Benjamin Netanyahu, who will do anything and everything to get re-elected, especially rousing the most racist section of his base, has now crossed a red line. Fearing for his political future he engineered a merger between the current party of Kahanism, Otzma Yehudit (“Jewish Power”) with the National Union Party so that it could enter the Knesset surreptitiously, in a consolidated right-wing party and bolster his electoral bloc. Michael Ben-Ari, a leader of Otzma Yehudit, was denied a visa to enter the US due to the State Department’s “prerogative to ban terrorists from entering the country.”  He was now promised a seat in the next Knesset. read more

Where do I stand when I hear Ilhan Omar? By Ayala Emmett

Shortly after the 2016 election I talked to an acquaintance who was active in social justice about justice activities in my synagogue; I spoke of the Jewish obligation to help the marginalized that is often emphasized in the Torah and throughout Jewish history. Her response was that she was surprised to hear that Jews were committed to charity and while she was not familiar with the Torah, Jews were rich and could afford giving money.

Linking Jews and money, is an old anti-Semitic ploy. The recent statement that American Jews pay politicians to support Israel that came from a newly elected Democratic congresswoman was shocking. So where do I stand when I hear Ilhan Omar making a not-so-veiled anti-Semitic remark? On the Israeli-Palestinian conflict I stand where I have always been, a peace activist. I oppose Israel’s occupation and I support a two-states solution. read more