Golda Meir

Golda Meir once said, "Above all, this country is our own. Nobody has to get up in the morning and worry what his neighbors think of him. Being a Jew is no problem here." Golda Meir talks about the country she helped found and then run, Israel. Golda Meir was the fourth, and first woman, prime minister of Israel from 1969-1974. She was born in Kiev, Ukraine in 1898. Then, in 1905 her family moved to Milwaukee due to the anti-Semitic attacks in the former Soviet Union. In 1916 she married Morris Myerson, and then in 1921 the couple moved to a communal farm, called a "kibbutz," in Israel. Then in 1924 the couple moved to Jerusalem, where Golda and her husband had two kids, a son and a daughter ("Golda Meir" Bio.com). To be a hero, one must possess the traits of a just person, but must also be able to do what is needed to be done, regardless of the dangers it might bring. Golda Meir possessed the ability to be a just leader, but was also able to do whatever was needed for her country and home, thus earning her the title of "hero."

Golda Meir governed Israel with a just hand throughout the time she was prime minister. In 1972 during the Summer Olympic Games held in Munich, Germany, a terrorist group called "Black September," murdered the Israeli athletes. This event was known as the "Munich Massacre." Meir found out, and she had to come up with some punishment for the people who killed citizens of Israel:    

A secret Israeli committee chaired by Prime Minister Golda Meir and Defense Minister Moshe Dayan is said to have authorized the assassination of everyone or indirectly involved with Black September, the Fatah-affiliated group that had orchestrated the Munich Killings. The Wrath of God hit squad- code-named Bayonet- was made up of members of Mossad, Israel's foreign intelligence agency, and supported by special operations teams from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). (Pearson)

Meir came up with a plan that would serve swift and quick justice to those who killed innocent citizens of Israel. She and the Defense Minister called together a meeting and gave Mossad, and the IDF, the order to kill every single person involved with this massacre. In doing so, Meir was able to prove that she has the ability to be a just leader for Israel. As prime minister, Meir tried to keep peace with the Arab nations, hoping that an attack on Israel wouldn't happen. The Israeli government debated whether to settle the captured territory, or give it up in exchange for peace with the Arab nations:

The debate ended with the outbreak of the Arab-Israeli war on October 6, 1973, which is also known as the Yom Kippur War. Syrian forces had been massing along the Golan Heights. Concerned that a preemptive strike would bring condemnation by international supporters, especially the United States, Meir prepared for a defensive war. Syrian forces attacked from the north and Egypt attacked from the west. After three weeks, Israel was victorious and had gained more Arab land. ("Golda Meir" Bio.com)

When Arab forces threatened to attack Israel, yet again, Golda Meir made the executive decision not to conduct a preemptive strike, so that she might get help from other nations, specifically the United States. With the help of the US, Israeli forces were able to defeat the Arabs and win more land to add to Israel, and prove that Israel shouldn't be messed with, because the punishment would be fitting to whatever was done to Israel.

Golda Meir was helping govern a country and when problems arose she had to know what the right course of action would be. As minister of labor and social insurance, Golda Meir had to look after the citizens of Israel, young and old; new and old; strong and weak, she also had to make sure that there were jobs for those who were working, that's when her "Myerson Plan" came into play.

Still known by her married name, she engineered what became known as the 'Myerson Plan,' which allowed for the construction of more than 30,000 units of one-room housing. She also oversaw the construction of some 200,000 low-income apartments to house Israel's newly immigrated families. ("Golda Meir," Encyclopedia)

Golda Meir developed a plan that would help the newly immigrated families of Israel have jobs and houses. If she hadn't, then Israel would have had an economic and population crisis because there isn't enough money being made and there is too many people living per square mile. Eventually overpopulation would occur, and Israel would have to start send people back to where they came from. Another way she helped run her country, was when she was speaking out against Britain arresting Jews who have illegally immigrated to Israel, during World War Two.

During the war, she emerged as a forceful spokesman for the Zionist cause in negotiating

with the British mandatory authorities. In 1946, when the British arrested and detained many Jewish activists, including    Moshe Sharett, head of the Political Department of the Jewish Agency, Goldie Myerson provisionally replaced him and worked for the release of her comrades and the many Jewish war refugees who had violated British immigration regulations by settling in Palestine. (Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica)

Golda Meir was thinking for her country, and the people she was representing, when she spoke out against Britain arresting Jewish activists who've illegally immigrated into Israel to escape the persecution of the Jews, by the Nazis, during the war. If she hadn't spoken out, Britain could still have their hold on Israel, and Israel wouldn't have declared their independence from Britain. Therefore proving that Golda Meir has what is needed to lead a country, and make the right decisions to keep the country running.

Golda Meir earned the title "hero" because she possessed the abilities to do what was needed for her country and to govern with a just hand. When Golda Meir died, from leukemia, on December 8, 1978 she was buried at Mount Herzl on December 12, 1978 in Jerusalem. "Upon her death it was revealed that she had had leukemia for 12 years" (Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica). Golda Meir died in 1978, and was prime minister from 1969 until 1974, therefore if she had leukemia for 12 years, then she was diagnosed with it before even she became prime minister. Meaning that she governed a country, granted a small one, while being ill and never letting anyone know. She put her country's needs before her own. Golda Meir is an inspiration to anyone, because while battling a fatal disease, she managed to govern a country with as just as much effectiveness as if she were a healthy woman. I believe that if anyone can battle a fatal disease and hostile enemies, simultaneously, they should be given an award and the tile "hero." Golda Meir was able to be a just leader and was able to do whatever was needed of her from her country, making her a true hero.

Works Cited

"Golda Meir." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, 2016. Web. 29 Apr. 2016.

<http://www.biography.com/people/golda-meir-9404859#synopsis>.

"Golda Meir." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Biography in Context.

Web. 3 May 2016.

Pearson, Erica. "Operation Wrath of God." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia

Britannica, 2016. Web. 02 May 2016.

<http://www.britannica.com/topic/Operation-Wrath-of-God>.

The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. "Golda Meir." Encyclopedia Britannica Online.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2016. Web. 29 Apr. 2016.

<http://www.britannica.com/biography/Golda-Meir>.