Category Archives: Israel and Palestine

Anti-Semitism at UCLA and College Campuses Nationwide and the Impact of BDS on Attitudes Towards Jews

26 Thursday Feb 2015

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Social Justice

≈ 6 Comments

The LA Jewish Journal this week reported that four of nine members of the UCLA student government’s highest judicial body “raised concern about a candidate for the board, Rachel Beyda, who could present a conflict of interest and make her unfit to serve impartially as a judge in the student government’s judicial branch.”

What was the problem with Ms. Beyda’s candidacy? She is Jewish, involved with UCLA’s campus Jewish community and therefore, they claimed, has a conflict of interest should the board vote on a Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) resolution targeting Israel.

Debra Geller, the chief administrative officer for student and campus life who oversaw the hearing, inserted herself after the vote and told these four board members that they did not appear to understand the difference between ‘conflict of interest’ and ‘perceived conflict of interest,’ and that virtually everyone, including them, could be seen to have a perceived conflict. The four then reversed their vote, and apologized – sort of.

They said: “We ask the Jewish community to accept our sincerest apology. Our intentions were never to attack, insult or de-legitimize the identity of an individual or people.”  (Daily Bruin, February 20)

The words sound right, but this incident reflects something deeper, more troubling, insidious, and pervasive not just at UCLA but on college campuses nationwide.

Though these four dissenters showed sincere remorse for their initial vote against Ms. Beyda, I question whether they and the UCLA administration understand adequately the nature of the problem.

I try not to speak with hyperbole. I am not one who sees anti-Semites lurking under every bed. I am not a fear-monger. I do not believe that all criticism of Jews or the state of Israel is necessarily anti-Semitic.

Yet, our inability to use the term anti-Semitism when it concerns Jews, when we don’t have a problem calling other forms of ethnic and religious bigotry what it is, raises disturbing questions about prevalent attitudes towards Jews, Judaism, Zionism, and the state of Israel.

It is likely that the four members of the UCLA board do not regard their initial position as anti-Semitic. But I believe that it was, and we should call it what it really is.

The multicultural agenda in American liberal circles, that I personally support, includes virtually all other minorities but excludes Jews who, it seems, have been reduced to being simply a successful white American religious group. This attitude belies a deeper understanding of what constitute Judaism, Jewish religious history, Jewish peoplehood, Zionism, and the meaning of the state of Israel in contemporary Jewish identity.

This reductionist Jewish definition has the effect of challenging Israel’s legitimacy and feeding the international de-legitimization movement against Israel. It is not only an anti-Israel and anti-Zionist position, but it is anti-Semitic because it is essentially an attack on the right of Jews to define ourselves, and it plays on classic anti-Semitic stereotypes without appreciating how hurtful and offensive these stereo-types are to Jews, and how damaging they are to the fabric of our American multicultural society.

De-legitimizers of Israel have worked very hard over a number of years to promote the belief that the existence of the state of Israel represents a moral injustice to the Palestinians and that even a two-state solution is morally unacceptable. This position is promoted not just at UCLA but on college campuses nationwide, and is having an effect on student attitudes towards Jews and Israel.

The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported this week that 54% of American Jewish university students have experienced or witnessed at least one anti-Semitic incident during a single year. These experiences “strongly suggests that anti-Semitism is a nationwide problem,” according to the report.

The attitude of the UCLA administration about what is happening there reflects a national attitude as well. One UCLA official wrote: “My impression, when I speak with students, is that there is more ignorance/lack of sensitivity than racism – and I do try to be on the look-out for racism and other forms of bias.”

Perhaps this is the case with many students, but not all. The problem is the successful conflation of anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism fed by the de-legitimization movement as it plays upon unsuspecting and uninformed college students and faculty, Jewish and non-Jewish alike, who believe that the perceived underdog, in this case the Palestinians, must be supported regardless of context, merit and truth.

There is a silver lining in this incident. This may create a space on campuses for students and faculty to learn more about Jews, Judaism, Zionism, and Jewish identity, and thereby come to a more inclusive, compassionate and fair understanding of who we are, what hurts Jews, and what kind of attitudes we need to evolve about each other.

Dr. Martin Luther King put it exactly right when he said: “People don’t get along because they fear each other. People fear each other because they don’t know each other. They don’t know each other because they have not properly communicated with each other.”

Obviously, this need to know each other works both ways. Jews need to understand Islam, Palestinians and other peoples just as they need to understand us. Now is the time for deeper self-understanding and self-knowledge, for better communication and better listening to the “other.”

Haaretz on Anti-Semitism on College Campuses – http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/jewish-world-news/1.644105

LA Jewish Journal – UCLA Judicial Board Questioned on Jewish Background in Apppointment – http://www.jewishjournal.com/los_angeles/article/ucla_judicial_board_nominee_questioned_for_jewish_background_in_appointment

 

Can Israel be a Jewish State and a True Democracy?

22 Sunday Feb 2015

Posted by in Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Social Justice

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One month before the Israeli election, on Tuesday, February 17 in Tel Aviv, hundreds of journalists, political leaders, diplomats, and opinion-makers attended the “Israel Conference on Democracy” sponsored by the New Israel Fund, the Begin Heritage Center, the Israel Democracy Institute, and the ANU movement for social change. Reported on TLVI by Shoshi Shmuluvitz, I thought it important enough to pass the highlights of her report along to you in this blog.

One central focus of the conference was the future of the “Nation State Bill” and how the upcoming Israeli election will determine whether or not the Israeli government will pass this law.

This Basic Law proposal would define Israel as the “Nation-State of the Jewish People.” Introduced into the Knesset by Israeli right wing parties in 2011, its purpose is to prevent Israel from becoming a bi-national state.

The law says that the right to self-determination in Israel would be unique to the Jewish people, that the state of Israel should establish ethnic communities in which every resident can preserve its culture and heritage, that the Hebrew language would be the only official language of the state while Arabic would have special status, that the Hebrew calendar would become the official national calendar, and that Jewish law would serve as an inspiration to Israeli legislators.

Daniel Sokatch, the CEO of the New Israel Fund, a leading organization committed to equality and democracy for all Israeli citizens, described the serious challenge to the nature of the state of Israel that this proposed law presents:

“The Nation State Bill puts the state, which has to be the neutral arbiter for all citizens, on the side of one bloc of citizens, and upends the fundamental principle that was integral to Israel’s founding, that Israel was a Jewish homeland and a democratic state that provided equal citizenship for all. The Nation State Bill would make the Jewish part always outweigh the democratic part, and the democratic part subservient to the Jewish part. This is not only unnecessary but dangerous because the bill recasts the character of the state.”

Avram Burg, a former speaker of the Knesset and a former head of the Jewish Agency, warned that there is a significant distinction between a “Jewish state” and “a state of the Jews.” A “State of the Jews” is a place where Jews can live and be the majority. The “Jewish state” is a state that discriminates in favor of one group against another.

Ahmad Tibi is an Israeli Arab member of the Knesset and one of ten Deputy Knesset Speakers. He describes himself as Arab-Palestinian in nationality and Israeli in citizenship. He observed that Israel runs 3 types of regimes:

The first is democratic for 80% of the population that is the Jewish majority.

The second discriminates against 20% of the population (the Arab Palestinian population who are Israeli citizens) in all areas except voting. He says there is no equality between Jews and Arabs in the areas of budget, education, services, housing starts, and industry.

The third is a non-democracy in the West Bank under the authority of the military administration that treats the Arab non-Israeli citizen population very differently than it does  the Jewish Israeli citizen settlement populations.

MK Tibi said that “A state that runs the 2nd discriminatory regime and the 3rd non-democratic regime cannot gain the status of a true democracy, yet Israel demands that the world recognize it only by the first kind of society that is democratic.”

Tzipi Livni, running with Yitzhak Herzog on the Zionist List in the upcoming election, said:

“The Prime Minister can’t go to a synagogue in France and tell the French that together we’re fighting against ISIS in the name of western values like equality when a few weeks earlier he refused to say that those should be the values of the state of Israel. And then he undermines our democracy, undermines our values, undermines the legitimacy of Israel, and undermines the part of the world that defends those rights.”

Why has this Nation State Bill become such a hot-button issue now?

Sokatch explained:

“There’s a deep-rooted sense of fear and insecurity that creates an atmosphere in which those in power want to stifle dissent and roll back democratic norms to something that is unfamiliar to those of us who want to be part of the liberal democratic family of nations.”

“There’s no doubt in my mind,” he continued, “that they care about the future of Israel; and foremost in their mind is the security of the state. The only way, however, to continue Israel’s future strength is as a modern, liberal, open democratic society that is also a homeland for the Jewish people.”

What is so disturbing about this Nation State Bill is that the value of democracy is being questioned and even assaulted by significant elements of Israeli society, and that not only presents  problems for Israel’s non-Jewish citizens, but it erodes the legitimacy of the Jewish state in the eyes of the western world.

Purim Lessons for Jews in 2015

19 Thursday Feb 2015

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Divrei Torah, Ethics, Holidays, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Social Justice

≈ 1 Comment

It is Rosh Chodesh Adar and that means Purim is coming in a particularly difficult time for Jews and the state of Israel.

Given the rise in anti-Semitic attacks in Europe, the brutality and threat of Islamic extremists, the Iran nuclear negotiations, the moribund Israeli-Palestinian peace process, the threat of another Palestinian Intifida, the contested Israeli election, the battle for the soul of the state of Israel and the American Jewish community, one can argue that Purim offers us necessary relief on the one hand and intensified angst on the other.

Truth to tell, Purim should make every Jew feel very uncomfortable, despite the joy and care-free spirit of the celebration, the masquerade and sweet hamantaschen. The story of Esther, though celebrating the victory of the Jews of ancient Persia over Haman’s genocidal intentions, has an intensely dark side for us Jews that we ignore at our peril.

The book of Esther is a challenge to liberal Jewish moral values, and it shows that the human being is capable of just about anything:

“…on the thirteenth day of…Adar…the very day on which the enemies of the Jews had expected to get them in their power, the opposite happened and the Jews got their enemies in their power…Throughout the provinces of King Ahashuerus, the Jews mustered in their cities to attack those who sought their hurt…So the Jews struck at their enemies with the sword, slaying and destroying;…. In the fortress Shushan the Jews killed a total of 500 men… [and] they disposed of their enemies, killing seventy-five thousand of their foes….” (Esther 9:6-10, 16)

How do we modern liberal Jews justify Mordecai’s and the Jews of Persia’s blood-revenge? Though the Esther story’s historicity is suspect, this terrifying tale describes what can and has happened to Jews in exile, and it warns what can happen in any society, even Jewish society, when power falls into the hands of one group.

History has shown that our having our own state has not shielded us from committing moral crimes. Pastor Reinhold Niebuhr, one of the great figures of the 20th century, reminds us about the dangers of power:

“All power is a peril to justice…and the pride and self-righteousness of powerful nations are a greater hazard to their success than the machinations of their foes.”

Israel is a great democracy, but Israel’s military administration of the West Bank is not democratic. There are two systems are at work in the West Bank; one for Jewish settlers and another for Palestinian Arabs.

Though the Jewish response to their Persian enemies in the Esther story is not the story of Israel’s military justice in the West Bank, justice there is compromised by the two sets of standards for Jews and Arabs, and we Jews cannot turn a blind eye by justifying the status quo policy of occupation on the basis of divine right, ideology or security. Peter Beinart put it well this week in Haaretz (February 18, 2015):

“Israel is a decent country composed of decent young men and women who, in the West Bank, are obliged to police people who lack basic rights. And in such circumstances, decent people do indecent things. ‘We are making the lives of millions unbearable,’ declares one former Shin Bet head, Carmi Gillon, in the film ‘The Gatekeepers.’ In the West Bank, Israel has become ‘a brutal occupation force,’ notes another, Avraham Shalom. A third, Yuval Diskin, calls the occupation a ‘colonial regime.’ These men don’t hate Israel; they have dedicated their lives to protecting it…they are discussing the real Israel, not the one [others] have constructed in their minds.”

On Purim Jews are called upon to drink so heavily that we can no longer distinguish between the evil Haman and the virtuous Mordecai.

Do we really need alcohol to remind us that we so easily can assume the identity of Haman in the midst of our stupor? We need only to open our eyes and regard the reality of our situation. Yes, actions in our self-defense as a nation are morally justifiable even though mistakes and excess have resulted in suffering, but our gratuitously perpetrating evil as a matter of policy, which the occupation has become, is not justifiable.

Rather than Purim numbing us with hard drink and masquerade to the truth of our situation and human nature, this holiday arrives each year to remind us of the darkness lurking in every human heart and soul, and that our moral and ethical mandate as Jews, who have been graced with power for the first time in two thousand years, is to be exquisitely sensitive to the suffering of the “other,” to avoid becoming hard-hearted as a people, and to cease the infliction of gratuitous suffering.

Bibi is Irresponsibly Shaking Up American Jewish Bi-Partisan Support for Israel

15 Sunday Feb 2015

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity

≈ 1 Comment

The American Jewish community, American rabbis who normally do not speak critically of Israeli actions, members of Congress who have been part of a bi-partisan bloc of support for Israel and the Israeli Prime Minister for decades, are all being tested as never before by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu because of his ill-advised, ill-timed and self-serving visit to the United States Congress in two weeks.

Israel’s security has historically depended upon American congressional bi-partisan support and the support of the President of the United States. Though most observers do not believe that the rock-solid relationship between Israel and the United States will ultimately suffer, Bibi has created a mess in Washington, D.C. He may say that his only motivation in coming in two weeks to speak on the unprecedented invitation of Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives John Boehner only two weeks before a critically important and contested Israeli election is to remind Congress and the American people of the deadly danger of Iran gaining nuclear capability, history suggests otherwise. Bibi used another speech before Congress in another Israeli election campaign to send a strong election campaign message to Israeli voters that he and only he is capable among all candidates and parties for Israeli leadership of standing before the world and protecting Israel from the throng of hostile nations in Israel’s neighborhood.

In this election, PM Netanyahu wants to change the subjects that are in the minds and hearts of Israeli voters who by all polls are far more concerned about the growing economic gap between the rich and the poor, the vanishing middle class, the stranglehold of the Orthodox religious parties on marriage, divorce, conversion and burial in the state of Israel, the badly damaged international reputation of Israel as a consequence of Netanyahu’s policies, the social and political divide between mizrachim and ashkenazim, the growing alienation of non-Jewish Israeli citizens from the state of Israel, the lack of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the growing extremism of the Jewish settler movement, and a host of other domestic issues that this current government has failed to address adequately.

Bibi has come to the conclusion that if he can keep Iran, Hezbollah, ISIS, and Hamas on the front burner and in the minds of Israeli voters, and if he can frighten Israelis into thinking that only he can assure Israel’s security needs, then he will be re-elected Israel’s Prime Minister which is what he wants above all other things including, in my view, the best interests of Israel itself.

A former Israeli Ambassador to Turkey was speaking in Istanbul after the Gaza war to the Jewish community there, and he was asked what Netanyahu is most concerned about.

“Survival!” he said. The crowd cheered and he realized that they misunderstood him. He explained that Bibi wasn’t interested most in Israel’s survival but in his own as Prime Minister, and that above all else he desired to win re-election. The former ambassador was booed.

Yes, PM Netanyahu is deeply concerned about Iran and he has done everything possible to raise the world’s attention to the real threat of Iran becoming nuclear. He deserves credit for this, and I am happy to give it to him. But, he is not alone in his concern. President Obama has brought the western nations along with the United States to stop Iran’s march towards nuclear capability. Bibi, however, trusts no one and especially not President Obama.

We do not know as yet whether or not President Obama and the coalition of nations will succeed in reaching a negotiated agreement on principles with Iran before the end of March. That will be known shortly and then sanctions can be tightened if they do not succeed, which is what the President has promised and the US Congress is prepared to do – with all options still on the table!

PM Netanyahu could have waited until after the Israeli election and after the March deadline for negotiating principles to be determined with Iran, if they can be, before coming to the United States. He could have waited to be certain that President Obama approved the invitation from Speaker Boehner before he accepted it – but no, he arrogantly did not.

Given the way his visit to the Congress was put together by former American Republican operative Ron Prosser, now Israel’s Ambassador to the United States, and Republican leadership who enjoy nothing more than slapping down this President and, while they are at it, driving a wedge between Jewish Democratic congressional representatives and the American Jewish community on support for Israel. It should be clear that Bibi’s motivations to come to the US at precisely this time are largely political as the Israeli election approaches in one month.

The following article from The Guardian describes well the current mood in the American Jewish community, among prominent American rabbis, Jewish organizational leadership, and Jewish congressional representatives.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/feb/14/netanyahu-congress-reaction-jewish-leaders-boehner

Register to Vote in the World Zionist Congress Elections and Vote ARZA Slate

10 Tuesday Feb 2015

Posted by in American Jewish Life, Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Social Justice, Women's Rights

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One of the most important steps that Diaspora Jews can take to support Israel’s democracy, pluralism and bond with world Jewry and the state of Israel is to vote in this year’s World Zionist Congress election that is open for registration and voting through April 15, 2015.

The only requirements for voting are that you must be Jewish and at least 18 years of age.

I ask you to click now onto the link below, register and vote for the ARZA Slate (i.e. the Association of Reform Zionists of America). Please do not delay.

I ask for your vote as a delegate on the ARZA Slate (I am #25) that includes many distinguished America rabbis and leaders of the Union for Reform Judaism representing 1.3 million American Jews.

All the information you need to know about ARZA’s platform can be found on this website. You can also register to vote and actually vote at the same time here: https://www.reformjews4israel.org.

The Slate of ARZA Delegates can be found at this site: https://www.reformjews4israel.org/slate/.

Important note: There is a one-time only administrative charge of $5 for young Jews between the ages of 18 and 30, and $10 for Jews over 30. This is required by the World Zionist Organization to administer this election.

Questions:

1. What is the World Zionist Congress?

The Parliament of the Jewish People representing all of world Jewry.

  1. What is the ARZA Platform?
  • Support for gender equality in the State of Israel
  • Support for religious equality in the State of Israel
  • Support for peace through commitment to a two-state solution of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
  1. Why does it matter that you vote for ARZA?

ARZA currently holds 39% of the US representation in the World Zionist Congress based on the results of the last election for the WZC. Consequently, over the past five years $20 million has been given to the Israeli Movement for Progressive Judaism (IMPJ) to support its programs, congregations, rabbis, outreach, and social justice work. The Israeli government has also provided 4 new buildings for Reform communities around Israel because of our large American Reform Zionist representation.

The government of the state of Israel does not give any money directly to the Reform movement except through special programs. However, the government does fund generously orthodox schools and synagogues. This is not only unfair, it is a violation of the spirit of Israel’s own Declaration of Independence. We American Reform Zionists support our movement and others in Israel who are struggling through the courts to be treated equally under the law.

In the meantime, we must raise money to support our Israeli Reform movement, and our success in this WZC election is one sure way to do that.

Note that the Israeli Reform movement is a significant leader in support of the Israel Religious Action Center in Jerusalem and our 45 congregations, 2 kibbutzim, strong youth programs, nursery schools, Tali schools, and pre-military programs all over the country.

Our movement supports civil marriage unions in Israel without having to involve the Chief Rabbinate, egalitarianism at the Western Wall, anti-Racism laws, anti-Poverty activism, and many other social justice causes.

A vote for the ARZA slate will also deny funds for settlement building in the West Bank.

ARZA needs your vote and I am asking that you and every Jewish individual in your household register today at the above site, pay the $5 or $10 administrative fee depending on your age, and then vote for the ARZA Slate. Thank you in advance!

Rabbi John Rosove, delegate – ARZA Slate in WZC Election

PS – If you have trouble voting, please call 844-413-2929 or email AZM@election-america.com

 

Lunch with LA Islamic Center Imam Asim Bukosvoy

05 Thursday Feb 2015

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Jewish-Islamic Relations, Social Justice

≈ 2 Comments

Educated, soft-spoken, kind-hearted, moderate, and charming – Imam Asim Bukosvoy believes in interfaith dialogue and in developing inter-ethnic relationships with all communities in Los Angeles.

This was my third meeting with Imam Bukosvoy. He was one of a number of clergy we invited from the Christian, Jewish and Muslim communities of LA – Latino, Korean, African American, white, and Jewish – to my synagogue’s (Temple Israel of Hollywood) celebration of the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. speaking in our sanctuary just prior to the Selma to Montgomery march in 1965.

Since our celebration I have reached out to all the visiting clergy who participated in this anniversary event to continue to build on our relationship.

Imam Bukosvoy hails from Istanbul, Turkey. He came to the United States 5 years ago to study, earn his undergraduate and then  Masters Degree in Religion from the Claremont Colleges. He is also working on his doctorate. He is 39, married with a 9 month-old baby boy, and when he speaks of his wife and young son a light glows from within.

Asim is articulate, intelligent, sophisticated, and painfully aware of the conflict confronting the Islamic world. He is a moderate, and he explained to me that the Islamic Center of Los Angeles, founded by the late Maher Hatout, established itself as a center to advocate for moderation and against extremist Islamic fundamentalism.

Imam Bukosvoy is deeply disturbed by ISIS, Al Qaeda, the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas, Islamic Jihad and all political movements that claim Koranic text and Sharia Law as justification of their actions, which he believes is a distortion and manipulation of Islam for violent and hateful purposes.

I shared with him that I am an activist with J Street, that I am pro-Israel and a passionate American Zionist, who believes that the only solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is in a two-state solution. I told that I am one of three national co-chairs of our J Street Rabbinic Cabinet of nearly 1000 rabbis, that close to 100 Congressional Representatives and Senators are J Street endorsed in Washington, D.C., that our goal is to advocate for an active American policy to help Israel and the Palestinians find a road to a two-state solution. I told him as well that I never hesitate to write or speak publicly about this issue.

Asim understood and seemed supportive of that view.

Then I said: “Asim – it is more important for people like you to speak out than for people like me.”

He looked at me quizzically. I explained: “Your faith is followed by 1.5 billion people; mine has between 15 and 17 million worldwide. The march in Paris following the murders of the 12 cartoon journalists and the 4 Jews in the kosher market included all French citizens, and many Muslim leaders.”

“What is necessary [recalling Tom Friedman’s op-ed in the NY Times] is not a million person march through the streets of Paris, but a million Muslim march against Islamic extremism through the streets of Paris and elsewhere.”

Asim listened. I acknowledged that “any Muslim leader like himself takes on far greater personal risk than a Jew who speaks out in this country. I am sure there are people who would not hesitate to strike out against outspoken Muslim leaders like you who advocate for a liberal interpretation of Islamic law.”

He agreed.

Our lunch went on for nearly two hours and I am pleased that we felt not only a warm personal connection that hopefully will continue to grow, but we shared common values about peace, justice, compassion, and the importance of inter-group dialogue and relationships.

I closed our lunch by saying the following to Asim: “You know – the opposite of peace isn’t war. It’s Truth. If we want Truth, then we must prepare for war. If we want peace, then we must prepare for compromise and honorable acceptance of the other. No one has all the Truth anyway – only God possesses that – and anyone who claims they do are essentially wrong.”

We parted and hoped for more contact soon.

Anyone but Bibi!

22 Thursday Jan 2015

Posted by in American Politics and Life, Israel and Palestine, Jewish History

≈ 2 Comments

In the last few days PM Netanyahu’s scheduled speech before the US Congress as orchestrated by Israeli Ambassador to the United States Ron Dermer, a former chief Netanyahu aid and arguably the most political foreign diplomat from Israel we may ever have seen, has inspired a huge negative reaction both in Israel and the United States.

Only British Prime Minister Winston Churchill has spoken three times before the US Congress, and with this planned Netanyahu speech in February, Bibi will tie that record.

This is also the first time any foreign leader has been invited to speak to the US Congress by anyone other than the President of the United States, thus violating established protocol.

That this speech and invitation of the Israeli Prime Minister comes when it does only one month before arguably the most important election in Israeli history that could determine Israel’s Jewish character, democracy and international standing, smacks of inappropriate intrusion of the US Congress into Israeli elections.

President Obama and Secretary Kerry have avoided even the appearance of support for one Israeli political party over another. Speaker Boehner, on the other hand, seems to have no hesitation in doing just that.

This bald-face effort by Speaker Boehner and Republican leaders to disrupt the foreign policy efforts of the Obama Administration at this particularly sensitive time in Iran-US nuclear negotiations suggests as well that despite the new Republican majority in both houses of Congress, that the Republicans and some Democrats have failed to build a veto proof majority to pass a sanctions resolution that President Obama and many others in the foreign policy establishment of the United States oppose at this time, and so the Republican majority has invited a foreign leader to come and do its bidding for them.

PM Netanyahu has always enjoyed a special relationship with Republican leaders, almost as though he is acting as a kind of Republican Senator from Jerusalem, and has used that relationship before to intrude in the last US Presidential election by favoring Republican nominee Mitt Romney. This February speech before Congress will constitute one more slap in the face of the President of the United States by the Israeli leader thus giving support to the argument that Israel can no longer afford to have another government led by this man.

The Herzog-Livni Zionist Party campaign is pointing in this election campaign to the economic weaknesses of the Israeli middle class and the growing poverty in Israel that was caused by Netanyahu’s economic policies when he served as the Economic Minster under PM Ariel Sharon, the need for new leadership in making this time a good-faith effort to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the need to stop the escalating spiral of international hostility towards Israel. The Herzog-Livni campaign has stated that in matters of the Israeli economy, Israel’s security and Israel’s international standing, the Netanyahu government has failed in every area.

Is it any wonder in Israel that so many Israelis now are saying “Anyone but Bibi!?”

Register to Vote in the World Zionist Congress Elections and Vote ARZA Slate

14 Wednesday Jan 2015

Posted by in American Jewish Life, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Social Justice, Uncategorized, Women's Rights

≈ 2 Comments

One of the most important steps that Diaspora Jews can take to support Israel’s democracy, pluralism and bond with world Jewry and the state of Israel is to vote in this year’s World Zionist Congress election that is now open for registration and voting through April 15, 2015.

The only requirements for voting are that you must be Jewish and at least 18 years of age.

I ask you to click now onto the link below, register and vote for the ARZA Slate (i.e. the Association of Reform Zionists of America). Please do not delay.

I ask for your vote as a delegate on the ARZA Slate (I am #25) that includes many distinguished America rabbis and leaders of the Union for Reform Judaism representing 1.3 million American Jews.

All the information you need to know about ARZA’s platform can be found on this website. You can also register to vote and actually vote at the same time here: https://www.reformjews4israel.org.

The Slate of ARZA Delegates can be found at this site: https://www.reformjews4israel.org/slate/.

Important note: There is a one-time only administrative charge of $5 for young Jews between the ages of 18 and 30, and $10 for Jews over 30. This is required by the World Zionist Organization to administer this election.

Questions:

1. What is the World Zionist Congress?

The Parliament of the Jewish People representing all of world Jewry.

2. What is the ARZA Platform?

• Support for gender equality in the State of Israel

• Support for religious equality in the State of Israel

• Support for peace through commitment to a two-state solution of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

3. Why does it matter that you vote for ARZA?

ARZA currently holds 39% of the US representation in the World Zionist Congress based on the results of the last election for the WZC. Consequently, over the past five years $20 million has been given to the Israeli Movement for Progressive Judaism (IMPJ) to support its programs, congregations, rabbis, outreach, and social justice work. The Israeli government has also provided 4 new buildings for Reform communities around Israel because of our large American Reform Zionist representation.

The government of the state of Israel does not give any money directly to the Reform movement except through special programs. However, the government does fund generously orthodox schools and synagogues. This is not only unfair, it is a violation of the spirit of Israel’s own Declaration of Independence. We American Reform Zionists support our movement and others in Israel who are struggling through the courts to be treated equally under the law.

In the meantime, we must raise money to support our Israeli Reform movement, and our success in this WZC election is one sure way to do that.

Note that the Israeli Reform movement is a significant leader in support of the Israel Religious Action Center in Jerusalem and our 45 congregations, 2 kibbutzim, strong youth programs, nursery schools, Tali schools, and pre-military programs all over the country.

Our movement supports civil marriage unions in Israel without having to involve the Chief Rabbinate, egalitarianism at the Western Wall, anti-Racism laws, anti-Poverty activism, and many other social justice causes.

ARZA needs your vote and I am asking that you and every Jewish individual in your household register today at the above site, pay the $5 or $10 administrative fee depending on your age, and then vote for the ARZA Slate. Thank you in advance!

Rabbi John Rosove, delegate – ARZA Slate in WZC Election

PS – If you have trouble voting, please call 844-413-2929 or email AZM@election-america.com

Why Shas’ Success in the March 17 Election Would Be Good for Israel

11 Sunday Jan 2015

Posted by in Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Social Justice

≈ 1 Comment

I am an American Reform Zionist and in this year’s World Zionist Congress elections (the polls open on January 14), I am a delegate of the Association for Reform Zionists of America (ARZA) Slate #6 about which I will write more in my next blog.

I mention my allegiance to ARZA (which among other things strongly supports a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict) because, oddly enough, this blog is an expression of my hopes that Shas, the ultra-Orthodox Israeli party that represents hundreds of thousands of Mizrachi Jews, does well in the next Israeli election on March 17.

This endorsement coming from me is admittedly strange and seemingly contradictory to my Reform Zionist self-interest given Shas’ past hostile attitudes towards non-Orthodox Judaism in Israel, women’s rights and other liberal causes. I support Shas for the sake of Israel’s democracy, long-term security, and hopes for an eventual two-state solution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

It is unclear at this time, however, how well Shas will do in the coming election following the death of Shas’ spiritual leader, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, a year ago and the subsequent hostile split of Shas into two opposing factions, one led by Aryeh Deri and the other by Eli Yishai, who hate each other. I am rooting for Deri’s Shas faction because he could be a key coalition partner to Labor’s Yizhak Herzog and Tenua’s Tzipi Livni and their new “Zionist” Party.

Why am I so supportive of Deri’s Shas faction?

Two reasons:

First – 50% of Israelis are Mizrachi Jews (i.e. the word “mizrach” means east – or easterners/orientals – these refer to Jews from North African and other Middle Eastern countries). These Jews culturally have much in common with the Middle East as a whole. They understand the Arab world, speak Arabic, and if there is to be a bridge in a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians, Mizrachi Jewish Israelis may be that bridge. Though Mizrachi Jews are current members of the Knesset, the judiciary and occupy other leadership roles in the Israeli government, still Israelis from European backgrounds are in control. Ari Shavit explained in his book “The Promised Land” concerning the traumas and disabilities suffered by the Mizrachi community at the hands of European Zionists when they first came to Israel in the 1950s and 1960s and, just as there is still racism in American society, so too is their prejudice against Mizrachim in Israeli society.

Second – Under the leadership of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef and Aryeh Deri, Shas was willing to cede land for peace in an end-of-conflict peace agreement with the Palestinians. Should Shas get enough seats in the March 17 election and be invited into a coalition led by the center-left partnership of Herzog and Livni, Shas could end up being an important partner in galvanizing the Mizrachi community of Israel in support of an eventual two-state solution.

Of course, nothing is so simple in Israeli politics, and it is uncertain whether either the Deri faction or the Yishai faction will earn enough mandates in the next Knesset to make a difference.

The 91 year-old veteran Israeli journalist Ury Avnery, who fought in the 1948 War of Independence, is a former member of the Knesset and  a prolific journalist, published this past week a piece he called “Half of Shas” in which he argued persuasively, in my view, why a strong Shas showing in the March 17 election would be good for Israel and an eventual peace deal with the Palestinians.

I receive Avnery’s articles directly from him even though they are published in a variety of journals and newspapers. I expected this article to have appeared in 972+ Magazine or in Haaretz.

But no! It appeared in the English News in the Arabic Media Internet Network (AMIN), an independent non-governmental organization serving the Palestinian community. I was intrigued and uplifted that the Palestinian community is reading Israelis like Avnery.

For your information, AMIN has offices in Ramallah, Jerusalem and Gaza, operates an annual $300,000 budget the bulk of which comes from grants. Its mission is to promote a free Palestinian media, free speech, human rights, the development of civil society, democracy and accountability. Its supporters include (in alphabetical order) the British Consulate, Canada Fund, Catholic Relief Services, the European Union, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF), Open Society Institute (OSI), United Nations Democracy Fund (UNDEF), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and the US Consulate.

Go to the following link to read Uri Avnery’s “Half of Shas” – http://www.amin.org/articles.php?t=ENews&id=4627

Confused About Israeli Politics Leading to the March 17 Election?

05 Monday Jan 2015

Posted by in Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity

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If you are confused about the state of Israeli politics, the relative strength of Israel’s political parties and center-right and center-left blocs, what the Palestinians are doing and their opportunities for success, and what is at stake for Israel, you are in good company.

This is Israeli pre-election season, and while one can argue from the perspective of the Biblical Ecclesiastes “Ein chadash tachat hashamash – There is nothing new under the sun,” in truth – there may be – and then again, maybe there isn’t!

The big issues facing the Israeli electorate include its stagnated economy, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Israel’s deteriorating international position, Iran nuclear negotiations, the synagogue-state relationship, and the efforts by right-wing parties to pass a new “Basic Law” that would define Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people (note: the Declaration of Independence already did that), meaning that the interests of Jews will take preeminent position over the rights of minorities in Israel and thereby threaten democracy itself.

When you take all those issues together and then consider that Israel is a very stratified society composed of a number of distinct “tribes” (e.g. ultra-orthodox Jewish Israelis, modern orthodox Israelis, traditional Mizrachi Israelis, liberal (i.e. Reform/Conservative) Jewish Israelis, Russian Jewish Israelis, Russian non-Jewish Israelis, secular anti-religious Israelis, secular Jewish Israelis, Arab Israelis, non-Jewish Israelis, non-Jewish Jewish Israelis, any predictions about the ultimate vote are difficult to make.

The Israeli political party system is based in a parliamentary government with 120 mandates (i.e. seats) in every Knesset (a coalition needs 61 mandates/seats in order to form a government), and now the minimum percentage that a party needs in the vote to be part of the next Knesset is 3.5%, up from 2% the last time around. Consequently, some parties won’t make the cut. Others are combining in order to garner greater strength and the minimum necessary to be part of the Knesset (e.g. all 3 Arab parties have voted to join into one list; Yizhak Herzog of Labor Tzipi Livni of Tenua joined together into one party, etc.).

Thanks to J Street’s Round-up of many articles published over the past two weeks that was published today (January 5), I have included below five of them that I believe articulate clearly what choices Israelis are facing, as well as the current jockeying for position by the Palestinians in the UN. Everything you will read here will help you understand what is happening, but keep in mind that these articles reflect just the challenges generally that Israel faces and is only a snapshot of current events. Things seem to change daily. Once the Israeli election arrives and the vote is taken, and then within a few weeks after the next government will be formed, we might be able to assess whether Ecclesiastes was right or not.

1. Israelis have to choose, Jewish Journal
It should be obvious to anyone with his/her eyes open that time is not working in Israel’s favor,” wrote J Street Rabbinic Cabinet Co-Chair Rabbi John Rosove. “This is the time for the Israeli electorate to choose, and we ought to support those Israeli politicians who we believe are best capable of delivering a secure, Jewish and democratic future for the state of Israel.” http://www.jewishjournal.com/rabbijohnrosovesblog/item/israelis_have_to_choose

2. Kerry’s miscalculation on the UN Palestine resolutions, New Yorker
Bernard Avishai argues that “by taking initiative at the UN, the EU has given [Secretary of State] Kerry the chance to provide all sides with a political horizon, and Israel’s centrist voters with a measure of dread, one to counter Netanyahu’s claims about the necessities of dealing with a “tough neighborhood.” Kerry is right to reaffirm the US commitment to Israeli security. But there is no need for him to tell Israeli voters that, as always, American support is in the bag.” http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/kerrys-miscalculation-u-n-palestine-resolutions

3. Reported text of draft UN resolution on Palestinian statehood, Times of Israel
The Palestinian resolution reportedly affirmed the need for a “just, lasting and peaceful settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict” based on the two-state solution and the Arab Peace Initiative, with Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and a Palestinian state.
http://www.timesofisrael.com/reported-text-of-draft-un-resolution-on-palestinian-statehood/

4. What the polls say about Netanyahu’s election chances, +972
Noting that “a slight shift in the map to the right or to the left might change everything,” Noam Sheizaf contends that “the ability of the next prime minister to engage in major reforms will be very limited to begin with, regardless of his agenda.”
http://972mag.com/what-the-polls-say-about-netanyahus-election-chances/100943/

5. Study: 22 percent of Israeli Jews identify with religious Zionist camp, Haaretz (You must subscribe to Haaretz to read on-line)
A new survey found that twenty-two percent of Israeli Jews consider themselves part of the religious Zionist camp, although one-third of them do not identify as religious at all.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/.premium-.634036?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter