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In Israel, Jews and Arabs Alike Reject the "Equity" Ideology Sweeping the West

(Wall Street Journal) Ian Kingsbury - During a visit to Israel in February organized by the UCLA School of Medicine, Jewish and Arab Israelis told me that the ideology of "diversity, equity and inclusion" sacrifices the merit that has helped Israel survive in a sea of hostility. Israelis talk about DEI differently, most notably by excluding or redefining the E. The Hebrew University of Jerusalem is committed to "diversity and inclusion." Ditto the Israel Institute of Technology, or Technion. Tel Aviv University keeps the E, but instead of equity, it emphasizes "equality and diversity." Instead of lowering standards in pursuit of equity, the Technion is reaching out to Arab communities to find more qualified students. Its efforts have increased the number of Arab undergraduate students by about 80%, from 500 in 2020 to more than 900 in 2023, while the dropout rate has decreased. At Hebrew University, an Arab woman who works as a diversity official said her school demands equal opportunity, not equal outcomes. Michael Halberthal, director general at Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa, told us that "people get promotion into their position according to their abilities, not about their religion, not about their gender, not about anything else. And it works." Halberthal said it is the only hospital in the Middle East where an Arab woman heads the nephrology, or kidney disease, unit. After Oct. 7, the hospital's Arab employees showed up en masse to treat the expected influx of patients. I asked an officer who briefed us at Nevatim Airbase if the Israeli Air Force has any initiatives to increase diversity in its ranks. The officer said that while there are efforts to recruit a broad swath of Israeli citizens, assignments and promotions are based on ability. A person has to earn the pilot's seat in an F-35, because when Israel is at war, Israel must win. It can't afford to embrace such a divisive and destructive ideology.
2024-03-08 00:00:00
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