The plank in brief

Hebrew and Arabic are both languages of this land, and a shared country needs both of them in its public life. It starts in early childhood with dual-language immersion: play, stories, and curiosity in both languages. It continues through bilingual primary and secondary schools, one curriculum in two languages, and on into universities and vocational institutes that teach and do research in both. Nobody should lose a right because of the language they speak. You can take an exam in Hebrew or in Arabic, and you get public services in the language you choose.

Bilingual is built into every system, not added afterward. Every law is published in both languages. You can file, argue, and hear a verdict in either. Medical forms, consent, and care come in the language you choose, and so do emergency calls, dispatch, and response. Software, public alerts, and road signs speak both. To make it real we need a national bilingual teacher corps, with salary premiums while teachers are scarce, and publicly funded language technology, models, and speech tools trained fairly on Hebrew and Arabic, with privacy and accountability built in. Israeli Sign Language and Palestinian Sign Language get recognized and developed, with research, interpreting, and media access. And every child gets a real chance at English and Chinese, with French, Spanish, Russian, Amharic, and more on offer. Two historic languages, and a window to the world.

Objections and replies

None posted yet. If you have a strong objection to this plank, send it to me. The strongest ones go up here with my reply.

Changes

• November 2026: first published here.