Twenty cadets studying in the Israel Police Special Officer’s Course visited Ono Academic College to learn more about Ethiopian Israelis. Led by Superintendent Asaf Marzuk of Israel’s National Police College, the group represented future officers from a number of different branches including: patrol, CSI, operations, traffic, etc.
They participated in an entertaining discussion led by Rabbi Dr. Sharon Shalom, the Founder and Director of Ono’s International Center for the Study of Ethiopian Jewry in order to learn more about the Ethiopian Israeli community and especially in relation to their police work.
Rabbi Dr. Shalom discussed the problem of stereotyping and pre-conceived notions which affect everyone in society. He said that it can be argued that an Ethiopian Israeli has to prove that he is smart, while an Ashkenazi has to prove that he isn’t.
He reminded the group that this problem is not new to Israeli society. In earlier days there was a saying that if one sees a Moroccan Jew running one might ask, “Who is he running from?” However, if one sees an Ashkenazi Jew running, one might ask “Who is chasing him?” Rabbi Dr. Shalom believes that there is a very common, though destructive, tendency to generalize about individuals who are part of groups. He worries that this affects all of society including law enforcement.
He noted that he doesn’t believe that Israeli society is racist, but it has not proven brave enough to overcome the stigmas that it has placed on Ethiopian Israelis.
Rabbi Dr. Sharon noted that Ethiopian Israelis have also have pre-conceived notions. Many believe that Israeli society is institutionally racist, and that the police are light on the trigger. He said that Ethiopian Israelis also must judge police as individuals and not defame the entire institution.
In terms of solutions, Rabbi Dr. Sharon suggested looking for the deeper identify of the individual, rather than remaining with the superficial identification of the group. We must discuss the real problems that exist openly and honestly, and each side has to find the areas they are responsible for rather than engaging in a discourse of accusation. Ethiopian Israelis need to understand where the police are coming from and the police need to understand where Ethiopian Israelis are coming from. We all need to find the correct balance between the need to make snap judgements based on limited information, in very time dependent situations, and the requirement to exercise our more lengthy process of drawing conclusions based on the totality of the information that we have. Rabbi Dr. Shalom concluded by suggesting that when we think we are sure of something, we should raise a doubt about our certainty.
At the end of the meeting, Rabbi Dr. Shalom asked the participants to go around the room and share something that they learned that will accompany them in their future police work. Some fascinating replies included: the importance of learning about the other, the need to focus on identity over identification, raising doubt when we feel certain, to beware of profiling, leaving old stigmas behind, and treating each person as a blank slate.
It was a fascinating exchange of ideas. We welcome the police to return to Ono’s Ethiopian Center for more conversation.
