Parents of students at the Gimnasia Realit high school in Rishon Letzion were surprised to discover that the list of tours and school trips for the coming year at the school does not include Jewish-related educational tours such as heritage sites or synagogues.
The list includes 18 tours, among them: a meeting with an 'Arab family of 13 generations in Jaffa', 'Nachlat Binyamin - women, gender and space', a lecture on human rights, a tour of the Neve Shanan neighborhood with 'refugees and asylum seekers', a meeting with foreign workers in the Shapira neighborhood and more.
MK Amichai Eliyahu (Otzma Yehudit) said: "The Israeli youth are losing their identity, instead of learning about our ancestors and the roots of the Jewish people and tradition, about the nationalism of the State of Israel. The students of Israel need to connect with the Bible. The education system is doing everything to introduce progressive content as much as possible.''
Matan Peleg, the CEO of the Im Tirtzu movement, said: "18 tours, none of them at a synagogue, not at Jewish heritage sites, not at military heritage sites. But they will teach the students about '13 generations' of Arabs in Jaffa. And they will be brought together with 'asylum seekers' - without any balance from the other side. This is brainwashing in the most blatant and ugly way. Right off the bat, we must fix the education system, otherwise we will raise a generation of [people who despise Judaism] who will leave the country.''
The Rishon Letzion Municipality responded: "As part of Human Rights Day this past week, the students of the Gimnasia Realit go on a study tour that includes a meeting with disadvantaged populations. The purpose of the tour is to raise awareness among the future generation of the basic rights of every person, regardless of who they are. Also, during the school year, the students hold meetings with people from the religious and haredi population and visit places holy to Judaism such as the Western Wall. There is no contradiction in this, but rather a reinforcement of the cultural pluralism advocated by the municipal education system."