MJ Rosenberg points out a statement by Rabbi David Saperstein of the Reform movement to J Street last year in which Saperstein essentially blackmails J Street against any movement to the left. You will lose the rabbis, you will lose the community, you will lose any traction in Congress, Saperstein says. And the issue is opposing settlements! I believe he’s been effective; Saperstein represents the traditional lobby, older Jews with considerable clout who cannot countenance public criticism. JPost:
Reform Movement leader David Saperstein opened J Street’s second annual conference on Saturday by chastising the group for opposing the recent [February 2011] US veto of a UN resolution condemning Israel settlements.
Saperstein told 2,000-plus J Street advocates that its position on the veto jeopardized its support among mainstream Jews and backers on Capitol Hill and could diminish the three-year-old lobby’s political influence.
“You lose your political and media clout if you lose your mainstream wing,” said Saperstein, who heads the Washington-based Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism. “Successful strategy and tactics need to consider not only the theoretical decisions you take but the practical impact of those you choose.”
…“You know that the vast majority of the members of Congress that you support and support you while criticizing Israel’s settlement policy cannot support UN condemnation, and you will put them all in a very difficult position, driving some to feel they have to choose between remaining with J Street,” Saperstein said.
Similarly, he pointed out that many Conservative and Reform rabbis who support J Street didn’t endorse this position.
“If they begin to move away from J Street and they leave one by one, this has the potential [for J Street] to become just another group that says the right things but without real impact,” he said.
Saperstein, showing the same concern for Israel’s interests, supported the Gaza horror. And he represents an important socio-political bloc. He is married to Ellen Weiss formerly of NPR, now of the Center for Public Integrity.
Younger Jews should read this and decide for themselves how important community approbation to them is… and which groups/ideas informs their consciences…
Rosenberg nails the issue:
Here is some news for Saperstein and the other rabbis who think that they are heroes for going to jail over the situation in Sudan or Myanmar. You will not ultimately judged by your stands on foreign policy issues where, to put it bluntly, your presence does not really matter. The only foreign policy issue on which you do matter is Israel/Palestine. After all, you are Jews, you are rabbis.
What you are not is courageous.
Update: This post originally stated that the J Street address by Saperstein was last month. A kind reader pointed out the error. It was last year. Apologies to all!
I wonder why the distinguished cleric (Saperstein) thinks there should even BE a J-Street if not to propose different USA FP than AIPAC proposes. What GOOD does he see in the organization from a perspective of action?
To be fair, let me add that I also wonder why J-Street thinks there should be a J-Street. Yes, I wonder that too. What’s the purpose? In terms of action? Its own action, action by the Jewish community, action by the USA?
To be pro-Israel and pro-peace is very nice (for those who are, of course), but one would like to find people who are also pro-human-rights, pro-justice, pro-compliance-with-international-law. AIPAC, J-Street, and certain clerics seem to fail on these.
By the way, I am pro-moms and pro-apple-pie. But, well, really, so what?
I believe Phil reported from the J Street convention that attendees seemed to be significantly to the left of Ben-Ami and the J Street executives. So if J Street policy doesn’t move to the left they may find themselves soon irrelevant, with the frustrated and dissatisfied J Street rank and file moving into the welcoming arms of Rebecca Vilkomerson/ JVP.
RE: “Saperstein represents the traditional lobby, older Jews with considerable clout who cannot countenance public criticism.” ~ Weiss
MY COMMENT: Saperstein? Saperstein? Where have I heard that name before? OMG! OMG! OMG! Dr. Sapirstein in Rosemary’s Baby (1968)! So it was all true! And “they” are still at it! “They” never gave up!
Listen “Saperstein”, you can’t fool me just by changing one letter in your name from an ‘i’ to an ‘e’. Who do you take me for, George W. Bush? I’m wise to you Sapirstein! I’ve connected all the dots! I’m a genus! A freakin’ genus!
Now, if I can just find that treacherous Minnie Castevet (née Ruth Gordon) and her diabolical hubby, Roman. They’re the real power behind the “throne”. And I think that Harold dude might be in on “it” as well. Why else would he have traded his brand new Ferrari for a hearse?
This is big, y’all. Really big! Really, really big, y’all. This is my opportunity to make it Big Time! The chance to leave my mark on the world, y’all. To be remembered as an effing genius. To finally be appreciated for being “special”, y’all! To be recognized as the only person (except for maybe Ira Levin and Roman Polanski) who was able to see “the big picture”.
Then “they” [but a different “they” this time, “y’all”] will stop looking down on me; and stop making fun of me; and stop treating me like I’m a dummy, or maybe even some kind of a loon! Instead, I’ll be remembered as the valiant hero who saved the world from the clutches of the “bad guys” (as Gen. Petraeus might refer to “them”)! Yeah, me! Little old me, y’all! Not that Young Pretender of a president who certainly wasn’t born in the U.S. (if he was “born” at all), and is a secret Muslim or worse – maybe even one of “them”! And not that elite, uppity, egg-headed Noam Chomsky with his Manufacturing Consent nonsense! Nor that Henry Kissinger (who, come to “think” of it, might very well be one of “them”)! Not even Zbigniew Brzezinski (who also “talks funny” and therefore is probably one of “them” as well). And definitely not that George Soros (who I damn well know is one of “them”, thanks to both the incredibly thorough investigative journalism of Mr. Glenn Beck, and also the totally awesome, eye-opening manifesto written by Anders Behring Breivik)!
FROM IMdB: Rosemary’s Baby (1968) – A young couple move into a new apartment, only to be surrounded by peculiar neighbors and occurrences. When the wife becomes mysteriously pregnant, paranoia over the safety of her unborn child begins controlling her life.
Guy Woodhouse: [on Rosemary’s decision to switch doctors] “You know what Dr. Hill is? He’s a Charlie Nobody, that’s who he is!”
Rosemary Woodhouse: “I’m tired of hearing about how great Dr. Sapirstein is!”
Guy Woodhouse: “Well, I won’t let you do it Ro.”
Rosemary Woodhouse: “Why not?”
Guy Woodhouse: “Well, because… because it wouldn’t be fair to Sapirstein.”
Rosemary Woodhouse: “Not fair to Sap… – what do you mean? What about what’s fair to me?”
~
Rosemary Woodhouse: “They use blood in their rituals, and the blood with the most power is baby’s blood!”
~
Dr. Abe Sapirstein: “Come with us quietly, Rosemary. Don’t argue or make a scene. Because if you say anything more about witches or witchcraft, we’re gonna be forced to take you to a mental hospital. You don’t want that, do you?”
~
Minnie Castevet: “He chose you, honey! From all the women in the world to be the mother of his only living son!”
Rabbi Saperstein is a dynamic and effective leader. He is an opinion maker in the Jewish Reform movement. Other groups within the Reform community will not make a move before checking in with him.
You have it right. Saperstein has sold out on Israel in order to claim the moral high ground on abortion, church and state and the other tenets of liberal American Jewish faith. I could provide many examples of his steadfast refusal to take a principled stand on Israel or to even engage on the topic. He was remarkably candid in the comments you quote: Saperstein does not say he agrees with AIPAC’s positions, rather that AIPAC is effective. And I/P is expendable.
I am concerned that liberal Jews will continue to jettison I/P, effectively abandoning it to the rightwing lobby.