We must not succumb to hate

Commenting on the Israeli Palestinian issue has brought me a lot of hate, which was no surprise given my decades of human rights activism.

What did catch me off guard were the antisemites — thankfully a few but still too many for comfort — trying to befriend me. They often cite religious scriptures and “leaders and Rabbis” advocating for the death of non-Jews as their proof. While some of it is true and profoundly disheartening, we can find similar hatred within every single religious or secular group.

In promoting one’s own cause, it’s easy to forget that generalizations about and treating any group as a monolith is simply wrong. Succumbing to hate against any identifiable group solves nothing and takes us down a regrettable path.

Legitimate criticism of Israeli actions is not antisemitism, just as criticism of Saudi Arabia is not Islamophobic. Similarly opposing antisemitism or those who call for the destruction of Israel is not suppression of Palestinian rights. The devil is in the details, of course, and we must proceed cautiously.

In these challenging times, it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that not all Zionists wish to displace or harm Palestinians, just as not all Palestinian resistance fighters desire harm to Jews. When you get past the raw emotions, most people simply wish to live and let live, a sentiment echoed by friends in both camps.

Let’s stop giving oxygen to extremists, but let’s go one step further and marginalize those who are unwilling to be fair, honest and just.

I am not naïve to think that this will lead to a kumbaya moment followed by peace. We still need to find a solution, which requires having uncomfortable conversations, changing the paradigm and sidelining extremists.

Candid discussions will reveal that support for a single democratic state has negligible support in both camps. Although this is the most consistent with the notion of the modern liberal democratic state, it is a pipe dream. There is support in both groups for a single exclusively Jewish or Palestinian state. This, of course, is a non-starter. The two-state solution, which has been sabotaged by successive Israeli governments and Palestinian leadership, is the only realistic option.

In the meantime, while “leaders” debate and bicker over these hypotheticals, Jewish settlements expand and Palestinians find themselves with less and less territory, the U.S. stands stronger with Israel, and anyone who questions the occupation risks being labelled an antisemite. This charade has to end.

Stepping outside our echo chambers and highlighting reasonable voices advocating reconciliation and dialogue is crucial if we are to help end the cycle of violence.

Those who deny Israel’s right to exist must be sidelined. Same with those who do not believe in a viable and sovereign Palestinian state.

Both the original Hamas Charter (which was amended for the better in 2017, but still does not explicitly recognize Israel) and the Likud Party founding platform must be exposed for their unwillingness to recognize the other.

Both sides are being led to catastrophe by haters holding the reins. The fact is seven million Israeli Jews and 7 million Palestinians must either find a way to share the land or resolve to fill the graves under.

As leading Jewish thinker Jeffrey Sachs urged the UN Security Council earlier this month, the global community must intervene.

The first step is an independent investigation into the conduct of both Israel and Hamas. Then, Israel’s big brothers and Palestinian backers acting impartially — prioritizing international law and human rights — must force the parties to end the cycle of killing and subjugation. Next comes enforcement of UN Resolution 242 requiring Israel to withdraw to the 1967 borders, which won’t make either side happy, but is a reasonable place to start. Then move toward a truth and reconciliation type of process and reparations. All of this of course must be enforced using the international institutions set up for this and the billions meant for war that would be freed up.

If history teaches us anything, it is that the alternative to ending the vicious circle of hate is perpetual war and more dead civilians.