The collapse of the social sector: The bleak reality coronavirus exposed

Coronavirus has also exposed the cold truth: While the public greatly values nonprofit organizations, this appreciation is not reflected in government budgets.

By NAOMI STUCHINER
Naomi Stuchiner, the founder of Beit Issie Shapiro in Ra’anana. (photo credit: Courtesy)
Naomi Stuchiner, the founder of Beit Issie Shapiro in Ra’anana.
(photo credit: Courtesy)
When it comes to people with disabilities, the novel coronavirus crisis has revealed that while there has been progress, we still have a long way to go. If we look at today’s reality, it is clear that the government needs to change direction with regard to the entire third sector and the vulnerable populations it serves.
At the height of the COVID-19 crisis, the priorities, values and interests of decision-makers and opinion-makers were exposed all too clearly. The recommendations of the Commission for Prioritizing Patient Care stated that people with disabilities are to be discriminated against when it comes to receiving life-saving treatment. The non-stop corona media coverage hardly said a word about the collapse of the social sector or the nonprofits and organizations that fill Israel’s social vacuum.
The coronavirus has reinforced the power of community and strengthened our sense of mutual responsibility. We have all seen how the voluntary spirit and local aid initiatives can boost our resolve and spirit. But at the same time, corona has also exposed the cold truth: While the public greatly values nonprofit organizations, this appreciation is not reflected in government budgets.
The third sector in Israel employs approximately half a million people, representing about 14% of jobs in the economy. Another half a million people volunteer. Still, despite this economic and social impact, the third sector has not been invited to participate in any budget discussions, nor has the government taken any steps towards establishing a national emergency fund. Without such a fund, approximately 39% of organizations serving the most vulnerable face immediate closure. Those non-profits, working daily on the front-line in the fields of at-risk children, domestic violence, poverty, disabilities, etc. are still waiting for the two hundred million shekels that were promised by the government, but have yet to be transferred.
This past Independence Day, I had the honor of receiving the Israel Prize for my life’s work – four decades at Beit Issie Shapiro, named in memory of my late father. My father was a great believer in community and in the principle that each and every one of us has equal rights, including the right to play an active part in the community. Beit Issie Shapiro is the fulfillment of my father’s dream to establish in Israel a center of excellence for people with disabilities, working for social and attitudinal change, while addressing the real needs of people with disabilities in the heart of the community.
Official recognition of the importance of this work is heart-warming and a tribute not only to Beit Issie Shapiro’s staff and volunteers, but also to the Israeli public and the important changes we have made as a society regarding people with disabilities. However, a warm heart doesn’t put money in the cash register. Non-profits, including Beit Issie Shapiro, continue to address the enormous challenges that special families face at this time. All this, in an under-budgeted reality and an indescribable reduction in resources.
In the social sector, we don’t have the luxury to stop for more than a second to bask in the light of recognition and love. The world as it is today forces us to continue the constant battle to provide high-quality solutions to vulnerable populations in Israeli society. We have no choice but to fight for the very existence and survival of civil society organizations. This journey is well underway, and it is time for the official institutions to align with us and the public, allocate appropriate resources, and transfer the funds that were already promised.
The writer is the founder of Beit Issie Shapiro and winner of the 2020 Israel Prize for Lifetime Achievement and Special Contribution to Society and the State.


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