I was glad to read a recent letter to the editor in The Union newspaper expressing dismay at the treatment of Palestinians by Israel and that nation’s increasing turn toward autocracy and displacement of the Palestinian people from their homeland.
Even though I have studied and been active for Palestinian rights for many years, I have been hesitant to speak out about it, not knowing how to interject this concern to its deserved level of public awareness in the midst of also deserving attention to Ukraine, migrant suffering, racism, mass shootings, climate change and so much else.
So, I appreciated this writer initiating the conversation amidst a radical escalation of Israeli state-sponsored violence against Palestinian civilians and children. I was born in 1948, the same year as the establishment of Israel, simultaneously known by Palestinians as the Nakba (Catastrophe). For my entire lifetime there has been ethnic cleansing and oppression of the indigenous Palestinian people by the dominant forces ruling Israel.
However, I urge others to continue to feel pride in their Jewish ancestry or Judaism as a religion and culture. For my own growth to understand the Palestinian “side” of history between Israel and Palestinians, I have many Jewish activists to credit, like Naom Chomsky, Phyllis Bennis, Jeff Halper, and many others. Some are well-known publicly and others less so and personal friends, both American and Israeli. I recommend the organization Jewish Voice for Peace as a current source of information and perspective on Israel and Palestine, displaying the values of “doing good deeds, honesty, and compassion” that the letter writer mentioned.
Supporters of Palestinian rights need to remain aware that the Israeli government, together with "Christian Zionist" and political allies in the U.S., have been lobbying hard to create the false impression that criticism of Israel equals to anti-semitism. They have even been successful in some states and communities to codify a definition of anti-semitism that lists criticism of Israel as a key element.
Palestinian supporters should not be intimidated by this, but do need to be very clear to distinguish between our concerns about Israel’s behavior and our feelings about Judaism, Jewish people, and the Jewish culture.
Whether Christian, Jewish, Muslim, or Hindu, or any other faith, some people are guided by principles of peace, mercy, compassion, and openness while others are guided more by fear of others, domination, exclusive righteousness, and entitlement from God differently than others.
While criticizing Israeli policies, we must recognize the complicity of the United States government in the ongoing oppression of Palestinians, while pretending to act as a broker for peace and declaring support for a “two-state solution.”
The U.S. continues to increase its multiple billion dollars of military aid to Israel every year, even as it cuts off its vital humanitarian aid to Palestinians through the United Nations Commission on Refugee Relief.
How many times, when the violence there reaches enough intensity to be noticed by the media, do we hear a chorus of politicians and commentators repeating: “Of course, Israel has a right to defend itself!” Do you recall anyone saying, “Of course, Palestinians have a right to defend themselves?”
Both Democrats and Republicans have historically been completely one-sided in terms of treating Israel as an ally and Palestinians as terrorists when it comes to specific policies and military/political support. The public pronouncements that attempt to sound like mediation ring embarrassingly hollow when examined in terms of action.
It is hard to dismiss the parallels between the tragic American history toward the indigenous cultures here (with its “Manifest Destiny” justification) and Israel’s “God-given right” over the land from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea.
We are in America, and ostensibly have the most right and responsibility toward affecting our own government’s behavior. Our government’s behavior has been an essential ingredient in enabling the actions we do not support from Israel. I suggest we spend our strongest efforts on behalf of Palestinian rights toward changing the United States’ actual behavior for peace and justice in the Israeli and Palestinian future.
Brian Fry is a longtime resident of Grass Valley who is active with several peace and justice advocacy organizations. He traveled with a delegation to Palestine and Israel as part of Interfaith Peace Builders (now Eyewitness Palestine) in 2012.
