Charity makes us who we are

At governmental level, Israel's attitude towards the 17,000 African refugees living in the country leaves a great deal to be desired. Instead of doing their utmost to assist those fleeing war-torn, famine-stricken homelands, many politicians have instead placed hurdle after hurdle in the asylum seekers' path, conveniently ignoring the state's duties as a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

However, when it comes to the man on the Israeli street, a far more heartening approach to the destitute migrants is apparent, as was exemplified during the last 10 days in response to an urgent call for action in south Tel Aviv. When food supplies for the local refugee shelter were on the verge of running out, volunteers launched a massive appeal for provisions and funds to replenish the storerooms, entering into a race against time to ensure that none of the shelter's residents went hungry.

Almost two weeks later, with the storerooms now boasting enough basic foodstuffs to feed the residents for at least the next two months, the stream of contributions continues to pour in. Most of the donors come from low-income backgrounds, a statistic in line with studies showing the worse off give proportionately more of their income to charity than their richer peers. (For example, the top fifth of UK households give less than 1% of their total income, while the poorest tenth give three times as much, or 3% of their income).