editorials
Skirmishes Over Israel’s Legitimacy
L ast week, a skirmish in the battle
to promote Palestinian rights by
delegitimizing the state of Israel broke
out at the Sierra Club. The venerable
environmental organization that is
committed to defending the world’s
most precious resources suddenly
found itself uncomfortably embroiled
in the debate over the legitimacy of
the Jewish state.

For the past decade, Sierra Club
has touted Israel’s biodiversity, des-
ert environments and avian life and
sponsored numerous trips there.

One such trip was scheduled for this
month. Then it wasn’t. Sierra Club
explained that the cancellation was
because such trips are “providing
legitimacy to the Israeli state, which
is engaged in apartheid against the
Palestinian people.” Reaction was
quick, and was overwhelmingly neg-
ative. Within days, Sierra Club with-
drew the cancellation and promised
Israeli trips in the future.

The underlying challenge to the
trips was brought by one of Sierra
Club’s members who was supported
by a host of pro-Palestinian and
anti-Zionist groups. In response to
the cancellation announcement, sev-
eral patrons of Sierra Club and major
Jewish organizations objected to the
decision and questioned why Sierra
Club allowed itself to be dragged
into a political issue that has no con-
nection to the organization’s mission.

Sierra Club now confirms that it is
those whose sole objective is the
delegitimization of Israel.

But the naiveté of Sierra Club pales
in comparison to the breathtaking
chutzpah of the U.S. director of
Amnesty International, Paul O’Brien,
who told the Women’s National
Democratic Club in Washington that
Amnesty International is “opposed to
the idea … that Israel should be pre-
served as a state for the Jewish peo-
ple.” In response to the uproar over
the offensiveness of those remarks,
O’Brien claimed that what he said
didn’t express what he wanted to
say. We find that hard to believe
since O’Brien continues to assert
that he doesn’t trust the polls saying
that American Jews support Israel.

Instead, O’Brien, who is not Jewish,
has the temerity to declare: “My gut
tells me that what Jewish people
in this country want is to know that
there’s a sanctuary that is a safe and
sustainable place that the Jews, the
Jewish people can call home.” And
he posits that “[American Jews] can
be convinced over time that the key
to sustainability is to adhere to what
I see as core Jewish values, which
are to be principled and fair and
just in creating that space.” O’Brien’s
objective is a one-state arrangement
where neither Jews nor Palestinians
have the right to self-determination.

O’Brien’s ignorance is breathtak-
ing. And we reject his gut-driven
declaration that Israel “shouldn’t
exist as a Jewish state.” Amnesty
International’s continued support
of O’Brien confirms that the human
rights organization has lost its way
and its credibility. Were we to listen
to our gut, Amnesty International
should cease to exist. JE
weathered what is now a four-year
battle over an ethnic studies cur-
riculum that was initially highly crit-
icized and then revised to address
many of the concerns raised by
the Jewish community and others.

The revised curriculum was unani-
mously adopted last week. Despite
many positive changes, some mem-
bers of the Jewish community are
still concerned about the curriculum
content. For now, California’s model
curriculum is optional, and schools
in the state are not required to offer
it. But pending legislation to make a
high school ethnic studies course a
graduation requirement will almost
certainly reignite the debate on a
multitude of concerns expressed
by the Jewish community and
others. While we see the merit of educating
primary and secondary school stu-
dents on ethnic studies and minority
community issues, we are troubled
by the unrelenting efforts of those
who seek to manipulate the pro-
cess to promote antisemitic content,
delegitimize Israel and challenge the
right of Jews to self-determination.

Antisemitism and the security of our
community are a continuing concern.

In addition to disquieting high-profile
incidents we see rising antisemitism
in more subtle places — like in the
boycott, divestment and sanctions
movement and anti-Israel rhetoric
on college campuses — and we see
it festering in unchecked ethnic stud-
ies curricula proposals.

Good education can be an anti-
dote to hate and discrimination. But
the process takes work and requires
a nuanced sensitivity to significant
issues of concern to each minority
community. We encourage contin-
ued vigilance by our community and
applaud the supportive efforts of
Gottheimer. We invite other mem-
bers of Congress to join the effort. JE
The naiveté of Sierra Club pales in
comparison to the breathtaking
chutzpah of the U.S. director of
Amnesty International, Paul O’Brien.

committed to the enjoyment, explo-
ration and protection of the planet
and that it doesn’t take positions
on foreign policy matters. We hope
that’s true, and that Sierra Club rec-
ognizes the folly of allowing its mis-
sion and credibility to be hijacked by
Antisemitism in the Curriculum
O ver the past several years
concerns have been raised
over antisemitic and anti-Zionist
content being baked into school
curricula. And in this case, it’s not
Palestinian or Arab State education
materials that are being criticized.

Rather, the focus has been upon
otherwise commendable state efforts
to develop ethnic studies model
curricula to teach students about the
histories, experiences, contributions
and struggles of minority groups.

Several groups, including the
Jewish community, have expressed
concern. While some communities
like Sikhs and Armenians protested
their exclusion from some drafts,
the Jewish community was critical
of the presentation of the American
Jewish experience and for including
antisemitic language and anti-Israel
content. Earlier this month, Rep. Josh
Gottheimer (D-N.J.) sent a letter
16 to Secretary of Education Miguel
Cordona to share his concerns
about the issue. Gottheimer’s let-
ter discusses how some school
districts are considering curricula
that claim that “criticism of Israel’s
policies of apartheid and oppres-
sion of Palestinians is not antisem-
itism.” And he notes that such a
claim goes against the International
Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s
definition of antisemitism, which
includes denying the Jewish peo-
ple the right to self-determination,
such as by claiming Israel is a racist
endeavor. Gottheimer called on the
Department of Education to ensure
that schools don’t teach bigoted
curricula and for a “united, biparti-
san and national commitment” to
address antisemitism.

Among those
copied on
Gottheimer’s letter was California
Gov. Gavin Newsom. California’s
state board of education has
MARCH 24, 2022 | JEWISHEXPONENT.COM