O pinion
Don’t Wait for War to Defend Israel
BY STEVE FELDMAN
STREETS IN LARGE and
small cities
throughout America have been the scene
of anti-Israel/anti-Jewish
demonstrations. Print,
broadcast and
electronic media are forums
for an abundance of anti-Is-
rael and anti-Jewish articles,
analyses, columns, opinion
pieces and letters.

Social media activity by
“celebrities” and others has
been an affront to decency and
truth. and pronouncements from
members of Congress. After
Israel was forced to use military
power to stop Palestinian-Arab
terrorists, who fired more than
4,000 rockets targeting Jewish
communities last month,
and defensive measures were
intentionally falsely depicted
throughout traditional media
and social media, Jew-hatred
intensified from the street to
the media.

Know this: Anti-Israel/
anti-Zionist words and actions
are anti-Jewish. Diaspora
Jews are targeted because of
professed affronts by Israel.

Israel is targeted because it
is the sole nation-state of the
Jewish People. To paraphrase
a slogan that has been popular
in recent years: It’s you they are
after. Israel just happens to be
between them and you. Israel
is singled out by international
organizations, “human rights”
groups, columnists and others
as a pathway to attack Jews
Defensive advocacy is
necessary at times. Proactive
measures are vital. Going
forward there must be a barrage
of advocacy/activism to take
back the truth and to regain
our peace of mind. Strength
carries the day.

Individuals, organizations
and institutions — all of klal
Yisrael — must be engaged
and do a better job of boldly
telling Israel’s and the Jewish
people’s story. We must know
the facts and insist that news
media offer balanced reporting
and accurate information
with proper context regarding
events in ancient times, in the
20th century and currently.

Social media must not censor
pro-Israel messages.

Most who attack Israel
rhetorically or who participate
in anti-Israel protests would be
hard-pressed to locate Israel on
a map and don’t know a thing
about Israel. They go with
the flow regarding the social
Most who attack Israel rhetorically or who participate in anti-Israel
protests would be hard-pressed to locate Israel on a map and don’t
know a thing about Israel. They go with the flow regarding the social
justice cause-du-jour and do not question the propaganda. Our
message must become the dominant one.

KVETCH ’N’ KVELL
Farewell Homemade Goodies
THAT WAS A VERY NICE ARTICLE about Roz Bratt and the
closing of her bakery on Fifth Street called Homemade Goodies
by Roz (“Kosher Bakery Owner to Hang it Up After 24 Years,
May 27).

I met that nice lady once and found her to be warm and
hospitable. I’m not in that neighborhood, but I’m sure she will
be missed.

And thanks to Roz Bratt for so generously sharing her Jewish
Apple Cake recipe with your readers. Delicious.

Best to Ms. Bratt in her future endeavors.

Mary-Ann Feldman | Philadelphia
No Judaism Without Torah
Rabbi Cherry, I’m one of those Jews who believe that Torah is the
Tree of Life for the Jewish people and that, without Torah, there
is no Jewish people (“Korach, Racism and Pruning the Tree of
Life,” June 10). That’s what I would teach my students.

I would teach my students that God chose the Jewish people as
His beloved, and there lies the responsibility that we Jews have to
obey His commandments set down in the Torah.

I would teach my students the importance to the Jew of
Shabbos, kashrus, the yom tovim and the meaning of the 17th of
Tammuz and Tisha B’Av.

Let us never retire Torah Judaism.

Zachary Margolies | Philadelphia
Store Owners Need Holocaust Education
The owners of hatWRKS (“Nashville Store Apologizes for Selling
‘Not Vaccinated’ Yellow Jewish Stars,” June 3) should drive two
hours to Whitwell, home of the Paper Clips Project, to learn
how the required wearing of yellow six-pointed stars morphed
into the Nazi slaughter of six million Jewish and five million
non-Jewish civilians.

Hopefully the owners will then understand why 6,500
Tennesseans, whom we just memorialized, made the ultimate
sacrifice fighting against hate and ignorance as shown by them. l
Paul L. Newman | Merion Station
Labor unions have approved
or are considering anti-Israel/
anti-Jewish measures.

A nt i-Isr ael /a nt i-Je w i sh
manifestations have made
their way into K-12 schools,
while such activities at univer-
sities and colleges have been
standard fare for years.

We must fight back aggres-
sively and proactively.

Anti-Jewish rhetoric
and behavior
increased in recent years: observant
Jews assaulted in New York,
murders, property damage
during some Black Lives
Matter-related events, hostile
environments on campuses
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM and Jewry. We must realize
this fact, understand it and
make clear that we are onto
this scheme. There is no point
in any Jewish person denying
what is abundantly clear —
except to try to deceive oneself.

As the
anti-Israel/ anti-Jewish
propaganda becomes more pervasive, it sows
more Jew-hatred, which in turn
sows more physical assaults on
people and property; these sow
panic which sows a reduction
in public support for Israel and
even fear of being identified as
Jewish; weakness sows more
attacks and the vicious cycle
worsens. justice cause-du-jour and do
not question the propaganda.

Our message must become the
dominant one.

Israel and the Jewish world
recently commemorated
another anniversary of the
Israel Defense Forces’ miracu-
lous victory in the 1967 Six-Day
War. Deliberate misinforma-
tion about the events leading
up to this defensive war and
the war’s outcome has caused
Israel/the Jewish people to be
inverted from “David” into
“Goliath” in the eyes of much
of the world.

STATEMENT FROM THE PUBLISHER
We are a diverse community. The views expressed in the signed opinion columns and let-
ters to the editor published in the Jewish Exponent are those of the authors. They do
not necessarily reflect the views of the officers and boards of the Jewish Publishing
Group, the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia or the Jewish Exponent. Send
letters to letters@jewishexponent.com or fax to 215-569-3389. Letters should be a
maximum of 200 words and may be edited for clarity and brevity. Unsigned letters will not be
published. Join the
conversation! Tell us what you’re thinking and interact with the
community at jewishexponent.com
Connect with us on
See Feldman, Page 20
JEWISH EXPONENT
JUNE 17, 2021
17