Habonim Dror

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Habonim Dror (Hebrew: הבונים דרור‎; Translation: "The Builders of Freedom") is a Jewish Socialist-Zionist youth movement formed by the merger in 1982 of the Habonim and Dror youth movements.

Habonim Dror's sister movement in Israel is Hanoar Haoved Vehalomed, the Working and Studying Youth.

Contents 1 Ideology 2 History 3 Today 4 Countries in which Habonim Dror operates 4.1 North America 4.2 New Zealand 4.3 Australia 4.4 Brazil 4.5 Southern Africa 5 References 6 See also 7 External links

[edit] Ideology

Habonim Dror is a Jewish Socialist-Zionist youth movement, which exists to take responsibility for the Jewish people, Israeli society and the world. The ideology is split under different headings for clarity. They are Hagshama Atzmit (Self-realisation), Socialism/Social Justice, Zionism, Judaism and Chalutziut (Pioneering). But these headings are not separate ideologies, each platform helps to make up one ideology with each part integral to the next. Each and every chaver/a (member) embodies the spirit of Habonim Dror based on their experiences and values gained in the movement. Habonim Dror's ideology is an attempt to represent that spirit in words.

[edit] History

According to Habonim, Great Britain, 1929–1955, there is "a certain mystique" about the establishment of Habonim but "there is little doubt that the major personality behind the idea was Wellesley Aron". An article from the Spring 1929 Jewish Chronicle also credits cites Aron as founder.

Habonim was modeled after the Wandervogel movements in Germany. In 1930, Norman Lourie founded Habonim Southern Africa, with the first camp taking place at Parys in 1931. The idea soon spread to other English-speaking countries and finally throughout the Christian world. The movement was responsible for founding, among others, Kfar Blum, Kfar Hanasi, Beit Haemek, Mevo Hama, Tuval and Gesher Haziv.

Dror was founded in Poland in 1915 out of a wing of the Tze'irei Tziyon (Zion Youth) study circle. The majority of Tze'irei Tziyon had merged with a group called Hashomer in 1913 to form Hashomer Hatzair, and those who remained outside of the new group formed Dror. The group was influenced by the teachings of the Russian Narodniks.

Members of Dror participated in the Warsaw Ghetto uprising. Mordechai Tennenbaum and other Dror members organised two underground factions in the Bialystok Ghetto.

Dror was aligned with the HaKibbutz Hameuhad network while Habonim was aligned with the Ichud kibbutzim. When the two kibbutz movements merged in 1980 to form the United Kibbutz Movement (TaKa"M), so did their respective youth movements.

Famous graduates of the two movements include Golda Meir, Mike Leigh, Mordechai Richler, Jonathan Freedland, Stanley Fischer, Chaim Herzog, Tony Judt, Sacha Baron Cohen, Seth Rogen (The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up), Dan Patterson and Mark Leveson, producers of Whose Line Is It Anyway?, Alexander Bickel, Leonard Fein (columnist of The Forward and founding editor of Moment (magazine)), J.J. Goldberg (editor-in-chief of The Forward), David Twersky (columnist with the New York Sun), Bruce A. Arbit (Co-Managing Diretor of A.B. Data, Ltd. and Chairman of the "United Israel Appeal, Aaron Naparstek, Matt Witten, Mark Regev, Shuli Egar, Guy Spigelman, Tooker Gomberg, Baroness Deech, Jack Markell (the governor of Delaware), Kenneth Bob, Toba Spitzer, and Ron Bloom.

[edit] Today

Today, Habonim Dror exists in seventeen countries worldwide. It is aligned with the United Kibbutz Movement, which recently merged with the Kibbutz Artzi Federation aligned with the Hashomer Hatzair youth movement.

[edit] Countries in which Habonim Dror operates

• Argentina
• Australia [1]
• Belgium [2]
• Brazil [3] [4]
• Canada [5]
• France
• Germany [6]
• Holland
• The Netherlands [7]
• Hungary [8]
• Mexico [9]
• New Zealand [10]
• South Africa [11]
• Turkey
• United Kingdom [12]
• United States [13]
• Uruguay [14]
• South Africa [15]

[edit] North America

Habonim in North America was founded in April 1935 by the youth arm of the Poale Zion Party at a convention in Buffalo, NY. At its height, the movement had over 2,000 campers attending eleven summer camps throughout the U.S. and Canada. Today, Habonim Dror North America (HDNA) runs many programs during the year, including a biannual veida (a mass meeting with representatives from around the movement), local events in central cities, kibbutzim in Israel, a year long program in Israel (called Workshop), and many other ideology-focused gatherings.

HDNA also runs 7 summer camps across the continent. These have become a large part of the movement, and in most cases are more important to members than local meetings (called ken meetings). The seven camps are as follows:

• Camp Galil [16] (Ottsville, Pennsylvania, USA)
• Camp Gesher [17] (Cloyne, Ontario, Canada)
• Camp Gilboa [18] (San Bernardino County, California, USA)
• Camp Miriam [19] (Gabriola Island, British Columbia, Canada)
• Camp Moshava [20] (Street, Maryland, USA)
• Camp Na'aleh [21] (Bainbridge, New York, USA)
• Camp Tavor [22] (Three Rivers, Michigan, USA)

Some now defunct camps and Habonim hachshara farms are:

• Camp Amal (Vermont 1948–49, Na'aleh 1950, Cream Ridge 1951, Moshava 1952, Galil 1953)
• Camp Bonim (Dallas, Texas)
• Camp Kinneret (Chelsea, Michigan)
• Camp Kvutzah Gimli (Gimli, Manitoba)
• Camp Kvutzah Montreal (St. Faustin, Quebec)
• Camp Tel Ari (New York)
• Camp Tel Hai (New Buffalo, Michigan)
• Camp Tel Natan (Troy, Missouri)
• Camp Yad Ari (Waupaca, Wisconsin)
• Cream Ridge Farm (Upper Freehold, New Jersey)
• Smithville Farm (Smithville, Ontario)

Additionally, a five week trip, named Machaneh Bonim in Israel (MBI) is a summer tour of Israel for 16-year-olds (summer after 10th grade). Students from the seven camps spend time together and learn about Israel and the movement.

HDNA publishes B'tnua, the regular movement magazine.

Habonim Dror has collaborated with Ameinu, Hashomer Hatzair, and Meretz USA to form the Union of Progressive Zionists campus network.

[edit] New Zealand

There are 3 main centres; Auckland being the largest, then Wellington and Christchurch. Each Ken runs weekly meetings. The movement come together for various seminars during the year as well as winter and summer camps. The summer camps run for ten days and are always in tents and on a farm, winter camps are shorter and run in cabins due to New Zealand's climate. Habo NZ celebrated its 60th anniversary in 2008.

[edit] Australia

Habonim Dror has five kenim (branches) around Australia. They are in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Byron Bay and Perth. The three largest Kenim in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth hold weekly meetings, regular seminars and two camps each year (winter and summer), with chaverim (members) from all of Australia coming together for senior summer camp.

Every year chanichim (members) travel to Israel for a year on Shnat Hachshara le'Aliyah Ve'Hadracha, commonly referred to as Shnat, where they go on an extensive experiential and educational process and actively carry out movement aims and discuss group issues.

[edit] Brazil

The movement arrived in Brazil by influences of the Argentine activists, and began in Porto Alegre (Southern Brazil) in 1945. Within a few years, Habonim reached Curitiba, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Some time later, it arrived in Recife, Salvador, Belo Horizonte and Manaus.

At these seven branches across the country, Habonim runs weekly activities for children, teenagers and young adults from 7 to 22 years old, as well as weekly-long Machanot (camps) in Summer and Winter. Also twice a year is held the National Machaneh.

Once in a two-year cycle, a Veidah Artzit (National Convention) is held, comprising a meeting of all the senior members of the National Movement. The Veidah has powers to modify HD Brazil's ideological platform, as long as it doesn't oppose to the World Movement's principles.

[edit] Southern Africa

Habonim Dror Southern Africa (HDSA) was founded in 1930 by Norman Lourie.^[1] HDSA draws its membership from the Southern African region. However the vast majority of its membership comes from South Africa.

HDSA's two primary centres are based in Cape Town and Johannesburg, although the movement is active across the country.

HDSA defines itself as a Jewish Zionist Youth movement (See Constitution 2009).^[2] HDSA classifies itself as a left-wing organisation. Unlike other Habonim Dror movements, HDSA does not classify itself as socialist but rather supports economic and social equality.^[3]

As a left-wing Zionist movement, HDSA promotes a two-state solution in Israel. It also encourages it members to live in Israel in a manner which positively contributes to Israeli society.^[3]

HDSA also places immense value on active citizenship and thus strives to educate its members on South Africa and encourages them to be active in creating a just and equal post apartheid South Africa. To this end, HDSA has worked with non-governmental organisation's such as the Treatment Action Campaign, the Social Justice Coalition and Equal Education in attempting to achieve these goals.^[2]

HDSA annually hosts one of the largest summer camps in the Southern Hemisphere at their campsite in Onrus outside Cape Town.^[4] During the year, consistent activities are run for its members who range from the ages of 9–22.^[5] Additionally, HDSA runs an annual tour to Israel for 16 year old's and sends many of its members on a ten month post school program to Israel.^[6][7]

[edit] References

[edit] See also

• One World Youth Project
• Zionist youth movement
• Labour Zionism
• HaNoar HaOved VeHaLomed

[edit] External links

• Habonim Olami – World Habonim
• HDUK – Habonim Dror United Kingdom Homepage
• Habonim Dror Uruguay
• Habonim Dror Holland
• Habonim Dror Southern Africa – Habonim Dror Southern Africa
• Habonim Reunited – Reunite with past HDSA chevre!
• Habonim Dror São Paulo, Brasil – Habonim Dror São Paulo, Brasil
• Habonim Dror Rio de Janeiro, Brasil – Habonim Dror Rio de Janeiro, Brasil
• Habonim Dror Mexico Habonim Dror Mexico
• HDNA – Habonim Dror North America Homepage
• B'tnua – HDNA's movement magazine
• HDOZ – Habonim Dror Australia Homepage
• Habonim Dror Aotearoa New Zealand Habonim Dror Aotearoa New Zealand
• HDHU – Habonim Dror Hungary Homepage
• Habonim Dror Nancy, France
• habonim dror france - belgium !
• habonim dror Hungary - Budapest