I think we’ve hit a dangerous trend in the American Jewish community “Advocacy Gone Awry,” Between the Lines, March 18). Right-wing groups are resorting to neo-McCarthyism in an effort to determine if other Jews pass their pro-Israel litmus test. These groups should not be the sole arbitrators of what it means to be pro-Israel. This would be the equivalent of saying that only one political party in the U.S. is sufficiently patriotic.
While Americans may disagree on issues ranging from whether or not go to war or what the correct tax rate should be, we do so out of deep concern for our nation. The same principle should be applied to supporters of Israel. Those who criticize settlements and home evictions in the West Bank are not anti-Israel. They believe that this
ultimately hurts Israel, as it sends the wrong message about its intention to carry out the two-state solution.
Further, it serves as a great recruitment tool for groups like Hamas. Of course, part of the reason that liberal-minded Jews criticize the settlements is out of concern for the plight of the Palestinians and a commitment to social justice, but it is also out of great concern for the future of Israel, which depends on the implementation of the two-state solution.
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