Apples and Oranges

Kibbutz volunteering began in an eclipse. The idealistic and rebellious 1960s generation was charmed by the old communist ideology as it came to life in the Israeli Kibbutz. The 1967 Six-Day War attracted a wave of support for Israel that the Kibbutz Movement saw as a miracle. When travel agencies started selling “Kibbutz Volunteering” packages, it was clear that volunteering also became a profitable business. The Kibbutz found itself facing unfamiliar phenomenon – drugs, alcohol and marriage with non-Jewish volunteers. During the 1980s, unemployment across Europe secured a steady number of volunteers, but now Israel was no longer the same country. The war in Lebanon and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict forced the volunteers to face a new question – does supporting the Kibbutz mean supporting the state of Israel?