This week contains Yom Ha'Shaoh, tonight and tomorrow, while next week contains the duo of Yom Ha'Zikaron and Yom Ha'Atzmaut on Monday-Tuesday (pushed off one day so as to avoid chilul shabbos). Yom Ha'Zikaron leading into Yom Ha'Atzmaut is a juxtaposition of extremes, in a way that some people feel is absolutely typically symbolic of Israeli society and the Israeli lifestyle. Going from a day of intense mourning and remembering the fallen, something every native Israeli suffers through on Memorial Day, right into a day of great celebration on Independence Day.
There is a movement to make a change in the days- to separate Yom Ha'Zikaron from Yom Ha'Atzmaut; to leave at least a one day buffer between the days. Tamir Shureki, the man behind the movement, says that Yom HaZikaron is the most difficult day of the year for tens of thousands of Israelis and he day is spent going to memorial ceremonies, and just when the day is coming to an end and people want to go home and clear their heads, they find roads closed and preparations for Yom HaAtzmaut in full swing.
Even worse is that during the ceremonies of Yom HaZikaron, people are already thinking about where they should celebrate Yom HaAtzmaut. Shureki says they, the bereaved families, deserve the ability to commemorate their loved ones quietly, and then to calm down and have a buffer before the intense celebrations. As it is now, Shureki says, many bereaved families do not find themselves capable of celebrating Yom HaAtzmaut.
(source: INN)
This movement seems to have found opposition from the government. I don't expect the calendar will be changed. I see too much "pride" in the juxtaposition of the days. Doing a little bit of research I discovered that this is not a new movement, but has been trying to gain some traction for a number of years already. They do not seem to be picking up much support from year to year, but they keep trying. If they do succeed in arousing interest in such a consideration, I would recommend a buffer of a week rather than a day. One week Yom HaShoah, the 2nd week Yom HaZikaron and the 3rd week Yom HaAtzmaut.
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