|
|
  |
 |
|
Amid Solidarity Rallies,
Protests, Jews Debate Limits of Dissent
Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Rachael Pomerance, Jul 10, 2002
NEW YORK -- Seattle is rocked by the arrest of peace activists
at a pro-Israel rally and the local Jewish paper's coverage
of the event.
At a national pro-Israel rally in Washington, some demonstrators
cringe when Pentagon official Paul Wolfowitz is booed for mentioning
Palestinian suffering.
And as solidarity rallies abound throughout the country, a question
is surfacing in the pages of Jewish newspapers and around Jewish
kitchen tables: Are there boundaries to Jewish activism at a
time of crisis for Israel?
Martin Raffel, associate executive vice chairman of the Jewish
Council for Public Affairs, describes a "continuum"
of acceptable behavior that permits criticism of Israel but
precludes anti-Zionism, comparisons of Israelis with Nazis and
delegitimization of the Jewish state.
But it is perfectly appropriate to question Israel's policies
and recognize the difficulties Palestinians endure, he said.
Rabbi Irving "Yitz" Greenberg, president of the Jewish
Life Network, a philanthropic organization, agreed with Raffel's
parameters, but added that those who "cross the line"
should be "disowned and denounced."
Letty Cottin Pogrebin, former chair of Americans for Peace Now
and a founder of Ms. magazine, firmly disagreed. "I want
to hear what people have to say and I want to have the opportunity
to shout them down," she said. That gives others a chance
to evaluate opinions in the "marketplace of ideas."
According to John Ruskay, executive vice president of the UJAFederation
of New York, the more interpretations there are of what it means
to be pro-Israel, the better.
"Under the broad umbrella of standing with Israel, more
ideological flags can be a sign of health for the community,"
he said.
Jewish leaders agree that the current crisis has created some
of the broadest community consensus in years, with Jewish groups
committed to fighting terror and fortifying Israel's security.
However, there are no guidelines on how to translate pro-Israel
words into pro-Israel deeds.
Greenberg thinks it should stay that way. The current consensus
is enforced by "moral power," not instruction, he
said. The "pressure for uniformity" or against statements
that "could rock the boat" is wrong.
But certain behavior, like booing Wolfowitz -- who is considered
one of the strongest supporters of Israel in the Bush administration
-- "undercuts our own credibility" and "embarrasses
the cause that we support," Greenberg said.
Indeed, Donna Gordon Blankinship, editor of the Jewish Transcript
in Seattle, said the paper's coverage of the city's Israel solidarity
rally led to accusations that she was anti-Israel. "I am
a Zionist," she said, "an ardent Zionist."
At the community's rally in April, members of a Jewish group
called Pursue the Peace began "pulling down Star of David
flags held by Israeli demonstrators," according to a police
report.
Those members were asked by police to join the counterrally
across the street, and they complied.
However, two members of the group, not accused of destroying
Israeli flags, were arrested when they refused to join the counter-rally
or remove their signs -- which called for supporting "the
people of Israel," as opposed to the government of Prime
Minister Ariel Sharon, and for supporting "Palestinian
rights."
Demonstrators asked the two protestors to leave, with many shouting,
"They do not belong here," according to the police
report.
The Jewish Transcript's coverage of the 1,500-strong rally,
the largest pro-Israel rally ever in Washington state, featured
the incident and reported that rally organizers had called for
the two protestors to be arrested.
However, the Anti-Defamation League and the American Jewish
Committee, which organized the rally, denied any involvement
in the arrests and demanded that the paper apologize for skewed
coverage.
In its current issue, the Transcript responded with a clarification:
"The person police consulted prior to the arrests did not
represent either the Anti-Defamation League or the American
Jewish Committee, the two coordinating organizations."
Though all sides are trying to move forward, distrust and hard
feelings remain.
The arrests were symbolic of the way some voices have been silenced
in the Jewish community, said Adkins, whose group wants the
AJCommittee and ADL to admit they made a mistake.
While the heads of both groups wrote a letter in the Transcript
expressing their "regret" that individuals felt excluded,
both groups maintain they did nothing wrong.
"This rally" and "a lot of other rallies around
the country" have revealed the harassment of Jewish groups
outside the establishment, Adkins said.
"The crux of the matter is that while we are all unified
by our concern for Israel, and everybody says that they want
peace, there is considerable fragmentation within the community,"
he said.
"It doesn't help build a shared sense of unity" with
the Israeli people, he said.
The strife has created a chasm between the paper and the ADL
and AJCommittee.
"I feel that the article did a disservice by inflaming
the community, and now six weeks, eight weeks later, we'll get
some kind of correction" on the back page, said Brian Goldberg,
the director of the ADL's Seattle office.
Blankinship said the Transcript aims to provide information
and let others "figure out how to think. We've always done
a very good job of that, and I'm proud of that."
Meanwhile, Blankinship still can't resolve why Goldberg's name
is listed on police reports if he wasn't involved in the incident.
And she's outraged that she was asked to leave a community healing
forum, at the request of the AJCommittee and the ADL.
A reporter from the non-Jewish media was allowed to stay.
"We need to come up with some kind of definition for what
is pro-Israel activity in our community," Goldberg said,
suggesting that the broader Jewish community would be wise to
do the same.
Goldberg acknowledged that individual rabbis have tried to address
the issue.
He has reached out to Pursue the Peace for dialogue, a move
the group applauds. However, Goldberg said, he hasn't seen organizations
take concrete steps to move the community forward. |
|
|
 |
 |
 |
|
