Dignified Living 4 Every Person with a Disability

Nuriel Moshe is a 22 year-old young man with a disability who lives in the center of Israel with his parents. His dream is to participate in the program ‘Gedolim B’Madim’ (a special track that enables persons with disabilities to serve in the army). Just a year ago, Nuriel’s situation was completely different. Nuriel was living in an institution in which the staff dosed him up on psychiatric pills and were even violent towards him. With assistance from Bizchut, his parents managed to take him out of this institution and they are now in the process of arranging a more dignified community-based living situation for their son. Nuriel’s story is not unusual. It’s the same for tens of thousands of persons with disabilities (and their families) whose voices are just not heard. Around 17,000 persons with disabilities in Israel live in institutional settings. These facilities restrict the freedom of movement of the residents and infringe on the basic right of each person to make decisions about the simple things in life: with whom will I live with, when will I see my relatives, what will I eat and when, what time will I go to bed. Can you imagine living under these conditions? And there’s even more - we have received many complaints about terrible abuse and neglect in these frameworks. The State of Israel declares that everyone has the right to live in the community, but in practice does not allow people with disabilities to exercise this right. The Ministry of Social Affairs allocates billions of shekels from public funds to institutional frameworks but individuals who ask to live in the community encounter endless barriers put in their way by public officials. This is where Bizchut makes its unique contribution. We assist persons with disabilities and their families to overcome the many bumps in the road on the way from an institution to dignified and equal living in the community. In 2021, Bizchut intends to double and even triple the number of persons with disabilities whom we assist to live in the community rather than in an institution, to have a home of their own. Please note: For 5 days every shekel you donate will be doubled!