Jewish Democratic Initiative

Jewish Democratic Initiative JDI strives for an inclusive SA Jewish community, committed to social justice, and advocates for a peaceful resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Screening in Cape Town and Johannesburg. Quicket link in bio. The Voice of Hind Rajab reconstructs the events of the day...
15/04/2026

Screening in Cape Town and Johannesburg. Quicket link in bio.

The Voice of Hind Rajab reconstructs the events of the day a 6 year old girl from Gaza, Hind, using the original audio recordings from the Palestinian Red Crescent office in Ramallah, where the call was taken. While the people on screen are actors, the voices we hear are real.

Hind Rajab’s mother gave permission for the film, saying: “My message is more than just words. It is the pain of a mother who lost her daughter, then found in the outpouring of love for her a message from God. I understood that my mission is to carry the voice of Gaza’s children to the world. The children who live in the heart of war, in the dark, in deprivation of their most basic rights, of their dreams that are torn before they bloom.”

The film’s director Kaouther Ben Hania has been an Oscar nominee three times. The Voice of Hind Rajab was not only nominated for an Oscar, it also won seven awards at the Venice Film Festival where it received the longest audience applause – 23 minutes – that any film has ever received.

This is a film that goes beyond passive viewing and demands a response, which is why ample time will be provided after the movie for audience discussion.

Screening in Cape Town and Joburg. Book on Quicket. Cape Town: Neville Alexander Building, UCTJoburg: Nelson Mandela Fou...
15/04/2026

Screening in Cape Town and Joburg. Book on Quicket.

Cape Town: Neville Alexander Building, UCT
Joburg: Nelson Mandela Foundation

The Voice of Hind Rajab reconstructs the events of the day a 6 year old girl in Gaza, Hind, was killed using the original audio recordings from the Palestinian Red Crescent office in Ramallah, where her call was taken. While the people on screen are actors, the voices we hear are real.

Hind Rajab’s mother gave permission for the film, saying: “My message is more than just words. It is the pain of a mother who lost her daughter, then found in the outpouring of love for her a message from God. I understood that my mission is to carry the voice of Gaza’s children to the world. The children who live in the heart of war, in the dark, in deprivation of their most basic rights, of their dreams that are torn before they bloom.”

The film’s director Kaouther Ben Hania has been an Oscar nominee three times. The Voice of Hind Rajab was not only nominated for an Oscar, it also won seven awards at the Venice Film Festival where it received the longest audience applause – 23 minutes – that any film has ever received.

This is a film that goes beyond passive viewing and demands a response, which is why ample time will be provided after the movie for audience discussion.

On Yom HaShoah, we remember the six million Jews killed by the N**i regime and we recommit to the lessons their memory d...
14/04/2026

On Yom HaShoah, we remember the six million Jews killed by the N**i regime and we recommit to the lessons their memory demands of us.

The Holocaust did not begin with mass violence. It began with normalising hatred, eroding democratic institutions, and bystanders who chose silence.

Today, as we witness the resurgence of right-wing extremism, the celebration of intolerance in the halls of power, and the weakening of democratic institutions across the globe, the lessons of the Shoah are not abstract. They are urgent.

South African Jews have a proud tradition of standing against injustice. JDI was founded to honour that tradition. We believe Jewish safety is inseparable from the safety and dignity of all people - and that remembrance without action is incomplete.

To the six million: zichronam livracha - may their memory be a blessing, and a call to action.

Ramadan Mubarak Muslim South Africans and around the world 🌙Ramadan is a time of reflection, discipline, generosity and ...
18/02/2026

Ramadan Mubarak Muslim South Africans and around the world 🌙

Ramadan is a time of reflection, discipline, generosity and deepened faith. It is a month that calls for compassion, for care of the vulnerable, and for renewed commitment to justice - values that resonate deeply across our diverse communities.

In a country shaped by pluralism and shared struggle, we honour the spiritual significance of this month and the many ways Muslim South Africans contribute to the social, moral and civic life of our democracy.

May this Ramadan bring peace, strength and renewal to you and your families.

When the lines between Israel, Judaism and Zionism are blurred, manipulated and different for so many people, how do sch...
17/02/2026

When the lines between Israel, Judaism and Zionism are blurred, manipulated and different for so many people, how do schools do right by their kids?

Join us Wednesday 18 February for an open audience conversation about the Roedean-King David saga: the reporting, the intense debates online and the recent fallout for the Roedean headmistress and chair of the board.

Entrance is free at Cape Town and Joburg venues. Book in the Quicket link in our bio.

The JDI is holding a joint Hanukkah service with the Open Mosque in Cape Town this Sunday the 21st at 7pm. After the Bon...
18/12/2025

The JDI is holding a joint Hanukkah service with the Open Mosque in Cape Town this Sunday the 21st at 7pm. After the Bondi Beach tragedy, it is all the more important that Muslims and Jews show their solidarity.

The Open Mosque - which practices gender equality and interfaith dialogue - has invited JDI to lead a service on the last night of Hanukkah this year. Following the service, the congregation will serve a meal that will include Jewish and Malay cuisine.

If you’re in Cape Town this Sunday, we urge you to take this opportunity to join space where all faiths are welcome and engage with people we don’t often have the chance to hear.

RSVP via email to [email protected]

A solemn Hannukah greeting from JDI: We at the Jewish Democratic Initiative mourn with the victims of the Bondi Beach ma...
14/12/2025

A solemn Hannukah greeting from JDI:

We at the Jewish Democratic Initiative mourn with the victims of the Bondi Beach massacre. The festival of light has become a festival of darkness. Antisemitism has become murderous. Jews worldwide have never been more vulnerable.

But let us be careful of the conclusions we draw. The Israeli government is already using this tragedy to cast blame at its critics. To oppose the behaviour of the Israeli government is s to encourage terrorism. But is Israel not innocent. Antisemitism has been stoked worldwide for 800 days by the behaviour of a state which claims to act in our names and with our consent.

Far too many innocents have already died. This Hanukkah, we must decide: Will we increase the light or will we stoke the fires? In their shaping of this holiday, our rabbis provided a clear answer to this question: Choose the light.

On 13 November 2025, a charter plane carrying 153 refugees from Gaza landed at OR Tambo International Airport in Johanne...
24/11/2025

On 13 November 2025, a charter plane carrying 153 refugees from Gaza landed at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg. The refugees, most of whom had lost family members and their homes during the war, paid large sums to a shadowy “aid agency” to be bused out of Gaza. They were allowed no baggage or additional clothing and were not told their destination.

Upon arrival, they were kept on board for 12–13 hours without food, water or access to toilets because they lacked exit stamps in their passports and couldn’t provide return tickets or confirmed addresses.

Local welfare organisations swiftly rallied to provide housing, clothing, food, medical care and legal assistance. When it became apparent that the one item that was missing was toys for the children, the JDI membership were asked to donate.

Within hours, a last-minute toy drive came together to welcome the children in the cohort with comfort, colour and care — a small gesture of joy after an unimaginable journey. Thank you to everyone who donated, organised, or spread the word.

On Monday, staged a peaceful anti-genocide demonstration alongside a group of other organisations. On Tuesday, the Sout...
22/10/2025

On Monday, staged a peaceful anti-genocide demonstration alongside a group of other organisations. On Tuesday, the South African Jewish Board of Deputies issued a statement labelling the demonstration as 'anti-Jewish'.

Though JDI has both ideological and strategic differences with SAJFP, we respect the sincerity and genuine conviction that SAJFP is committed to protecting Jewish values. Here is our statement on the matter:

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