This is appalling. On the day that the Israeli Knesset passed the law that Israel is the nation state of the Jewish people, and only Jews have the right of national self-determination, thereby stating officially that Palestinians are lesser citizens, a liberal Zionist group put out a fundraising email celebrating the Knesset!
“I saw conviction and hope in the Knesset this week,” was the subject line of the email yesterday afternoon from Mara Lee, the head of OneVoice.
She went on to praise Israel as a “democracy for all of its citizens.”
Dear Supporter,
Yesterday, I got to sit in on a meeting of the Caucus for Two States in the Knesset. Founded in 2011 by OneVoice activists, today it’s a joint initiative of our Israeli partner Darkenu and a group of MKs who are dedicated to advancing the cause of a two-state solution. Watching events unfold in the region, it can be easy to be discouraged. What I saw yesterday, however, was anything but. What I saw yesterday was a room filled to capacity with Israelis — political leaders, security experts, and everyday citizens — who understand the urgent need for a solution as a means to secure their country’s future.
Alongside Darkenu CEO Polly Bronstein, Darkenu Board Chair Kobi Richter, and the chair of the caucus, MK Hilik Bar of Zionist Union, Labor leader Avi Gabbay and Hatnuah leader Tzipi Livni also gave impassioned speeches stressing the need to reverse the creeping trend of annexation of the West Bank and press forward for a diplomatic solution that preserves Israel as the national home of the Jewish people and a democracy for all of its citizens. Darkenu brought along a staff and volunteers from across the country, one of whom got a special shout out from Gabbay himself!
The email goes on to talk about Asaf, an 18-year-old member of Darkenu who wants “change” in Israel– to ease the siege of Gaza so that Palestinian workers can come into Israel…
It concludes that OneVoice is changing Israeli society, and you should make a donation!
Seeing the leader of the opposition single out a young Darkenu activist in the halls of the Knesset was such a powerful testament to the impact our Israeli partner is having on Israeli society. Darkenu is changing the way Israelis speak and think about their country, and it is empowering young people to step up and take action — and the political leaders with the power to effect change are taking notice. I hope you’ll consider making a donation today to ensure that our Israeli partner has the support it needs to continue to fight for the change we all want to see.
No mention of the fact that Israel just cemented its official religious and discriminatory structure. As they say in comedy, timing is everything!
OneVoice is funded by Daniel Lubetzky, a Mexican-American businessman who gave the world Kind bars, who funds liberal Zionist initiatives. Bird of a feather with Slim-Fast mogul S. Daniel Abraham, sustainer of Robert Wexler’s pro-Israel career.
Gaza sees no ‘hope’, the Israeli army has just begun a pre-planned, sustained bombing campaign.
They want the word to get out and around the world fast. Look at the timing. Israel would rather receive censure for bombing Gaza than it would for its new apartheid bill – our politicians will fall in line.
Israel has a form of terminal cancer. Liberal Zionists think it is just a bit under the weather.
Democracy means giving hope to all people, and not only some.
Israel is a democracy in name only.
With this new law passed Israel is officially an apartheid nation.
Hope doesn’t pay the bills, feed the cat, make your hair grow back, or get you a discount at the bottle shop.
https://www.adalah.org/en/content/view/9565
Adalah, The Legal Centre for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, July 19/18
“Israeli parliament votes to approve Nation-State Law that enshrines Jewish supremacy over Palestinian citizens”
“New Basic Law approved by a Knesset vote of 62-55 has distinct apartheid characteristics and requires racist acts as a constitutional value.”
EXCERPTS:
“This law guarantees the ethnic-religious character of Israel as exclusively Jewish and entrenches the privileges enjoyed by Jewish citizens, while simultaneously anchoring discrimination against Palestinian citizens and legitimizing exclusion, racism, and systemic inequality.
“The Jewish Nation-State Basic Law is the ‘law of laws’ capable of overriding any ordinary legislation.
“The law will apply to areas known as the ‘Green Line’, where nearly twenty percent of the population are Palestinian citizens of Israel, as well as to territories occupied in 1967 such as Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, which were annexed to the territory of the State of Israel by law. This annexation is considered illegal under international law.
“Adalah General Director Hassan Jabareen responded to the Israeli parliament’s vote to approve the Nation-State Law:
“’The Jewish Nation-State Law features key elements of apartheid, which is not only immoral but also absolutely prohibited under international law. The new law constitutionally enshrines the identity of Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people only – despite the 1.5 million Palestinian citizens of the state and residents of East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights – and guarantees the exclusive ethnic-religious character of Israel as Jewish. By defining sovereignty and democratic self-rule as belonging solely to the Jewish people – wherever they live around the world – Israel has made discrimination a constitutional value and has professed its commitment to favoring Jewish supremacy as the bedrock of its institutions.’”