Israel: Netizens Prepare to Take to the Streets in a New Social Justice Protest · Global Voices
Elizabeth Tsurkov

After the largest protest in Israel's history, which drew almost half a million of Israelis to the streets in early September, the social justice movement in Israel has taken the backseat as the government successfully shifted the public discourse away from issues of economic inequality. The response of the government in the form of the Trajtenberg Committee failed to appease the majority of protesters, but Gilad Shalit's release from Hamas captivity increased the government's popularity. Israeli media, most of which used to be very supportive of the protest movement, hasn't devoted as much attention to covering (and promoting) this new round of protests. Despite these setbacks, the rallies tonight are planned for Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Rishon LeTzion, Kiryat Shmona, Beer Sheva, Haifa, Modiin and Eilat.
Blogger Goliath, pseudonym of journalist Yair Kaldor, explained in his blog the impetus for returning to the streets:
Stav Shafir, one of the leaders of the #j14 protests, tweeted:
Other Israeli bloggers and tweeps also explained their reasons for returning to protest:
Activists in Beer Sheva prepating signs for the rally, September 29. Photo source: The official Facebook page for the local #j14 movement in the Negev
Blogger Ido Teshner shared his personal story of hardship in a country whose social safety net has been cut over the years. He wrote:
Blogger Ori Ben Dov wrote about the upcoming protest
Update: The Beer Sheva rally has been canceled by police due to rocket fire from Gaza.