Jews, Rhetoric, and Elections

By Avi Smolen
Rutgers University

Election season has come and gone and America has chosen Barack Obama to be its 44^th president. I normally love election time because it is a time for people to talk about issues that are important to them, learn about candidates running to represent them and those interests, and, in early November, vote for their chosen candidates. This is democracy in action, all with the picturesque (and appropriate) background of leaves falling and changing colors—a transition to a new season both in nature and in politics.

However, when elections and policies are discussed in the Jewish community, my love for this time quickly slackens. Undoubtedly, the primary issue I hear discussed in Jewish circles is support for Israel. This is most often expressed through the question: "Which candidate is better for Israel?" It worries me that the major concern among Jews, or at least the one most addressed, concerns the support of Israel. Where is the discussion about issues of anti-Semitism, separation of church and state, and support for the rights of the few and the disenfranchised (following the Jewish tradition of social justice)? Though these issues are not totally absent, they are not as attractive as Israel, a country which is inherently viewed as threatened.

The conventional assumption is that Israel is a refuge for the Jewish people, and it therefore must be supported in everything it does, at all times. It is the one country in the world that represents Jews—the sole state in which Jews comprise a majority of citizens. Therefore, what happens in and to Israel reflects back on and concerns all Jews. The question then turns to a candidate's support for Israel. Are the candidates pro- or anti- Israel? Of course, any politician worth his salt will prove to the Jewish community that he is pro-Israel, because not doing so will cost him the electoral and financial support of the Jewish community. But why the rhetoric about unconditional support for Israel as the absolutist term "pro-Israel" implies? If I support all of Israel's policies but one, am I then anti-Israel? There seems to be no grey area—no in-between.

I believe that there needs to be honest dialogue in the Jewish community and beyond about what support for Israel means. It is admirable to support Israel as a democracy that endeavors to empower its citizens and serve as a force for good in the world. But when Israel is not living up to its promise, I fully support the United States' use of its leverage, such as the $2 billion our country gives to Israel each year, to encourage Israel to be better. How can we be good friends of Israel if we don't tell Israel that it's doing something wrong? Just like a good friend, the United States needs to use its power to encourage Israel to improve its human rights record in dealing with Palestinians under its control, and discourage the continued expansion of Jewish settlements into the West Bank, making it ever harder for a lasting peace to be established between Israel and would-be Palestine.

As a Jew, I feel a special connection to Israel as a place where I can always be safe and as my homeland—the spiritual center of my religion. Because of my Jewish identity and strong tradition of social justice in Judaism with which I was raised, I want my homeland to be a country that treats all people under its control with dignity and respect. I want to see Israel working constantly to improve relations with Palestinians and to promote peace in all of its actions. So am I being "pro-Israel?" I love Israel. I want Israel to exist and to flourish. I want Israel to live in peace with its neighbors. This sounds pretty "pro-Israel" to me. But I do not support Israel's policy of establishing Jewish settlements in the West Bank or the restrictions that Israel imposes on Palestinians. Does this then make me "anti-Israel?" These questions should not be so rare in the Jewish community. We need to get past the absolutist rhetoric of "pro" or "anti," black or white, and talk about real issues facing Israel.

I want to hear a politician tell me that he supports Israel's right to exist, just as any other state, but that he also supports peace and is willing to speak out against Israel's policies that do not bring it closer to that goal. And then I want to hear members of the Jewish community applauding this stance and supporting a candidate all the more for espousing it. I hope that Barack Obama will prove to be this politician, that his colleagues in the Senate and House will support him, and that the Jewish community will also rally around him in this effort. Yes We Can!

Avi is a senior at Rutgers University, with a major in political science and double-minor in psychology and Jewish studies. He is a past KOACH Intern and is currently President of Rutgers Hillel. He hopes to pursue a career in international development with a focus on human rights.

[Posted 11/27/08]