Gaza and the rise of the Jewish left
JVL Introduction
A long-growing divide among American Jewry over the right to criticise Israel and to stand in solidarity with Palestinians has been consolidated since October 7.
In an uplifting and optimistic account, activist Esther Kaplan traces the roots of these divisions through the development and radicalisation of three Jewish organisations: Jewish Voice for Peace, IfNotNow and Jews for Racial & Economic Justice; but others beyond them are also brought into the story.
The Jewish mainstream has long put Israel’s security at the heart of its concerns and has been largely at one with US foreign policy from at least 1967. Public criticism of Israel remains taboo. Palestinians are barely recognised as human, and any rights they might claim seen as hostile to Israel’s interests and therefore antisemitic, their exponents “terrorists”.
But this narrative is challenged head-on, especially by younger Jews. They are on the march as never before, in support of Palestinian rights and Palestinian humanity, for an immediate ceasefire, against the genocidal war on Gaza.
A battle is being fought out over Jewish safety. Is the only way to protect Jews through unconditional support for Israel? Or does the Israeli occupation and ethnonationalism makes Jews unsafe everywhere:
“Solidarity makes us safe. Palestinian freedom makes us safe.”
RK
This article was originally published by Hammer & Hope on Fri 22 Mar 2024. Read the original here.
Gaza and the rise of the Jewish left
A fissure has shot through the American Jewish consensus on Israel.
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Thank you for this.
It’s terrifying how much patient, intelligent, sustained effort over such extended periods of time is necessary to build peace and justice in our world.
FROM THE RIVER TO THE SEA,
ONE FREE DEMOCRACY
That is the only way forward. Stop the bullying and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians. Create one democratic country. Remember that when South Africa was democratised we didn’t grieve that the white Africaaners were being disenfranchised (let alone would be murdered en masse) if they lost ethnic dominance. It is an insult to Jews to say that they are not capable of sharing a country democratically without a murderous army backed up by racist terror gangs.