, children and families across communities in Israel.

“Our connection to Israel, and especially Israeli women, children and families, is deep and abiding. Our work to create change that empowers women and safeguards their democratic rights — regardless of ethnicity, religion or economic status — would be incomplete without investing in the Israeli organizations who do that work,” said Sheila Katz, CEO of the National Council of Jewish Women. “These grantees are serving critical needs across Israel. They are securing a future for women and children where they can be safe, healthy and informed, and empowered to represent themselves and their communities in government. We are proud to support the work of Al-Baquor, Physicians for Human Rights and Isha L’isha. We share their vision of a more just and democratic Israel.” 

More about the 2022 grantees: 

Al-Baqour’s project aims to develop Bedouin women’s human capital in the field of early childhood education and thus advance their economic participation in the working world and social standing within their communities. This investment will also narrow an essential service gap for children; and to expand the Bedouin community’s access to the early childhood services that help children develop socially, cognitively and emotionally.

Physicians for Human Rights’ work in the Tel Aviv/Yafo area will help provide such services as prenatal care, birth control, gynecological care, abortion and support groups for pregnancy loss and fertility challenges to thousands of women living in Israel without legal status such as asylum seekers, work migrants, Palestinians who are persecuted due to their sexual orientation and others. Many in this population live in Israel with very limited access to basic public services, including healthcare. Among these marginalized communities, women are especially exposed to mistreatment and neglect.

Isha L’isha will provide training and support to a diverse group of female leaders including women who are Mizrahi, Russian-speaking, Ethiopian-Israeli, LGBTQI+ and Palestinian citizens of Israel. This cohort will also focus on the issue of disability — at least half of the group will be women with disabilities. They will engage community members, mobilizing them to get involved in the electoral process and spurring the formation of an expanded voting public that will elect more women with disabilities to be part of the Haifa municipal government. This will in turn set the stage for a shift in policies that serve women, marginalized communities and disabled citizens.

Since 1948, NCJW has worked to empower Israeli and American women to advocate for a robust civil society in Israel. The Gender Studies Department at Tel Aviv University — endowed by NCJW — teaches students about women’s and gender issues and promoting social change in Israel and around the world. The partnership between NCJW and TAU expanded in 2020 to include conferences, scholarships and the Connecting for Impact fellowship program to build and support the feminist field in Israel. In 2020, representatives of NCJW served in the Hatikvah delegation to the World Zionist Congress, where collective decisions are made that impact the global Jewish community. 

Today, in partnership with local leaders representing diverse communities in Israel – including Arab, Bedouin, Ethiopian, Haredi, Mizrahi, LGBTQ, Palestinian and Russian – NCJW advocates for the equal status of women in the face of religious fundamentalism; women’s political leadership; women’s economic empowerment; LGBTQ rights; and educational opportunities for women.

To learn more about NCJW’s Israel Grant Program or speak to the grantees, please contact Katie Wysong, ncjw@westendstrategy.com. 

###

National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) is a grassroots organization of 200,000 volunteers and advocates who turn progressive ideals into action. Inspired by Jewish values, NCJW strives for social justice by improving the quality of life for women, children, and families and by safeguarding individual rights and freedoms. Through a program of education, community service, and advocacy, our advocates across the country create lasting social change on our key issues of the federal courts; reproductive health, rights, and justice, and voter engagement. More information on Facebook and on Twitter at @NCJW.