All Jewish Mainers should support recent divestment and arms embargo efforts. Yes, even if they support Israel.

Ever since October 2023, American Jews have been horrified by events in Israel-Palestine, and, supposedly, deeply divided about it. On one hand there is a supposed majority with unquestioning support for the Israeli government’s actions, which believes anti-Zionism and any criticism of Israel are inherently antisemitic and un-Jewish. On the other hand, we are led to believe that there is a vocal minority who support a maximalist form of Palestinian liberation, an end to the state of Israel, who veer into “self-hatred,” “antisemitism,” and are unaware of the problematic nature of organizations like Hamas.

Certainly these divides exist to some extent. There are some whose views can be described in one of these two ways. I have found, however, that there is a unifying, but also more complicated, reality beneath this divided image. Most American Jews I speak with are concerned with the violence being perpetrated by all parties, and want a lasting, meaningful peace in the region. They are concerned by both the Islamic fundamentalism and ethno-nationalism of Hamas, Hezbollah and the Islamic Republic in Iran, and with the Jewish fundamentalism and ethno-nationalism of the Israeli coalition government led by Netanyahu, Smotrich and Ben-Gvir.

Most people I know are not opposed to the existence of Israel, but do not support its current actions. They are dedicated to Jewish values such as tikkun olam (healing the world) and tzedakah (charitable giving). They have taken to heart the message of “never again,” the watch word of Holocaust remembrance and prevention of future human rights abuses. Here at home, they are uncomfortable with the no compromises rhetoric of supporters of both sides, and are concerned about rising antisemitism, largely from the Republican Party’s right wing, white, Christian base.

This assessment is backed up by national polling. According to the Jewish Democratic Council of America (JDCA), 75% of American Jews feel some emotional attachment to Israel, but 63% are opposed to Prime Minister Netanyahu, and 92% believe that they can and should criticize the Israeli government. According to the Pew Research Center, as many as 70% of American Jews vote for the Democratic Party, with similar numbers backing Harris over Trump, and a similar or even higher number feel that the Republican Party’s policies and rhetoric are actively antisemitic.

Despite this broad support for the Democratic Party among American Jews, a growing minority, potentially as high as 40%, say that the Biden-Harris administration’s failure to stop Israel’s actions in Gaza are a major concern. A study by Hebrew University found that 90% of American Jews feel that Jews have an obligation to work for social justice and to help the poor and/or oppressed.

The current Israeli governing coalition is made up of right wing extremists, desperately clinging on to power in an attempt to avoid the consequences of law breaking and corruption, carrying out a war that is controversial at best, and which is opposed most vocally by the hostage families it is often rhetorically claimed to support.

In short, the vast majority of American Jews would be horrified to see these people elected here at home. How strange to watch some American Jews fight against this exact type of “leadership” in their own country, while providing political cover for it on the other side of the world.

Peace in the region is not possible while the far-right Israeli government is supported by the United States. When either the U.S. or the Israeli government fails to live up to our standards and values we should criticize them openly and use every tool at our disposal to pressure them to do better. We should support our ideological allies in Israel, rather than allowing our government to support their electoral opponents. We should support Israeli-Palestinian coalition building and reconciliation whenever possible.

That is why I call on all Jewish Mainers to support divestment efforts, like that recently voted on in Portland, and arms embargoes, like the bill recently introduced by fellow Jew and New Englander Sen. Bernie Sanders. We must clearly and vocally tell both our Jewish institutions and our elected officials that we believe in the importance of criticizing both the Israeli and U.S. governments in order to hold them to our standards. Rather than picking either “side” in this conflict, or the passive stance of “neutrality,” actions like this represent actively choosing the side of peace and reconciliation, the first steps in a long lasting shalom for the region.