User talk:Merhawk/sandbox

Article Evaluation

Abortion in Israel: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abortion_in_Israel

Evaluating Content: All information in this article appears to be directly relevant to the topic of abortion in Israel. The only bit of information I see as perhaps not crucial to the understanding of the topic is the discussion of the structure of abortion committees. Even so, knowing the requirements for the types of people who conduct these abortions, and details like the fact that one person has to be a woman and one has to be a social worker, is helpful to understand the way the government views abortion and what the experience is like for women undergoing the procedure. The article was updated as recently as August 4, 2018 and most statistics are from 2014, only 4 years ago. However, the article also relies on some perceivably out-of-date statistics, such as a report on the rate of granted abortions in Israel from 2004- over a decade ago. Another piece of information I think is important to this topic and therefore should have a more recent date, is the overall number of abortions that take place within Israel. The dates cited for this information in the article are 2007 and 2011, dates long enough ago that they should require updating.

Evaluating Tone: The tone of this articles comes across as very neutral. There are very few words or phrases used that portray any sort of opinion or bias. One sentence used in the article does state that the abortion debate was "sidelined by more publicized and controversial issues". This sentence does allude to the idea that the author of this article sees other issues within Israeli society as more important. One viewpoint that I think is underrepresented in this article is the experience of Israeli women who have had abortions. This article relies heavily on statistics and studies but a segment on the public perception of abortion and the women who undergo one may provide a greater understanding to the topic.

Evaluating Sources: Almost all of the links in this article work and support the claims made. 2 of the links listed under the "References" tab however do not. The link to source #13 and #16 lead to a page that says "Page Not Found". These links should be removed from the article. The sources listed for this article would be difficult for many non-Hebrew speaking people to understand because a majority of them are, understandably, from Israeli websites. The translation feature for these websites is not 100% reliable and therefore it is hard to confirm whether or not these sources are reliable.

Talk Page: On the talk page for the article "Abortion in Israel", the author of the article explains that it was difficult to find good sources written in English on the topic and that they are still looking/seeking recommendations. The author also made a note a few years later stating that they had modified some sources under references to take a reader to a better link. The only other comment on the talk page is from a person in Israel studying to be a social worker. This reader commented that they would like permission to add to the page with updated information because they believe "the information in the article is lacking a bit".

Article Selection

Topic: Recognition of Same-Sex Unions in Israel

Article to add to: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recognition_of_same-sex_unions_in_Israel

Possible Sources:

Notes

For my contribution to the Wiki page on Same-Sex Marriage in Israel, I plan to contribute a section regarding what parenthood and family dynamics look like for gay couples in Israel.
Points of discussion include surrogacy laws and adoption options for those not able to naturally conceive as well as an overview of the pervasive attitude in Israel toward same-sex couples becoming parents.

Source 1-"Individual and Community Resilience Factors Among Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Queer and Questioning Youth and Adults in Israel"

pg. 217 discusses adoption equality for same-sex couples in Israel. Also discusses the importance of family in Israeli society and the issue of same-sex households.
Concept of "family of choice" (Shilo,Antebi,Mor, 225).

Source 2- "The Perception of Family in Israel and the United States: Similarities and Differences"

Broadening of the definition of family in Israeli society (Gavriel-Fried, Shilo, 481).
Raising children as an expectation in same-sex relationships (484).
Between 89.6% and 98.8% of social workers deem any living arrangement involving children to count as a family (485).
Civil marriages in Israel are not legally recognized (494).
View of Israeli Supreme Court on same-sex marriages (494).
New bill aimed at approving surrogacy for same-sex couples in Israel (494).
Inclusionists (those that accepted a wider definition of family structures) were older than other groups (495).

Source 3- "Why the Battle for Gay Rights in Israel Passes Through Parenthood, Not Marriage"

Parenthood seen as the key to equality.
Israel is a uniquely family-centered country and raising children is seen as a basic right.
Gay couples were denied a surrogacy clause that would give them the same right to apply for state support for surrogacy as single women and women unable to conceive.
Politics relating to the gay community are primarily controlled by ultra Orthodox groups who push back on any legislation condoning homosexuality.

References

Shilo, G., Antebi, N. & Mor, Z. "Individual and Community Resilience Factors Among Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Queer and Questioning Youth and Adults in Israel." American Journal of Community Psychology (2015) 55: 215. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10464-014-9693-8

Gauriel-Fried, B., Shilo, G. "The Perception of Family Israel and the United States: Similarities and Differences." Journal of Family Issues, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, 2017, Vol. 38(4), p. 480-499. http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0192513X15617798