One Hour in Jerusalem

"Israel is a racist, apartheid state. Jerusalem, in particular, exhibits Israel's racist ways." I am simply paraphrasing much of the content on most media sites in the Western world today.

Have any of these journalists cared to visit Israel? Have they seen how things really work? First things first, Israel is a democracy. A Jewish state in name and slightly in character, Israel gives members of all religions, races, and ethnicities the rights to vote, protest, and access Israel's public services. Often Palestinians in Israel protest directly against Israel, a legal and acceptable form of protest in Israel (unlike Syria, Egypt, Libya, Lebanon, etc. -- i.e. all the countries around Israel that hate and want to destroy it). There are multiple Arabs who hold seats in the Knesset, Israel's parliament. Racist? I don't think so.

One thing about which the Western media attacks Israel is its "occupation" of East Jerusalem. In East Jerusalem, unlike Judea & Samaria (a.k.a. the West Bank), Palestinians qualify for Israeli citizenship and can vote in Israeli elections. The new Jerusalem light rail goes through many East Jerusalem neighborhoods and makes access to the rest of the city much easier for Palestinians there, not to mention it connects people of different cultures and religions from both sides of the city. So why, in a BBC opinion article, does Matthew Teller spew that "The new tram line passes uninterrupted from sovereign Israeli territory in West Jerusalem into the occupied Palestinian territory of East Jerusalem?"(http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-15590267) For that matter, when has this territory ever belonged to a group known as the Palestinians (never), and then from whom is Israel occupying it?

Today I woke up at 5:45 here in Beit Shemesh to take a morning trip to Jerusalem. I arrived in Jerusalem at the Central Bus Station at 7:15 and then took the light rail to the City Hall bus stop right outside the Old City. I was again impressed by the fact that Palestinians, Jews, and tourists from multiple ethnicities could sit together so peacefully on the train. At the same time, I'm sure the New York Times was once again publishing lies about Israel's continuous "racist torture of the Palestinians."

Just after 7:30, I entered into Jaffa Gate and made my way into the Old City. The scene: an Arab merchant standing next to a Christian priest, selling bread to an observant Jew. All three of them are allowed to practice their religion freely in Israel. All of them have full rights as Israeli citizens. Next to them were a group of Asian tourists enjoying their experience in the Old City. I also saw two black priests and a bunch of Christian European tourists. Then I went to the Kotel (Western Wall) and prayed to G-d next to two Asians who I could tell were not Jewish. If this is racism, then every country in the world is horribly racist. In this day and age, that is not true. In less than one hour, I saw dozens of cultures and at least three religions coexisting peacefully in Jerusalem. THIS IS NOT RACISM!

I dare reporters and journalists to visit Israel and see how things truly operate here. I bet their hateful and negative anti-Israel views would fly out the window.