Young Israel supporters march in the annual Celebrate Israel parade in 2010 (Photo: asterix611/Flickr)
Manhattan’s Fifth Ave. was transformed into a jubilant haven for Israel advocates from all over the Northeast on Sunday–and became the perfect place for local officials to look for votes in the city with the largest Jewish population outside Israel.
Billed as the largest pro-Israel event outside the country itself, some 35,000 people came out to show their blue and white pride at the “Celebrate Israel” event. The scene showcased a diverse Jewish community, all united that day to show one thing: Israel was their country, too, and they would continue to support it strongly.
“I’m a proud Jewish person and I’m proud of the country of Israel. It’s our homeland,” said Lawrence Herman, a Jewish-American who was watching the parade. He added, though, that he was “torn” by what happened to Palestinians and that he feels “bad about Palestinians who are having a difficult time.”
Participants in the parade chanted in Hebrew, danced, jumped up and down and screamed “Am Yisrael Chai,” or the people of Israel live.
Many who attended were Orthodox Jews, sporting kippot and holding the banners of their respective yeshivas. Haaretz’s Chemi Shalev reported that “non-Orthodox Zionist Organization of America delegation unfurled a banner with portraits of Zionism’s greatest, including Theodor Herzl, Ze’ev Jabotinsky and … Sheldon Adelson.”
Other marchers included people from the gay and lesbian synagogue Congregation Beit Simchat Torah, the New Israel Fund, the progressive group Ameinu, the Zionist Organization of America and Eagles’ Wings, a Christian Zionist group. In other words, it was an event organized by the Jewish establishment that showcased the Zionist tent, from liberals to the far-right. Controversy has broken out in the past over the presence of the New Israel Fund at the parade. Far-right Zionist groups have charged that the group supports the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement (they don’t) and that they championed the Goldstone report, since a small amount of information in the report came from organizations that received funding from the group.
The New Israel Fund marchers held up signs with words like “Democracy,” “Celebrating Civil Rights” and “Justice” on them. But their message was bound to be drowned out by the sea of Israeli flags and unconditional support for the state that the parade showcased.
“It’s a peace-seeking country, and we need to show it to the world,” said one Israeli man living in New Jersey who gave his name as Gershom. Asked about the parade celebrating a state engaged in occupation and human rights abuses, he responded: “This is a day of celebration,” not a day for criticism.
He wasn’t the only Israeli to attend. Israeli officials like Deputy Defense Minister Danny Danon and Knesset Member Gilad Erdan attended, according to Haaretz.
Most of the marchers’ signs and banners were expressions of love for Israel and shied away from illustrating anything about Palestinians. But some attendees engaged in occupation and Nakba denial. I met up with a friend who was part of a film crew interviewing participants, and what poured out of peoples’ mouths was predictable. A few people they interviewed denied the ethnic cleansing of Palestine, and said that the correct term for the situation in the West Bank was “disputed” rather than “occupied.” And a group of 15-year-old yeshiva students spewed rank racism, saying that Arabs were “shit” who wanted to blow them up.
New York media coverage of the march was dominated by a focus on Anthony Weiner, the disgraced former Congressman now looking to reboot his political career by becoming the next mayor in the city. Weiner, who was reportedly jeered and cheered at the parade, is well known as a right-wing Zionist. At a debate sponsored by the Nation Institute in 2011, Weiner said that there is no Israeli occupation of the West Bank. He’s also said that he’s a supporter of the far-right Zionist Organization of America, which supports settlements in the West Bank and hosts talks by the likes of anti-Muslim blogger Pamela Geller.
The parade also hosted many of the other mayoral candidates, including front-runner Christine Quinn, who said that “Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and we as a country have never recognized that. We need to change that immediately.” John A. Catsimatidis, a billionaire businessman and Republican candidate for mayor, was in the parade on a float that waved Israeli and American flags.
The Israel parade usually attracts elected officials, though it was more significant this year in light of the upcoming mayoral election.
I see the marchers are all dressed identically. That must be to demonstrate their commitment to “Western values” like individualism and diversity.
Oh, I’m sure you “feeling bad” about them absolves you of ALL of your responsibility for the situation. Not.
That’s just depressing to see. It’s like watching a KKK march. I don’t know much about the New Israel Fund, but apparently they’re a 501C3 (think tax deduction) with an objective of social justice and equality for all Israelis. But who is an Israeli? Does that include Palestinians in the WB & Gaza? Palestinians in the diaspora?
I also want to know about those anti-Zionist Neturei Karta folks and their cars with the signs mounted on top that we saw in Phil’s earlier post. Were they just parked somewhere along or near the parade route? Or did they actually participate in the parade? If the latter, now that would be something.
A sea of Israeli flags… In Tel Aviv, every July 4th, do we see a sea of American flags on parade?
So Alex, when people celebrate July 4 or Memorial Day by marching in a paradeor by watching fireworks, or by having a bbq, do you go around asking them how they can celebrate a country that attacks others with drones and invaded two countries in the past 12 years?
Is the new thing to define everybody who doesn’t accept the Palestinian narrative wholesale as a Nakba denier? You know that everyone sees that all you’re doing is piggybacking on the term Holocaust denier, right? No one will use your terminology outside the cult, and plenty, I predict, will see through your charade.