Year: 2018

As Americans, we are committed to the First Amendment — and as Jews, we know that criticizing Israel is sometimes the most Jewish thing you can do.

By Batya Ungar-Sargon | Forward | Dec 18, 2018

The entire point of the First Amendment is to protect the speech of people we despise (you don’t need the law to protect the speech of people you like). It’s something we Americans hold dear, and something we seem to recognize as crucial to our identity in all areas but Israel. It’s nothing short of a shonda for Israel to be the one topic where Americans forget about their most dearly held values.

The movement to boycott, divest from and sanction Israel, known as BDS, is in the news this week, thanks to a harrowing tale reported in The Intercept about a Muslim speech therapist in Austin, Texas named Bahia Amawi. Amawi was told she could no longer work in the Texas public school system unless she signed an oath promising that she does not and will not boycott Israel or “an Israeli-controlled territory.”

In other words, Texas’s anti-BDS bill doesn’t only impinge on the free speech rights of a US citizen in a bizarre attempt to “stand with Israel;” it turns every potential contractor with the state of Texas into a literalization of the anti-Semitic canard of dual loyalty. Texas citizens are now literally more loyal to Israel than they are to the US, insofar as they may say and do things to their own country that they may not engage in vis-à-vis Israel.

Continue reading “Why don’t Jews realize how dangerous anti-BDS laws are?”

The American and Israeli governments alike should stand up for, rather than stand in the way of, open and vibrant academic debate on Israel–Palestine, just as they should for debate about any contentious subject essential to democracy.

By Katherine Franke | The New York Review of Books | Dec 12, 2018

New policies adopted by the US and Israeli governments are intended to eliminate any rigorous discussion of Israeli–Palestinian politics in university settings. Not since the McCarthyite anti-Communist purges have we seen such an aggressive effort to censor teaching and learning on topics the government disfavors.

There are signs that we’ve reached a tipping point in US public recognition of Israel’s suppression of the rights of Palestinians as a legitimate human rights concern. Increasingly, students on campuses across the country are calling on their universities to divest from companies that do business in Israel. Newly elected members of Congress are saying what was once unsayable: that perhaps the US should question its unqualified diplomatic and financial support for Israel, our closest ally in the Middle East, and hold it to the same human rights scrutiny we apply to other nations around the globe. Global companies such as Airbnb have recognized that their business practices must reflect international condemnation of the illegality of Israeli settlements in the West Bank. Natalie Portman, Lorde, and other celebrities have declined appearances in Israel, acknowledging the call to boycott the Israeli government on account of its human rights violations. And The New York Times published a column arguing, with unprecedented forthrightness, that criticism of ethno-nationalism in Israel (for example, defining Israel exclusively as a “Jewish state”) isn’t necessarily anti-Semitic.

At the same time, discussions on college campuses about the complexities of freedom, history, and belonging in Israel and Palestine are under increasing pressure and potential censorship from right-wing entities. In fact, new policies adopted by the US and Israeli governments are intended to eliminate any rigorous discussion of Israeli–Palestinian politics in university settings. Not since the McCarthyite anti-Communist purges have we seen such an aggressive effort to censor teaching and learning on topics the government disfavors.

Continue reading “The pro-Israel push to purge US campus critics”

Those who undermine peace, democracy, and human rights are distracting us with legislation that takes our leaders’ precious time away from actually fighting for the values and actions that our country so desperately needs right now.

By Joel Rubin | Forward | Dec 19, 2018

If we have learned anything from the past two years, it’s that we cannot take our democracy for granted and that we must instead continually speak out against injustice, intolerance, and hate. That should be the standard against which any legislation affecting America’s relationship towards Israel is judged. In an era of rising intolerance and authoritarianism both at home and abroad, Congress should not facilitate further erosions of our civil liberties.

A major bill affecting American civil liberties and US foreign policy towards Israel is being debated behind the scenes in Congress and may be attached in the dark of night to the end of year Omnibus spending package. This bill — S.720, the Israel Anti-Boycott Act (IABA) — is fundamentally flawed at its core in a manner that should offend progressives and conservatives alike: it violates the First Amendment right to political free speech.

As a progressive Jewish Democrat with a strong personal connection to Israel and a professional national security background, I have been fortunate to have helped form two of the country’s leading organizations working on Israel-related political issues, as the founding Political Director of J Street and a founding Board Member of the Jewish Democratic Council of America. I believe in the mission of these organizations, as they are focused on promoting peace, human rights, and democracy — values that are central to both the United States and Israel.

Continue reading “Congress shouldn’t take the anti-BDS bait”

Many noted the ferocity of the border guard’s response to our prayerful, nonviolent demonstration. We gained a stronger understanding of the toxic effects of militarization on our border communities.

By Rabbi Brant Rosen | Shalom Rav | Dec 15, 2018

What has stuck with me most in the last 24 hours is a deeply uncomfortable sense of what that border surely looks like when the witnesses are gone, the journalists are not taking pictures, and the encounters are with migrants instead of documented (and often white) community leaders. Because what we saw yesterday looks like a police state.
— Elaine Waxman, JVP member

I‘ve just returned from the San Diego-Tijuana border where I had the honor of participating in “Love Knows No Borders” — an interfaith action sponsored by the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) and co-sponsored by a myriad of faith organizations from across the country. As a staffer for AFSC and a member of Jewish Voice for Peace (one of the many co-sponsoring organizations), I took a special pride in this interfaith mobilization, in which more than 400 people from across the country gathered to take a moral stand against our nation’s sacrilegious immigration system. I’m particularly gratified that the extensive media from our action could shine a light on the brutal reality at our increasingly militarized southern border.

The date of the action (December 10) was symbolically chosen to take place on the anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and served as the kick off to a nationwide week of action that will conclude on December 18, International Migrant’s Day. The action set three basic demands before the US government: to respect people’s human right to migrate, to end the militarization of border communities, and to end the detention and deportation of immigrants.

Continue reading “I witnessed the horror of border militarization, and vow to fight it”

Two of the most prominent Jewish members of the Senate warn that the Israel Anti-Boycott Act will harm free speech in the US.

By Amir Tibon | Haaretz | Dec 19, 2018

While we do not support the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Movement, we remain resolved to our constitutional oath to defend the right of every American to express their views peacefully without fear of actual punishment by the government.
— Sens. Bernie Sanders and Diane Feinstein in a letter to Senate leaders

Senators Bernie Sanders and Dianne Feinstein sent a letter on Thursday to Senate leaders urging them not to promote a controversial piece of legislation that will penalize boycotts against Israel and Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

Sanders and Feinstein, two of the most prominent Jewish members of the Senate, warned that the proposed legislation, called the Israel Anti-Boycott Act, will harm free speech in the US. . . .

Both Schumer and McConell support the anti-boycott bill, which is being promoted by the pro-Israeli lobby group AIPAC.

The legislation has been met with opposition from leading civil rights groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, over concerns that it will limit American citizens’ freedom of speech.

Continue reading “Sanders and Feinstein call anti-BDS bill “threat to free speech””

Since 2015, 26 states have passed anti-BDS legislation.

By Ray Hanania | Middle East Monitor | Dec 13, 2018

Arab Americans have everything on their side: the US Constitution; the rule of law; and the fight against racism enshrined in its domestic laws by the state of Israel which defines the settlements in the occupied West Bank. However, it takes more than all of that to do the right thing. It takes courage.

Last month, Airbnb, an American company that allows homeowners to list their properties for rental to visiting tourists, announced that it will prohibit listings of properties in Israel’s illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank. The company’s decision was morally and legally correct, not least because of the illegal nature of the settlements and the racism that underpins them.

That the Israeli settlements are built for “Jews only” isn’t the real problem, though. The real problem is that they are built on land and property stolen by Israel’s government from Palestinian Christians and Muslims in violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention.

This week, however, the Illinois Investment Policy Board (IIPB), which manages nearly $14 billion in financial investments for the state’s pensioners, declared that Airbnb is no longer in compliance with the state’s anti-BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) laws which prohibit boycotts of Israel. Illinois has the dubious distinction of being the first state to propose an anti-BDS law and the third state to pass such a law. Anti-BDS laws are intended to punish US citizens and businesses who exercise their Constitutional right to free speech and decide to boycott Israel’s illegal settlements.

Continue reading “If America’s “core values” mean anything at all, then anti-BDS laws must be repealed”

Lost in all the coverage of George H. W. Bush was one of his major accomplishments — a willingness to play hardball with Israel. It’s long past time to get back to that sort of conservatism.

By Maj. Danny Sjursen | AntiWar.com | Dec 18, 2018

Here are the inconvenient facts: so long as Israel maintains two sets of political and civil rights for Jews and Muslims in the occupied Palestinian territories (those seized after the 1967 Six Day War), denies Palestinian national sovereignty, continues to build illegal Jewish-only settlements in the West Bank, and maintains a crippling blockade of the Gaza Strip, well, then, there will continue to be regular protests, an ongoing insurgency, and countless Palestinian deaths. Such asymmetrical killings — especially of civilians — will only feed the beast of conflict in a vicious cycle that is now entering its eighth decade.

This article being about the Israel/Palestine crisis — a veritable “third-rail” in American political discourse — it’s necessary to start with a few disclaimers. This author is not anti-Semitic and believes the Israeli state has a right to exist. Now that that’s out of the way, let’s address the controversial caveat: Palestinians, for moral and strategic reasons, also deserve state sovereignty and equivalent civil rights. And, believe it or not, that should be the stated position of all real (small “c”) conservatives.

The reasons are simple — the United States’ one-sided, pro-Israel stance, along with its massive funding of the Israeli military, continue to sully America’s reputation in the Muslim and Arab world. This (accurate) perception of inequity and hypocrisy on the part of the U.S. breeds more “terrorists” than America’s military can kill and directly endangers the homeland. Furthermore, the inextricable linkage between this administration as well as a variety of US military and intelligence agencies with the far right-wing leaders of the current Israeli government risks allowing Prime Minister Netanyahu to drag Washington into more regional wars America neither needs nor can win. It is, to be frank, the ultimate “wag-the-dog” scenario — and the two culprits are Israel and their cynical friend Saudi Arabia.

Continue reading “The conservative case for Palestine”

Senators Sanders and Feinstein urging Senate leaders to not support the Israel Anti-Boycott Act legislation.

By Paul Waldman| The Washington Post | Dec 19, 2018

The bill would prohibit and penalize certain constitutionally-protected political activity aimed solely at Israeli settlements in the West Bank, thereby extending US legal protection to the very settlements the United States has opposed as illegitimate and harmful to the cause of Israeli-Palestinian peace for more than 50 years.

Earlier this week I wrote about the Israel Anti-Boycott Act, a piece of legislation that some Democrats and Republicans are hoping to quietly attach to a budget bill so it can be passed into law. The bill would bar American companies and individuals from participating in certain boycotts of Israel, and, though even its supporters say it would have minimal practical impact, it represents a serious attack on fundamental principles of free speech.

The bill is also part of a broad nationwide movement playing out at both the federal and state level to quash criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud government and its policies toward Palestinians, an effort that Democrats unfortunately have participated in far too often.
Continue reading “Bernie Sanders’s new plan to force a genuine debate in Congress on Israel”

The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement is gaining support in Congress.

By  Michelle Goldberg | New York Times | Dec 7, 2018

People with an uncompromising commitment to pluralistic democracy will necessarily be critics of contemporary Israel. That commitment, however, makes them the natural allies of Jews everywhere else.

On Monday, in an interview with The Intercept, Rashida Tlaib, a Michigan Democrat who in November became the first Palestinian-American elected to Congress, went public with her support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, which seeks to use economic pressure on Israel to secure Palestinian rights. That made her the second incoming member of Congress to publicly back BDS, after Minnesota Democrat Ilhan Omar, who revealed her support last month.

No current member of Congress supports BDS, a movement that is deeply taboo in American politics for several reasons. Opponents argue that singling out Israel for economic punishment is unfair and discriminatory, since the country is far from the world’s worst violator of human rights. Further, the movement calls for the right of Palestinian refugees and millions of their descendants to return to Israel, which could end Israel as a majority-Jewish state. (Many BDS supporters champion a single, binational state for both peoples.) Naturally, conservatives in the United States — though not only conservatives — have denounced Tlaib and Omar’s stance as anti-Semitic.
Continue reading “Anti-Zionism isn’t the same as anti-Semitism”

A Senate bill aims to punish those who boycott Israel over its settlement policy. There are better solutions.

By Editorial Board | The New York Times | Dec 18, 2018

Many devoted supporters of Israel, including many American Jews, oppose the occupation of the West Bank and refuse to buy products of the settlements in occupied territories. Their right to protest in this way must be vigorously defended. The same is true of Palestinians. They are criticized when they resort to violence, and rightly so. Should they be deprived of nonviolent economic protest as well?

One of the more contentious issues involving Israel in recent years is now before Congress, testing America’s bedrock principles of freedom of speech and political dissent.

It is a legislative proposal that would impose civil and criminal penalties on American companies and organizations that participate in boycotts supporting Palestinian rights and opposing Israel’s occupation of the West Bank.

The aim is to cripple the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement known as B.D.S., which has gathered steam in recent years despite bitter opposition from the Israeli government and its supporters around the world.

Continue reading “Curbing free speech in the name of helping Israel”