Ezri Tovi: "After the Video Was Released, I Got a Call - Check Your Bank Account"

When Ezri Tovi was exposed, nearly a decade ago, to the treatment of the State of Israel, particularly in Judea and Samaria on social networks, he was shocked. "I sat down to read the distortions and attacks on our country, and particularly on the settlers," he recalls. "False headlines screamed from all directions, at home and abroad. My heart broke with pain and I felt I couldn't take it anymore; I had to act." Back then, Tovi had a Facebook account with 12 friends and a simple camera on his mobile phone, which did not stop him from creating hundreds of advocacy videos, with tens of thousands of views in Israel and abroad.

"The Power Went Out, and Then It Happened"

Even before this, and long before social media, Tovi underwent his own process of clarification. "I grew up in a religious family in Netanya, but I never felt connected internally. On the contrary, like every kid in Western society, I was full of thoughts and urges focusing on the pleasures this society offers. Yet I still wore a kippah on my head, which limited me to a certain extent."

This continued until the moment he could choose himself. "At 15, I took off the kippah and left school. I started smoking, partying, immersing myself in secular culture to its full extent," he describes. "One evening, we were partying at a friend's house, and by the end, my parents received a particularly painful phone call. On the other end of the line, my friend's father said, 'Come pick up your son; he's throwing up all over my living room.' I got home completely drunk, with my dad supporting me so I wouldn't fall. The tears my parents shed for me that night were impossible to hide."

Years passed, and after his military service, Tovi went traveling around the world. "I started in India, then continued to Nepal, Vietnam, Thailand, and New Zealand. At my last stop, I heard about an extreme bungee jump that had never been done before - a jump from a helicopter. Naturally, I was the first Israeli to try it. There was an empty pit inside me, always searching to experience and feel strong. In reality, the pit deepened, and upon returning home, feelings of confusion and wonder only intensified. I was searching for a thread to fill the void within me, and I didn't know what it was."

When did you find the thread?

"My younger sister had just married a guy from Mercaz HaRav yeshiva, and my father really wanted me to come to the Shabbat Chatan. I went to honor him, and surprisingly, it happened there. It was time for the third meal; all the groom's friends were sitting and singing around the table in the small dining room when suddenly the power went out. To my surprise, not only did it not stop them from singing, but it also intensified their singing. I sat in front of them and felt something inside me I had never known. The mixed feelings left me restless. At that moment, I realized that if I didn't check this possibility out, I would never forgive myself."

Very quickly, Tovi came to an action. "I entered Machon Meir, with a personal promise to myself that it was only for a week," he says with a smile. "But one week led to another and another, eventually extending to two and a half years. The Torah learning I was privileged to do built a new level within me. The power of that learning goes with me to this day."

During that time, Tovi had the blessing to marry Or his wife, and together they built their home in a place they couldn't have imagined before. "Even as a bachelor, a friend suggested spending Shabbat in Itamar, a place I had never visited before. I was open to new things and happily accepted the offer." But when Tovi arrived at his hosts' home, something happened that he could not have anticipated. "The host told me, 'Come with me, I'll show you where we spend Shabbat.' He started driving on an endless winding road in the mountains. Finally, we reached an isolated house on one of the hills, a family had gone away for Shabbat. There he informed me - you will guard their house this Shabbat. Apparently, there was some misunderstanding, and he thought I had come to guard. So I found myself on a Friday night, alone, without a weapon, with the winds howling around and my imagination running wild with every horror movie I've ever seen."

While asking himself what he was doing in the cold and isolated place he reached by mistake, new insights began to surface in Tovi's mind. "Hashem opened my eyes, and I began to see things differently. I imagined Abraham our father entering the land and reaching this exact area. During that night, my connection to the place was born, and I realized that I too wanted to live on these hills."

A few years later, the Tovi couple arrived in Itamar, and later in Yitzhar. "I would go out to graze in the mornings, roam the mountains, connect with nature, listen to myself and the silence," Tovi recalls. "Every few nights I would keep watch in the settlement tower, and again, I had time to listen inwardly, to my heart. At that point, I unplugged from communication and worldly affairs. During that period, I had the merit to release an album of songs born from this inner connection. In the meantime, we flew a few times to India to operate 'Jewish houses' there. Engaging in outreach was significant for me; I held discussions and spoke extensively with people."

A One-Man Advocacy System

After about 15 years of personal growth, Tovi felt he had to pass on what was inside him. "I looked for where I could contribute of myself, and discovered social networks online. There, I was exposed to the harsh headlines about Israel in the world. I also saw how many Jews abroad believed them and went along with this trend. I couldn't bear the deception; it shattered my heart into pieces. So, one day, the decision to write something for those people sprouted within me. I wrote to them - 'Imagine terrorists infiltrating your home in the middle of the night and slaughtering your family. Imagine missiles exploding in the middle of your city routinely, killing innocent civilians. Imagine murderers digging tunnels under your home to kill you.' I continued to describe the situation we are so used to. These words became my first video."

Imagine - The first video by Ezri Tovi:

The video was simply shot in Tovi's living room using his mobile phone camera. Yet, the results were immediate. "Back then, no one was speaking that way about the situation in the country; it was a novelty for people. I quickly received warm reactions from all over the world, and two weeks later, it already had half a million views. Some people even told me - we're from the left side of the political map, but this video did not leave us indifferent. I felt like a baal teshuva receiving initial light over their attributes, providing them the strength to continue."

Since then, Tovi continued with full force in what he sees as his life's mission. "I established an organization called 'Boomerang,' through which I have been privileged to produce hundreds of videos in recent years, especially those showing the real situation in Judea and Samaria. I showcased the luxurious palaces where 'Palestinian refugees' live compared to the small caravans where 'occupying settlers' live. I filmed what's really happening in the Arab village of Huwara, and more. From the beginning, the genuine and engaging content left no one indifferent, and I received responses from all over the world. I remember how after I published a video about the luxurious cars of the residents of Huwara, I got a phone call from Miriam Adelson, the richest Israeli in the world, who told me - Check your bank account. The video touched her, and she decided to thank me with a generous donation."

What drives you to keep creating the videos despite the considerable effort?

"I can't just sit and do nothing while there's so much suffering out there. It's not right for me to lament the situation in the country and keep complaining about it instead of making a difference. These feelings resonate within me a lot. Often, I think that when I ascend to heaven, Hashem will ask me - My dear son, I gave you so much good, did you spread it? Did you use the tools you received so others could benefit from this good? So I decided to stand up and do something, and every time I pick up the camera - that's what stands in my mind. Generally speaking, when we give a platform to our truth and values, things move in reality. Even if the change isn't great or immediate and only affects a small number of people, it's the beginning of a path, and it's a lot."

With the camera in his hand, Tovi decided last Elul to embark on a journey. "I felt that with the upcoming new year, I needed to do something different," he shares. "I decided to embark on a journey between the farms in Judea and Samaria and create a video about a different farm each day. During the journey, I met people with unique strengths, who through an outlook of faith and the ability to deal with the challenges of the terrain, seize hundreds of dunams in the land and keep them in Jewish hands. Around 1,500 viewers joined the journey in real-time, getting to know, marvel, and be moved by all this goodness with me."

At some point, to cover the costs of video production, Tovi applied the knowledge he acquired while creating them. "I opened a course, which enables filming and producing high-quality videos - all through the mobile phone. It turns out you can do all this in a simple, quality, fast, and cheap process, saving an entire production process that, until today, required professional filming and editing. This is through using various functions of the mobile phone camera and excellent editing apps."

A Journey to Israeli Brotherhood

Several more months passed until we found ourselves in the current complex reality. "Similar to many people, I too felt great frustration with the rift in the nation," says Tovi. "Again I asked myself - what can I do, and I decided to embark on another journey - a journey to Israeli brotherhood. I set out to film stories of people who, despite differences, love and respect each other. I found this love, for instance, with parents from Kibbutz Kerem Shalom, people with a leftist agenda, who do everything for their daughter who became religious and lives in Hebron. They even built her two separate kitchens - dairy and meat. I found this love also among Jews of all stripes who serve together in reserves, and among 'Yedidim' volunteers who help anyone stuck on the road, regardless of their political side."

The videos received a wide array of heartfelt responses. "Again, many viewers joined me in real-time, experiencing with me the loving feelings in the nation, and the desire of so many people to remain connected. Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu wrote to me, 'Thank you my brother, you warmed my heart,' but the truth is I don't count likes; that's not my goal. For me, even if I only warmed my own heart, it's worth everything."

"The People Demand Judicial Reform" - Watch the video created by Ezri Tovi:

"That's true, and I'm not speaking to them. I believe we need to speak to ourselves first. Many people in the nation want this frequency of connection and love, despite everything. Yes, we have a significant frustration. The left's victory at the moment added to the frustration that the right has been carrying for decades. The expulsion from Gush Katif, Amona, the horrendous treatment in the media, and many more painful events. But touching this frequency of love reminds us that it is the foundation, the root on which we sit."

Tovi does not ignore the need to also speak harsh truths. "We must stand our ground clearly and unequivocally, not only engage in slogans of unconditional love. But for me, it was right to also touch this frequency of love. We need to hold in one hand the knowledge that we are brothers and, in the other hand, act so that we can continue strongly with the judicial reform. What's important is not to fall into the violent discourse they try to lead us into. Certainly, we want to talk, but not like this. The violent discourse is shallow, without faith, without roots, devoid of the historical process of the people of Israel. Our journey together does not start with the establishment of the state; it starts with our forefathers and mothers, and there - in Hebron, my journey to Israeli brotherhood also began."

In conclusion, Tovi says, "The purpose of the last videos I created is to keep our heads above water constantly, to show that it's possible to stay and communicate together respectfully. So that we don't fall, God forbid, into their discourse, and we remember that we are a holy and wonderful people who want to continue with this balanced path. Despite the times we've been hurt by the other side, it's always been clear to us to keep marching forward together. Whoever wants to say he's not my brother - let him say, but we continue to proudly state - yes, we are brothers and there is love between us."