"Speak No Evil," known in Hebrew as Lashon Hara Lo M’daber Elai, is an organization that works to strengthen a culture of positive discourse in Israel and to promote values of tolerance and mutual respect by raising awareness of the damage that can be caused by defamation and shaming.
The venture was founded in 2007 by businessman David Halperin. Its message was spread through giant billboards across the country, distribution of millions of stickers and bracelets, visits and distribution of products in hospitals and military bases, and production of art exhibitions.
Halperin received the commitment to the ideas underlying the organization from his father - the late Rabbi Raphael Halperin, who used to tap his glass at the Shabbat table and say the letters ’Lamed-Hey’ the Hebrew acronym for ‘Lashon Hara,’ or evil speech, when someone began to speak about another person for no reason and in a manner that added no value to the discussion.
The organization conducts its activities with the belief that real cultural change will be made through education and personal example.
The organization focuses on education and operates professional programs coordinated for children and youth in kindergartens, elementary schools, high schools, and youth movements throughout the country.
Graduates of the programs, along with many other volunteers, become part of a community of ‘ambassadors’ committed to healthy, refined speech, tolerance, and respect for others and work in the field and on social networks to improve discourse.
Among the association’s prominent ambassadors: Omer Adam, Bar Refaeli, Lior Suchard, former US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, Julian Edelman, the New England Patriots star and MVP of the 2019 Super Bowl, the first Jew to receive the prestigious award, successful artist Alec Monopoly, well-known Jewish businessman David Gutterman, restaurateur David Einhorn, or as most people know him – ‘Papi,’ Scott Disick, the father of Courtney Kardashian’s children, producer Danny A and others.
