Daphni Leef
Encyclopedia
Daphni Leef is an Israeli activist who on July 14, 2011, established an encampment in central Tel Aviv in the Rothschild Boulevard
to protest the high cost of housing in Israel. Her act sparked off one of the largest waves of mass protest in Israel's history, inspiring demonstrations throughout the country with the demand to return to the welfare-state model.
neighborhood of the city. She attended the Gymnasia Rehavia
junior high. In 2002, at age 16, she moved with her family to Kfar Shmaryahu
, a local council within the Tel Aviv District
ranked very highly on the Israeli socio-economic scale. During her high school period Leef majored in Film Studies at a high school in Ramat Hasharon
.
In September 2002 Leef signed a public letter along with dozens of other pre-army-aged youths which declared their refusal to serve
in the "army of occupation". Leef did not serve in the IDF, but claimed in an August 2011 interview that she did not serve in the military due to medical reasons.
In 2005, after she finished high school, Leef moved to Tel Aviv
and began studying in the film department of Tel Aviv University
. Leef graduated from the university in 2008. She became a professional video editor
and has created many short films, music videos for Israeli singers (such as Eran Tzur, Michal Amdursky and Noam Nevo) and films for various political NGOs, including a short work for the "Free Israel" association ("ישראל חופשית"), which promotes civil marriage in Israel.
As an act of protest Leef decided to pitch a tent at Habima Square
in Tel Aviv. Leef also opened a Facebook
protest page and began inviting people to join the protest in the streets. Soon afterward the protests gained momentum as thousands joined the protests, pitching tents in the central streets of cities across Israel. sparking off the 2011 Israel housing protests. On 29 August 2011, in the context of allegations of Leef's background and intentions, Leef abruptly ended an interview when asked about not doing mandatory military service
or Sherut Leumi
, her affluent upbringing, what the Trajtenberg Committee
was dealing with, and a question about her lack of presence or if she has even slept in the Tel Aviv tent area. She revealed that she received an exemption from the army for having epilepsy
but had volunteered in a children's shelter, and that she had not slept in the Rothschild Boulevard
tents the preceding week.
On July 15, 2011, demonstrators drove out the Knesset member Miri Regev
(member of the ruling right-wing Likud
party) from the tent encampment in Tel Aviv. Several protesters had booed Regev, one threw a glass of water at her and she had a verbal confrontation with Daphni Leef. Regev, quite upset by the encounter, claimed the activists in the encampment had attacked her, a member of Israel's ruling coalition
, while members of the opposition received a warm greeting. In addition, Regev stated that Leef "represents the extreme left". In response, Leef said she felt embarrassed by the violent confrontation but made it clear that, contrary to Regev's claim, it is first and foremost a social struggle and not a political struggle.
On July 20, 2011, the Israeli right-wing extra-parliamentary group "Im Tirtzu
" (אם תרצו) announced that they would no longer take part in the housing protests, claiming that the New Israel Fund
and various left-wing groups are directly involved. Im Tirtzu officials said that "Daphni Leef, who is perceived in the media as the initiator of the struggle, is actually a video editor for the New Israel Fund
and Shatil."
Public support for the tent protests has continued to be overwhelmingly strong across the political spectrum. Various opinion polls have found 83% to over 90% supporting the protests; a Channel 10 poll specifically asking for political affiliation, found 85% support among the right-wing Likud voters.
At a press conference held on July 26, 2011 Leef responded to charges made against her in the media by stating:
In an interview with the Israeli radio network Galei Tzahal on August 3, 2011, Leef referred to the "tent representation" (נציגות המאהל) group, which seeks to democratically replace the leadership of the housing protest, by stating:
On 3 November 2011, Yedioth Ahronoth reported that Leef and partner Stav Shafir decided to officially establish a fund so that they could get a salary for continuing the effort.
Rothschild Boulevard
Rothschild Boulevard is one of the principal streets in the center of Tel Aviv, Israel, beginning in Neve Tzedek at its southwestern edge and running north to Habima Theatre. It is one of the busiest and most expensive streets in the city, being one of the city's main tourist attractions...
to protest the high cost of housing in Israel. Her act sparked off one of the largest waves of mass protest in Israel's history, inspiring demonstrations throughout the country with the demand to return to the welfare-state model.
Background
Leef is the daughter of the Israeli composer Inam Leef (ינעם ליף), and the great-granddaughter of the notable Israeli engineer Zalman Leef. Leef was born in Jerusalem and raised in the RehaviaRehavia
Rehavia is an upscale Jerusalem neighborhood located between the city center and Talbiya.-History:Rehavia was established on a large plot of land purchased in 1921 from the Greek Orthodox Church by the Palestine Land Development Company . The area was known at the time as Ginzaria, a native...
neighborhood of the city. She attended the Gymnasia Rehavia
Gymnasia Rehavia
Gymnasia Rehavia is a high school in the Rehavia neighborhood in Jerusalem, Israel.-History:Gymnasia Rehavia was the country’s second modern high school, after Gymnasia Herzliya in Tel Aviv. The school was first established in Jerusalem's Bukharan Quarter in 1909. The building on Keren Kayemet...
junior high. In 2002, at age 16, she moved with her family to Kfar Shmaryahu
Kfar Shmaryahu
Kfar Shmaryahu is a local council in Israel, within the Tel Aviv District. The council was founded in 1937, during the Fifth Aliyah to Israel.Kfar Shmaryahu is ranked very highly on the Israeli socio-economic scale...
, a local council within the Tel Aviv District
Tel Aviv District
The Tel Aviv District is the smallest and most densely populated of six administrative districts of Israel with a population of 1.2 million residents...
ranked very highly on the Israeli socio-economic scale. During her high school period Leef majored in Film Studies at a high school in Ramat Hasharon
Ramat Hasharon
Ramat HaSharon is a city located on Israel's central coastal strip in the south of the Sharon region, bordering Tel Aviv to the south and Herzliya and Kibbutz Glil Yam to the north. It is part of the Tel Aviv District, within Gush Dan metropolitan area...
.
In September 2002 Leef signed a public letter along with dozens of other pre-army-aged youths which declared their refusal to serve
Refusal to serve in the Israeli military
Refusal to serve in the Israeli military includes both refusal to obey specific orders and refusal to serve in the Israel Defense Forces in any capacity due to pacifist or anti-militarist views or disagreement with the policies of the Israeli government as implemented by the army, such as the...
in the "army of occupation". Leef did not serve in the IDF, but claimed in an August 2011 interview that she did not serve in the military due to medical reasons.
In 2005, after she finished high school, Leef moved to Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
and began studying in the film department of Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University is a public university located in Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel. With nearly 30,000 students, TAU is Israel's largest university.-History:...
. Leef graduated from the university in 2008. She became a professional video editor
Video editor
A video editor is a technically inclined individual that is involved with making creative video editing decision in the post-production of film making and video production...
and has created many short films, music videos for Israeli singers (such as Eran Tzur, Michal Amdursky and Noam Nevo) and films for various political NGOs, including a short work for the "Free Israel" association ("ישראל חופשית"), which promotes civil marriage in Israel.
Involvement in the 2011 housing protests in Israel
During June 2011 Leef received a notice to vacate the apartment that she had rented in Tel Aviv for the previous three years. After several weeks of searching to no avail for a new apartment within reach of her film-editing job, Leef discovered that the rental prices in the entire Tel Aviv metropolitan area had doubled in the previous five years.As an act of protest Leef decided to pitch a tent at Habima Square
Habima Square
HaBima Square is a public space in the center of Tel Aviv, Israel, which is home to a number of cultural institutions such as the Habima Theatre, the Fredric R. Mann Auditorium and the Helena Rubinstein Pavilion for Contemporary Art...
in Tel Aviv. Leef also opened a Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
protest page and began inviting people to join the protest in the streets. Soon afterward the protests gained momentum as thousands joined the protests, pitching tents in the central streets of cities across Israel. sparking off the 2011 Israel housing protests. On 29 August 2011, in the context of allegations of Leef's background and intentions, Leef abruptly ended an interview when asked about not doing mandatory military service
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
or Sherut Leumi
Sherut Leumi
Sherut Leumi is an alternative voluntary national service in Israel for those that cannot or do not wish to serve in the Israel Defense Forces...
, her affluent upbringing, what the Trajtenberg Committee
Trajtenberg Committee
The Trajtenberg Committee is a commission appointed by the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on August 8, 2011 in order to examine and propose solutions to Israel's socioeconomic problems. The committee was established following the 2011 Israeli housing protests...
was dealing with, and a question about her lack of presence or if she has even slept in the Tel Aviv tent area. She revealed that she received an exemption from the army for having epilepsy
Epilepsy
Epilepsy is a common chronic neurological disorder characterized by seizures. These seizures are transient signs and/or symptoms of abnormal, excessive or hypersynchronous neuronal activity in the brain.About 50 million people worldwide have epilepsy, and nearly two out of every three new cases...
but had volunteered in a children's shelter, and that she had not slept in the Rothschild Boulevard
Rothschild Boulevard
Rothschild Boulevard is one of the principal streets in the center of Tel Aviv, Israel, beginning in Neve Tzedek at its southwestern edge and running north to Habima Theatre. It is one of the busiest and most expensive streets in the city, being one of the city's main tourist attractions...
tents the preceding week.
Public image and Allegations of disguising political struggle as social distress
As the housing protests continued and expanded, various public figures and organizations, mostly affiliated with the political right in Israel, began to escalate their personal criticism of Leef, her character and her political positions. From their point of view, various Israeli left-wing media and political organizations have exploited the demonstrations, as well as the economic distress affecting large sections of the Israeli public, for political purposes, with the intention of overthrowing the current right-wing Netanyahu government. According to this version, finding solutions to the housing crises in Israel is only secondary in this struggle.On July 15, 2011, demonstrators drove out the Knesset member Miri Regev
Miri Regev
Miriam "Miri" Regev is an Israeli politician and a former Brigadier General in the army. She currently serves as a member of the Knesset for Likud, having previously worked as the IDF Spokeswoman.-Biography:...
(member of the ruling right-wing Likud
Likud
Likud is the major center-right political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin in an alliance with several right-wing and liberal parties. Likud's victory in the 1977 elections was a major turning point in the country's political history, marking the first time the left had...
party) from the tent encampment in Tel Aviv. Several protesters had booed Regev, one threw a glass of water at her and she had a verbal confrontation with Daphni Leef. Regev, quite upset by the encounter, claimed the activists in the encampment had attacked her, a member of Israel's ruling coalition
Coalition
A coalition is a pact or treaty among individuals or groups, during which they cooperate in joint action, each in their own self-interest, joining forces together for a common cause. This alliance may be temporary or a matter of convenience. A coalition thus differs from a more formal covenant...
, while members of the opposition received a warm greeting. In addition, Regev stated that Leef "represents the extreme left". In response, Leef said she felt embarrassed by the violent confrontation but made it clear that, contrary to Regev's claim, it is first and foremost a social struggle and not a political struggle.
On July 20, 2011, the Israeli right-wing extra-parliamentary group "Im Tirtzu
Im Tirtzu
Im Tirtzu is a Zionist extra-parliamentary group based in Israel. Its name is based on a phrase by Theodor Herzl – "אם תרצו, אין זו אגדה" or "If you will it, it is no dream."-NIF report:...
" (אם תרצו) announced that they would no longer take part in the housing protests, claiming that the New Israel Fund
New Israel Fund
The New Israel Fund is a U.S. based non-profit organization established in 1979, and describes its objective as social justice and equality for all Israelis.-Ideology:...
and various left-wing groups are directly involved. Im Tirtzu officials said that "Daphni Leef, who is perceived in the media as the initiator of the struggle, is actually a video editor for the New Israel Fund
New Israel Fund
The New Israel Fund is a U.S. based non-profit organization established in 1979, and describes its objective as social justice and equality for all Israelis.-Ideology:...
and Shatil."
Public support for the tent protests has continued to be overwhelmingly strong across the political spectrum. Various opinion polls have found 83% to over 90% supporting the protests; a Channel 10 poll specifically asking for political affiliation, found 85% support among the right-wing Likud voters.
At a press conference held on July 26, 2011 Leef responded to charges made against her in the media by stating:
In an interview with the Israeli radio network Galei Tzahal on August 3, 2011, Leef referred to the "tent representation" (נציגות המאהל) group, which seeks to democratically replace the leadership of the housing protest, by stating:
On 3 November 2011, Yedioth Ahronoth reported that Leef and partner Stav Shafir decided to officially establish a fund so that they could get a salary for continuing the effort.
See also
- Camila VallejoCamila VallejoCamila Antonia Amaranta Vallejo Dowling is a graduate student of geography from the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism of the University of Chile, and was elected president of the University of Chile Student Federation in November 2010 - she is the second woman to hold this post after Marisol...
— leading figure of the 2011 Chilean protests