Inbar Bakal

Born to Iraqi and Yemenite parents, Inbar Bakal blasts stereotypes of what it means to be an Israeli-born Jew. Like all Israelis, she was drafted into the military. Inbar became the first female officer to serve in the Anti-Aircraft Combat Division. But when given the opportunity to make a career of the armed forces, Bakal dismayed family and friends by heading to America with two suitcases and a burning desire to sing. Bakal—now living in Los Angeles—finds herself in new surroundings exposed to conversations and influences she never heard back home in Israel. "I've spoken with more Palestinians here than I ever had the opportunity to talk to back in Israel," she says. "Here I found a whole new way of listening."