Mondoweiss

Barack sure seems to be graying fast

It's hard to campaign against intermarriage when you're voting for Obama

In the Forward, Isaac Luria, 26, of J Street goes after Foxman, David Harris and Malcolm Hoenlein, saying that the old guard don't get it, and young Jews are making a new identity. "Continuity" in this excerpt is the concern with Jewish survival, which usually translates to the organizational efforts to stop intermarriage (which grew out of the Jewish survey in 1990 indicating that over half of young Jews were marrying out).

Many of these new communities and organizations are more committed to making Judaism personally meaningful than to simply pursuing Jewish continuity, and aren’t necessarily housed inside traditional Jewish institutions (though they may be funded by forward-thinking Jewish philanthropies). Many of us who are active in these new endeavors are connected to and care about Israel. We hope for a lasting peace, and believe that both sides must play a role in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

For many young Jews, Obama embodies our values. He leads an interconnected world, dealing with myriad and difficult problems pragmatically and honestly. As a symbol of a new era of racial relations, he is uniquely positioned to help peacefully resolve ethnic strife and conflict abroad.

Foxman worries that Obama is Carter redux

Fresh from meeting the president, Abe Foxman is reassured that he reached out to Jewish leaders. But he says in the Jerusalem Post that Carter erred by pushing peace in the Middle East, and so is Obama erring. I guess we can wait another 30 years of more colonization and dispossession? Even Foxman is reading the tea leaves, knows that the U.S. political class is all that Israel's got. Speak, Abe:

Abunimah: despite all the 'pressure,' Obama seems to be licensing illegal colonization

Ali Abunimah, an old friend of Barack Obama's and a leading member of the Arab-American community who has not yet been invited to the White House,  reflects on the visit of 16 Jewish machers to the president's table on Monday and concludes that Obama's "pressure" on Israel has so far been toothless and without real effect. I wish I could write so calmly and logically (not in my skill set):

Update from Jerusalem: Palestinians continue to resist concerted Israeli effort to erase them from the city

The following was written by Samia Khoury. Khoury was born in Jaffa, Palestine on November 24, 1933. She has had a lifetime of of involvement in Palestinian civil society through Birzeit University, the Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center and the YWCA of Palestine among other institutions. She sent out the following by email:

July 13, 2009

Dear Friends:

    I write to you with a heavy heart as two more houses were demolished today in Beit Hanina and Silwan. Eviction orders, confiscation of land and demolishing of homes have become a daily activity of the Israeli occupying forces in East Jerusalem, while the world is watching. Renewal of Permits for couples who are seeking family reunification are being delayed endlessly without any explanation. This is a process required when one of the spouses is from outside the Jerusalem area. And when a new baby is born in Jerusalem, parents need to prove that they are actually living in Jerusalem by presenting a whole set of documents including municipal taxes, electricity, telephone, and sewage bills, etc. etc. in order to be able to register the child. As if their Identity Cards were not proof enough. Restrictions are being imposed on organizations and schools as well, so as to tighten the pressure on them and make their presence in Jerusalem irrelevant, or force them out of the city. Even cultural activities and festivals have become a great challenge for organizations and their sponsors as they continue to face obstacles imposed by military orders.

    When Israel, which claims to be a leading country in the world of arts, would deprive a small community from the pleasure of enjoying music and literature festivals, then there is something very wrong in the psyche of those occupying forces. They probably would rather see us throw stones and bombs so that they will have a good reason to lock us up or expel us out of the country. But we shall not give them that pleasure.  We shall defend our freedom and rights by music, art, drama and literature, and any other non-violent resistance. In fact if any of you saw this month’s  publication “This Week in Palestine,” you would be astonished at the number of activities going on not only in Jerusalem, but in Ramallah, Birzeit, and other parts of the country. While we are being creative in cultural activities to help us overcome the pressures of the occupation, Israel continues to come up with the most innovative measures of oppression to subdue us and make life absolutely unbearable. If I were a cartoonist, I would sketch a demonic brain that creates this continuous onslaught.

    It is becoming very obvious that there is a concerted effort to implement the policy of limiting the number of Palestinians in Jerusalem to a minimum percentage of the population of Jerusalem, which rises all the time through the annexation of Israeli settlements built on Palestinian land. The Arabic name of the city as well as the names of other towns and streets are not being spared this onslaught by the enforcement of Hebrew names, so as to obliterate not only our existence but our history and heritage.

    We urge you dear friends to help us put an end to this onslaught that is affecting every aspect of our lives. We appreciate all the statements, solidarity groups, church initiatives, conferences, and all the advocacy.  But rhetoric is not enough any more at this stage. There should be a serious consideration for a change in policy so that Israel, the spoilt and pampered child, will not be allowed to continue to get away with all the violations that have devastated not only the land but the human dignity of the Palestinians. We have seen how affective the policy of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) was in bringing an end to the Apartheid regime in South Africa. We are not being innovative in this policy, we are simply learning from history. So I hope the international community, and basically the US administration will deal with Israel by the same standards it deals with other countries which violate UN resolutions and international law.

    It will be very interesting to see if Mr. Obama can bring about that change he spoke about when he was elected, and actually be able to take action if Israel refuses to freeze the settlement building, which is illegal in the first place.  No peace or security, let alone reconciliation, can prevail without justice, and a serious resolve to end this brutal occupation.  

Samia Khoury

Hillary to demand more-- *from Arabs*

Yes Virginia, there is an Israel lobby. Greg Sargent reports:

In a major foreign policy speech this afternoon, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will take direct aim at Arab states for not doing their part towards securing Mideast peace, demanding that “all sides” do more to crack down on the “cultures of hate, intolerance and disrespect that perpetuate conflict,” according to an  advance excerpt I’ve obtained.

The only way to understand this report is in the context of Obama's meeting with big Jews on Monday. In the meeting Obama did not back down an inch on the settlements issue (would that were the answer) but had to massage a lot of injured Jewish egos. But note James Besser's report on the meeting says that none of the Jewish leaders, even Foxman and the AJC, would take Obama on on substance. I.e., J Street has cracked the lobby. They just want more handholding.

Sotomayor for the bench, Jim Crow for the West Bank (Where does the rubber meet the road on Jewish advocacy for minorities?)

All this week you will hear Jewish voices lifted on behalf of Sonia Sotamayor as the first Hispanic Supreme Court Justice. No doubt all the dozen or so Jewish senators will vote for her confirmation. Like other minority strivers before her, Sotomayor's story resonates for American Jews because it recalls our own struggle to come inside the American establishment. Republican Arlen Specter praised diversity yesterday and said that it was wrong that it took till 1967 for a president to name a black justice to the Supreme Court, Thurgood Marshall. From the Times coverage of the hearing's opening day:

Hoenlein: No daylight between US and Israel. Obama: I disagree

The Times has a report on Obama's meeting with big Jews. Jeremy Ben-Ami of J Street, justifiably proud of being in the room, says Obama said there's a narrow window for the two-state solution, and I'm going for it.

Mr. Hoenlein [Malcolm, of the Conference of Presidents] told the president that diplomatic progress in the Middle East has traditionally occurred when there is “no light” between the positions of the United States and Israel. But Mr. Obama pushed back, citing the administration of his predecessor, George W. Bush.
“He said, ‘I disagree,’ ‘’ said Marla Gilson, director of the Washington action office of Hadassah, the women’s Zionist organization. “He said, ‘For eight years, there was no light between the United States and Israel, and nothing got accomplished.’

And the American-Arab Anti Discrimination Committee, what did they say? Jim Zogby? Wait, sorry. This was a power group.

Why isn't Obama dickering with Abbas on settlements? (Cherchez la puissance)

Notes a wise friend:
Good analysis by the superb Akiva Eldar, who wonders, Why is Obama talking to Netanyahu rather than Abbas about exceptions to the settlement freeze? (Query whether Obama sees Netanyahu as holding in this crisis a position analogous to the bankers in the financial crisis. I.e. someone you denounce and cause to feel uncomfortable, but also the ultimate relevant authority, the all-important party whom you have to "work with" and keep at your side.)

Obama's progressive base seems to be turning on Israel

Conn Hallinan at Counterpunch says that Obama's voters have his back if he really wants to get tough on "settlements."

does he have the political backing to make it stick?

On the last point, the answer would seem to be “yes.” According to a recent Zogby International poll, 50 percent of Americans think that the U.S. should “get tough” with Israel. Some 32 percent were “not sure,” and only 19 percent said, “do nothing.” But once the partisan gap is factored in, Obama supporters overwhelmingly favor “getting tough” by 71 to 18.

The poll shows strong support for Israel -- 71 percent to 21 percent -- and a negative view of Palestinians -- 25 to 66 -- but again, there were strong differences between Obama and McCain supporters. Asked if Israeli and U.S. interests were identical, Obama voters said “no” 59 to 28, while McCain voters said they were identical 78 to 15. Obama backers had a largely negative view of Netanyahu -- 49 to 29 -- while McCain supporters favored the Israeli prime minister 82 to 9.