Posts Tagged‘Words of the Week’

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Words of the Week

by Erika Dreifus on
Disabled

“Ultimately, what upsets me the most is not the existence of swastikas—I have unfortunately been conditioned to expect anti-Semitism in many spaces in America—but rather the failure of our community to acknowledge anti-Semitism as a problem that we must confront in our own circles. I’ve been frustrated and exhausted, attempting to be an advocate for myself and my community when it seems like no one ‘gets’ it. Multiple friends have said, ‘Why are you so upset? What’s the big deal?’ I’ve attempted to answer these questions: because the last time this symbol was widespread, my grandfather lost his entire extended family to death camps. Because epigenetics have shown that trauma is passed down through generations, so my Jewish brothers and sisters are actually feeling the same PTSD that their grandparents developed after the Holocaust. Because anti-Semitism is ignored because of hatred of Israel, or because Jews are assumed to be universally white and therefore unable to be oppressed.”

Source: Madeline Budman, “How I’m Coping with the Swastikas on My Campus” (Alma)

Words of the Week

by Erika Dreifus on
Disabled

“In a new article published in The Forward, Stephen Walt claims that time has proved his and John Mearsheimer’s writings on the Israel lobby correct. Ten years ago, they wrote that a loose network of pro-Israel political and policy organizations negatively influence U.S. foreign policy toward the Middle East. Yet, Walt’s efforts to show how the last ten years have proven him right would not pass muster in an introductory international relations course.”

Source: Mitchel Hochberg and Dennis Ross, “Stephen Walt Is Still Wrong About the ‘Israel Lobby'” (Forward)

Words of the Week

by Erika Dreifus on
Disabled

“Jews are a tiny population. And we keep finding ways to splinter ourselves into smaller factions.

If I could hit the ‘reset’ button for 5778, I’d make a plea for kinder disagreement.

We are split on Israel.
We are split on who is authentically or adequately Jewish.
We are split on whether women can be rabbis.
We are split on the U.S. president.
We are split on refugees.

And worst of all, we are split on whether we can even talk honestly about what splinters us.”

From Abigail Pogrebin’s “A Jewish Reset: One People,” in Hitting Reset: A Fresh Start for 5778, a booklet presented by the UJA Federation of New York.

Words of the Week

by Erika Dreifus on
Disabled

“If given today’s false choice between learning the watch-your-back lessons of Munich or the Blame-Israel-first lessons of Lebanon, I start with Munich. We can’t be pure if we don’t survive. But I’m with the late Leonard Fein – let’s risk the nervous breakdown and navigate the world’s messiness – aspiring to be good, after ensuring we stay alive.”

Source: Gil Troy, “Sabra, Shatila, and the Rise of the Jewish Voice for Israeli Suicide” (Jerusalem Post)

Words of the Week

by Erika Dreifus on
Disabled

“The JVP call for a flat right of return where the legitimate Palestinian leadership has accepted compromise is one example among many of how the Palestinian solidarity movement in the diaspora has cut loose from the actual Palestinian national movement and hitched itself to the extremist Palestinian opposition. Another is the frequent attack by pro-Palestinian activists on Israel’s right to exist, something the Palestinian leadership has formally recognized at least since 1993.”

Source: J.J. Goldberg, “The One Weird Thing That Birthright And JVP Have In Common” (Forward)