5 minute read
Can we speak with one voice?
By Joel Pittelman, Jewish Community Relations Council Chair
Jews have learned that when our interests are threatened, we must not remain silent. When we have remained silent, the cost has been enormous. In the face of real threats to Jewish security, we try to find the most effective way to be heard. When the Jews of the Shushon were to be slaughtered, Mordechai asked Esther to go to the King and secure his support.
The freedom afforded Jews in the United States, and the happiness and prosperity it has brought us, is unparalleled in our long history. When that freedom is threatened by a mob composed of groups and individuals who have openly expressed their hatred of Jews, we have a responsibility to act, just as Mordechai did.
One of the duties of the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) is to speak for the Jewish community with a strong, clear voice when we need to be heard. This is a difficult task because, as it is so often said, “Two Jews, three opinions.” More precisely, the JCRC cannot and will not purport to speak for all Jews when there is not substantial agreement within the Jewish community.
For this reason, we remain silent when disagreements arise between Jews who are on the political left and right. How can we say there is a “Jewish position” when we know that unrest on the streets of major cities is viewed as justifiable dissent by some, and malicious destruction of property by others?
What we do know, however, is that Jews are unanimous in condemning unjustified violence, condemning antisemitism in all its forms and shadings, and in the instance of the events of January 6, 2021. We are unanimous in condemning insurrection and sedition committed against our country, whose principles of freedom and equality have given its Jewish citizens opportunities for happiness and prosperity as no other country before has ever done.
While I expect the preceding description is broadly understood, I am less
comforted that it is deemed satisfactory to all. I had previously penned an open letter to the Jewish community that condemned the attempt by seditionists, many of whom are members of avowedly antisemitic groups, to destroy our freedom by trying to undo the results of the presidential election. I received several messages of dissatisfaction because I had not previously issued a statement objecting to the street violence that had damaged property during last summer’s Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests.
I agree with those who oppose loss of life and damage to property. I suspect that the Jewish community agrees, but when put into context, I am certain that many see shading that would justify these actions during last summer’s street protests. Neither I nor the JCRC can speak for the Jewish community when many in our community see justifiable circumstances.
On the other hand, there is Jewish unanimity on the events of January 6. I have received no suggestion that any circumstance would justify the overthrow of our democracy by a mob of antisemites. There is no analogy between last summer’s street violence and the insurrection and seditious combat in our nation’s Capitol Building, which sought to, and succeeded in interrupting the business of ratifying the popular election of our President.
In the messages I received in response to my open letter to our community, I see a thread of concern regarding antisemitism within the Black Lives Matters movement. There surely are instances where some individuals, under the banner of BLM have expressed antisemitic positions. I will not excuse antisemitic statements, regardless of who has made them or for the circumstances when made. I condemn all antisemitic statements.
The civil rights movement of the 1960s was an ideal, a vision and a goal. It was not an organization. So too, BLM is a movement, not a formal organization. Statements made by individuals are the responsibility of those individuals, not the movement. The civil rights movement of the ‘60s had great support from the Jewish community, and the civil rights movement largely embraced its Jewish support. This was true even though there were individuals, indeed visible spokesmen, such as Malcom X and Louis Farrakhan, who were and are virulent anti-Semites.
In its formative moments, the BLM movement was hijacked by Palestinian activists attempting to create a formal organization and “platform” that contained unmistakable antisemitic elements. That organization has since been disregarded by the BLM movement because it fails to advance the objectives of BLM.
I’m certain that we can find antisemitic Blacks who represent themselves as spokespeople of BLM, but the movement does not embrace them any more than the civil rights movement embraced antisemitism. Antisemitism is simply antithetical to BLM’s purpose. However, as a result of its troubled history, we will find no unanimity among Jews regarding BLM, and we can state no clear community position.
The Jewish Federation of Greater Naples, of which the JCRC is a part, is an apolitical organization. That does not restrict us from talking about government. There is a difference between government and politics. A letter objecting to insurrection, sedition and antisemitism is not political. I suggest that the entire Naples Jewish community shares that belief.
What I have learned from the several objections I have received is that several people in our community cannot separate government from politics. When I addressed the events of Jan. 6 in our government’s Capitol Building, to some people, it cannot be viewed as an isolated event. They see it within a larger span of time, set in a political context.
I suppose that neither perspective is incorrect. But, to accept the broader perspective means that no matter how troubling a single event may be, the collective Jewish community is unable to speak with one voice because it carries a political implication. I don’t believe Jewish interests can be well-served by our silence.
If you disagree, I welcome your response. The JCRC is always open to new ideas and changing situations.
