To all who thought the pandemic was over, my latest experience proves that it is not exactly so.  Recently I returned from a great conference in Pittsburgh with over 1500 art therapists participating, only to douse my enthusiasm with a nasty bout of Covid.  Unfortunately, this time my husband got it as well.  When I communicated to my friends in Israel that I was suffering from Covid, their reaction was “is this some kind of a new disease?”  You see, I forgot that in Israel, and some other places in the world, the name for Covid is Corona.  Yes, the same as the Mexican beer.  In spite of believing that I am sensitive to cultural and linguistic differences, I got caught in a simple situation which should not have happened.  No real harm was caused; just a chuckle, but it shows how we have to be continuously careful and sensitive to cultural and linguistic differences.

All over the world today immigrants and refugees are struggling to preserve their culture, language and customs, yet wishing to integrate into the local culture.  This is not a new phenomenon.  However, in the past, newcomers were expected to assimilate into the culture of the community they came to.  With the current understanding, respect and sensitivity to the immigrant’s culture, the “politically correct” era prevails.  Practically live and let live.  Learn to know and respect the culture of the newcomer and let them learn and respect yours.  Neither has to lose their culture, but we need to be curious and respectful, and yes, obey the laws of the land.

Is that really so in practice?  I look around the world today – here in Canada, in the US, in Europe, even in Israel – the refugee is marginalized, shunned and even threatened to be expelled.  People who suffered discrimination, hunger and death threats in their countries of origin are treated like pariahs, placed in camps, barred entrance and blamed for the rise of crime in the societies they try to live in. In the US the presidential elections were fueled by rhetoric of hatred for immigrants and vows to expel refugees.  In Canada the government put a quota om immigration and is doubling the policing efforts on the long border with the US in order to prevent entrance of refugees from Canada to the US, and fron the US to Canada. Boats of refugees are prevented drom getting  into Europe, and thousands of men women and children have dies in capsized boats, navigating perilous sea voyages to escape and achieve better living conditions.

In Israel, the land of the Bible, which commands us explicitly to respect and accept the stranger and  foreigner, and to respect the refugee, camps and corrals are established to keep the thousands who infiltrate there from Africa.  They escape war, poverty, rape, and discrimination only to find laws forbidding them from settling and becoming productive citizens.  Perhaps I am naïve to think that the Jewish State has to behave differently.  Perhaps I am unrealistic in not considering the material costs or indeed the cultural cost.  Perhaps fear that the refugees will change the existing culture of the country drives our lawmakers to send refugees back to their countries of origin, sometimes facing certain death.

I am not a politician, but I can see the trauma of both the refugees and the citizens who try to live by their convictions of love and respect of the other.  Yet love alone is not enough; it has to be combined with justice.  Both have to exist in order to have a well-functioning world.  It is the constant seeking of balance between love and justice that fuels our hope for a better world.  When the Bible tells us to love our neighbour like ourselves, it does not stipulate how our neighbour should look, nor what his or her political views should be; it dictates neither her religion nor his skin color. 

When refugees came from Ukraine to Israel at the beginning of their war with Russia, they were embraced with open arms, given shelter, clothing, invitations for meals, and an opportunity to try and integrate; especially the ones with some connection, even the smallest, to Judaism.  We created art Therapy Safe Studios to help them and their children relieve some of the trauma of war and abandoning their home.  We established a cadre of volunteer, trauma-trained therapists.  Not so for the refugees from war-torn African countries.  They are black; their culture, even if Muslim or Christian, is unfamiliar to the population and undesirable to the government.  So, no official open-arm embracing; instead, camps and attempts at expulsion. Of course, there are NGOs that help, donation from private citizens, and even legal and therapy sessions.

By the way, the Safe Studio model that we created for the Ukrainian refugees became a base for the establishment of safe studios in Ukraine staffed by art therapists whom I trained for working with traumatized populations during a time when war is still raging.  After October 7, 2023, the cadre of therapists we had trained 2 years earlier was able to deploy quickly all over the country to work with the displaced people from the Gaza-border communities.  Practically refugees in their own country.  The unique situation of the therapists being themselves traumatized by the war and the loss of life and the kidnapping, necessitated giving support to the therapists as well.  That was my job, and many other trauma- informed  therapist’s job.  support of the therapists who looked after the children, parents, and communities that were now dispersed in hotels, guest houses of Kibbutzim, and every available place.  The love was mixed with rage over the inaction of the ruling authorities.  Here too there was an imbalance between love and justice.

Where are we now in Canada? Canada has taken in 44,620 Syrian refugees since November  2015.  Canada continues to process Syrian refugee cases and resettle refugees.  A few days ago, the Assad regime was toppled in Syria, and there was great celebration among the Syrian refugees here, some of whose relatives were jailed and have now been released.  There is still confusion and great uncertainty, but perhaps it is a beginning of hope for the region.  Perhaps the 101 kidnapped who are still in Gaza, will also be released soon, and perhaps some justice and love and balance will return to the region.  Perhaps we will start listening to each other and learn to communicate in a manner that we will not misinterpret each other’s words.  Perhaps we will start respecting each other’s rights and learn to listen, not just scream.  Perhaps this is the beginning of a new era of balanced love and tolerance.  I truly hope so for the sake of our children and grandchildren.  May the darkness be lit by 

                                 the season of light.