The winning submission in the third essay contest (April 2020) was "'That Someday I Will Become One of Them': The Fans of Hapoel Jerusalem from an Optical Perspective," by Or Ben Harush, class of 2021.
The essay discusses the fans of Hapoel Jerusalem, Jerusalem's professional basketball team. In this ethnographical paper, Or offers an analysis from the stands themselves; from the perspective of one who is close to and familiar with the fans. Or explores the fans' passion and the symbolism of fanhood as an aspect in their lives.
The full essay (in Hebrew) is available at the bottom of the page.
Or chose to donate the 1,000 shekel prize to the Tebeka organization. Here are a few words from Or about Tebeka:
The Tebeka organization works to fully integrate the Ethiopian community into the different spheres of Israeli society. The organization believes it important to do so without discrimination or racism, while respecting the cultural character, identity and power of the Ethiopian community. It offers legal representation, runs empowerment and leadership programs, and works to root out racism and discrimination from within the Israeli society.
Thank you to the judging committee - Roni Bar Dov (class of 2020), Erga Peter (class of 2021), and Yonah Becker (class of 2020) - and to the contest organizer, Orielle Levy (class of 2020)!