Time Traveler Urges Israelis to Vote, Highlighting Hard-Won Suffrage Rights
תומצת מתוך Zman Yisrael על ידי baba
An opinion piece uses a hypothetical time traveler from 1900 to illustrate the profound historical achievement of universal suffrage. It details the long and difficult battles fought by women, the poor, and minorities for the right to vote in various countries. The author urges Israelis to exercise their right to vote, emphasizing that it is a hard-won privilege that can be lost if not exercised.
הידיעה ב-6 שורות · תקציר של baba
- A time traveler from 1900 would be most astounded by universal suffrage, not technology.
- Women fought for decades globally to gain the right to vote, achieving it gradually.
- Many men were also initially excluded from voting based on property and other criteria.
- Jewish citizens in Europe faced additional hurdles to exercising their political rights.
- The right to vote is not guaranteed and can be lost, as history shows.
- The author urges Israelis to vote, calling it a crucial, hard-won privilege.
An opinion piece urges undecided voters to consider the historical significance of their right to vote, drawing a parallel with a hypothetical time traveler from the year 1900 arriving in the modern era. The author posits that while technological advancements like airplanes and smartphones would astound such a traveler, the most profound change would be the universal right of every citizen, regardless of gender, education, or wealth, to participate in choosing their leaders. This concept, taken for granted in contemporary Israel, represents a monumental historical revolution.
The article details the arduous struggles for suffrage globally. In 1900, only New Zealand and South Australia granted women the right to vote. It took decades of activism, including by the "suffragettes," for countries like Finland (1906), the UK (partial in 1918, full in 1928), France (1944), Italy (1945), Greece (1952), and notably Switzerland (1971) to achieve women's voting rights. The piece also notes that many men were initially disenfranchised due to property or residency requirements, with universal male suffrage only being achieved in many places after World War I. Furthermore, historical discrimination against Jews in Europe often added another layer of difficulty to their ability to vote or hold office, citing examples like Lionel de Rothschild in Britain and Romania's restrictive citizenship laws.
The author emphasizes that the right to vote is not guaranteed and can be lost, referencing the revocation of political rights for Jews in Nazi Germany in 1935, despite earlier suffrage. The piece concludes by urging readers to vote, framing it not as a guarantee of perfect candidates or satisfactory outcomes, but as a fundamental right that prevents others from exclusively deciding who governs. It stresses that historical rights can be gained but also lost, making participation crucial for shaping the future.