Civic organizations are usually carried on the shoulders of women and men who see themselves responsible for promoting their community and are determined to lead change for society. Such is Manar Abu Dahl , a 30-year- old Bedouin woman from Lod.
Manar is proud to be a pioneer from a young age. As a high school student, she participated in workshops for science-oriented youth at Tel Aviv University. Upon graduation, she was the first Bedouin in Lod to be admitted to the university. “I broke through for the girls of my family and neighborhood, and today most of the girls and young women turn naturally to academic or vocational studies right after high school.”; Manar continued her graduate studies and currently holds a master’s degree in organizational counseling and organizational behavior.
During her studies at the Hebrew University, she received the Dean of Students Award for Social Entrepreneurship for a variety of social projects: Sachbakafe – meetings of Arab and Jewish students at an Arab-Jewish cafe in Mount Scopus. Students from all over the spectrum – leftists and rightists, republicans and democrats, religious and secular, Jerusalemites and New Yorkers – all share the desire to get to know each other. The coffee and the baklava are on the house.
In another social project, Manar promotes the youth in her hometown. As part of the Center for Social Entrepreneurship of the Hebrew University Student U nion and the Ashoka organization, the center currently leads a social initiative called From High School to Higher Education. The aim of the project is to provide educational and other support for twelfth grade students in Arab schools in Lod, thus expanding their horizons and presenting them with higher education tracks open to them. Students will also be introduced to the various facets of the Academic world and will attend open days in some institutions of higher education.
Manar attributes her tendency to help others to her upbringing: “At home, I received an education emphasizing help, contribution and giving. These principles are the cornerstones of my family that went from parents to children”; Since her return from Jerusalem, Manar has been involved in social entrepreneurships in Lod and its environs. She has been a regional coordinator and coordinator for the recruitment of girls for national service at Shlomit Ramla Lod, and is leading groups of students during her studies at Ono Academic College. Today she is an organizational consultant in the Etgarim program for the Arab sector and supervises daycare centers in Tel Aviv.
However, these challenging occupations do not satisfy Manar's energies and ability:”After completing my master's degree, I made sure to fulfill my desires and volunteer spirit and chose to be a partner in WOMEN WAGE PEACE movement. The positive spirit and solidarity of the women in the movement are in line with my vision” Living together in brotherhood and peace, we are all human beings, and the difference between us distinguishes every person and contributes to the diversity of the world”.
“I launched the branch of Women Wage Peace in the city of Lod with a screening of the movie: “Drive the devil back to hell” and a meeting with the movement. The audience was excited to hold another meeting. Now I am working on opening a self-defense course for Arab and Jewish women and dialogue and discourse for joint action in Lod”.
Other projects planned by Manar include: the integration of youth in the movement, the peace kitchen, WWP’;s volunteer work in schools, encounters between Arab and Jewish schools and more.
Today Manar is the coordinator of the Lod-Ramla area in Women Wage Peace movement and a member of the movement’s media team.
