The other day J Street’s Jeremy Ben-Ami sent me another entreaty to help him “save Israel.” This one was grabbed a little more of my attention than the last one.
Matthew —
Yesterday, in a move ripped from Joe McCarthy’s playbook, the Israeli Knesset voted to establish a committee to investigate left-of-center Israeli human rights and civil society organizations – several of whose leaders will be featured speakers at J Street’s upcoming National Conference.
During the debate over the investigation, MK Michael Ben-Ari of the right-wing National Union referred to these groups – our friends – as “traitors who must be persecuted at any cost,” “germs” and “enemies of Israel.”
What is happening to Israel? Every day, it seems, the right wing in Israel, and the current government of Israel which it controls, takes another step that doesn’t reflect my values or the values I believe Israel should embody as the national home of my people.
Our conference in February – where we’re going to give voice to OUR values – is becoming a more important event with every passing day.
Opposing McCarthyism is a good thing, and any progress J Street makes in that regard is welcome. Kudos on that front.
However, I have an ongoing quarrel with J Street about liberal Zionist ideology.
They always seem to elide the Big Inconvenient Truths about Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians: Ethnic cleansing. Land theft. Murdering nonviolent protesters. Apartheid. War crimes.
Furthermore, while to its credit, J Street criticizes the Israeli right’s McCarthyism, it is doing all it can to block legitimate criticism of Israel’s U.S.-funded war crimes, and signing on to right-wing anti-divestment letters filled with lies and distortions.
On a fundamental level, I think J Street’s idea that it can make real change without pressuring Israel and supporting boycott, divestment, and sanctions (in some real form) is delusional.
Dear Jeremy Ben-Ami: When you decide to value the lives of Palestinians equally as much as you value Israeli Jews, when you are pro-Equality instead of being just pro-Israel, I’ll be the first to click on your links.
Until then, I’ll channel my energy into working with groups that place Equality as the highest principle.
