“Amazement,” “hope,” “a bright spot in a great darkness” and “all is not lost” were just some of the reactions I heard from activists of Physicians of Human Rights (PHR) on June 27 after they raised one million shekels ($280 million) in a 48-hour crowdfunding campaign that will keep their doors open. Many of the donors were Israelis moved by the modest campaign featuring the queen of Israeli theater, actor Gila Almagor.
It was the first crowdfunding drive in the organization’s 30-year history, a response by its directors to a long-running and aggressive campaign by the Israeli right to delegitimize PHR and other human rights and anti-occupation bodies as “Israel-haters.”