Buy Nothing Day 1999:
Report from Israel

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For the first time the international “Buy Nothing Day” was celebrated in Israel. Activists from Green Action, Green Course and Anonymous went out to put up stands at five malls: Shalom Center, Dizengoff Center, Dizenkoff Cicle, Ramat-Aviv Mall in Tel Aviv, and Kanyon Malcha in Jerusalem. At the stands we handed out flyers to the public and at each stand there were also ‘contracts’. Passerby were asked to sign a ‘contract’ committing them to buying only what they really need, and not what advertisers are trying to sell.

Some places also had a street theater show to enternatin the public. In one of the skits, a ‘salesman’ sold ‘happiness pills’ for a shekel. The pills were actually shekels wrapped nicely. The mall rats had a great laugh at this joke, even though the joke was on them.

At another mall, we performed a skit showing ‘businesspeople’ trying to catch a sign that read: “Buy More, Be More, Buy More To Be Happy.” The sign was hanging from their backs with a fishing rod. When someone wanted to catch the sign, it moved, always a few inches away from reach. How amazingly true to life!

In Dizengoff Center, Shalom Center and Ramat-Aviv mal there were problems with the mall storm troopers. They foolishly insisted that our stands should close, even though we had written permission from the municipality. In future years we shall be forced to bring proof that doesn’t require reading. Perhaps if we change our signs to read, ‘Buy Everything Day’ they will leave us alone.

At Dizengoff Circle, fifty cyclists from that day’s “critical mass” joined the Buy Nothing Day theater group. In Jerusalem the activists gave out flyers at the entrance of Malcha Mall.

by Alexa Kuerth

Green Action

POB 4611 Tel-Aviv 65161, Israel
Tel/Fax: +972.3.516.2349
http://www.greenaction.org.il

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