I, too, am against the nation-state law. No, not the law passed by the Knesset; I actually like that one. I oppose the nation-state law presented by the media, the one written by propagandists.
I reject a law that discriminates against minorities; a law that violates the rights of the Arabs; a law that relegates minorities to second-class citizenship. I oppose a law that classifies the Druze as mercenaries, excludes the Arabic language, and says Jews are a superior race. I stand against this nationalistic, racist, fascist, Nazi law, the one that can be passed in ethnocentric, ethnocratic apartheid states. I also repudiate the law the masses demonstrated against in Tel Aviv on Saturday night.
The law they protested, however, doesn't exist. It's a "fake law" – the product of brainwashing and deception. And I refuse to be part of the herd pursuing this false propaganda, without investing any modicum of critical, independent thought. My recommendation to those who oppose the law is simple: Look at it without prejudice, free of indoctrination and thought policing. Read it with an open mind.
It's possible the majority of the law's supporters have not read the law either. But those who oppose it – not because of what it says but because of its tainted image – certainly haven't read it. Anyone who claims the law "downgraded" the status of Arabic didn't read the law. In clearly says the exact opposite, after all.
Perhaps some people support the law because they believe all the lies being told about it; specifically, because they think it makes Arabs second-class citizens, infringes on their rights and excludes them; that from now on it will be illegal to speak Arabic, that the law will weaken the Supreme Court and other such things. These folks are also in for a surprise: Nothing the media has told them about the law is true either.
I support the nation-state law because I am in favor of a Basic Law that defines Israel's identity, character and purpose as the national home of the Jewish people; a law that defines "Hatikva" as the national anthem; the blue-and-white flag with the Star of David as our national flag; Jewish settlement as a national value. This is a Basic Law that grants legal validity to Zionism.
The law doesn't deal with individual rights that are already anchored in other important Basic Laws, for example, Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty. Contrary to the claims, the purpose of the nation-state law isn't to "balance out" previous Basic Laws but to complement them. Because there is no inherent contradiction between the idea of a Jewish nation-state and civil equality within it, there is no contradiction between the new law and these rights.
With that, I support adding a clause or sentence ratifying equal individual rights, regardless of national or religious affiliation. The fact that this law – which should have been welcomed with widespread national consensus and joy – has stirred discord and exacerbated social rifts, is harmful. If the Zionist Union and Yesh Atid commit to supporting the nation-state law, then including the aforementioned addendum should be considered.
