opinions & letters
My Brethren on the Left,
Give Me a Chance
BY ITAMAR BEN-GVIR
D espite our differences, despite four rounds of
elections that have led to a polarized public
discourse and an accentuation of our divisions,
despite the demonization, despite everything, we
are brothers.

No, the country hasn’t come to an end. You and
us together, we are the country, and we have no
intention of changing that.

I hear the fear of “religious coercion,” but ask
myself, whom will I coerce? My brother, who
doesn’t wear a kippah, or Zvika Fogel and Almog
Cohen, “secular” candidates I brought into my
Otzma Yehudit Knesset list?
I hear the fear of “thought police” or prohibition
of demonstrations, and remind you that we are
the ones who have fought more than all the “civil
rights” organizations for freedom of expression
and the right to protest.

What saddens me the most is to hear journalists
ask whether if, when I take up a position of influ-
ence, the Pride Parade will still receive police pro-
tection — are you insane? Would I like to see the
loathsome murder of a girl attending a parade? Of
course not; even if I don’t like the parade, I will still
ensure all the marchers are kept safe.

I hear all those who bring up the subjects of
the emblem on Yitzhak Rabin’s car (27 years ago!)
and the poster of Baruch Goldstein. But let me
remind you of the long path I have taken since
then, and how I have changed: I have matured,
moderated and come to the understanding that
life is complex.

Today, I don’t see all leftists in the same way.

I certainly make a distinction between [Hadash
Knesset member] Ofer Cassif and the Zionist
pro-Israel left.

Don’t get me wrong: We will do everything in
our power to establish a nationalist right-wing
government, a government that will restore per-
sonal security, that will restore governability to the
Negev and the Galilee and hold its head up high
and not bow before threats.

I don’t plan to apologize for who I am, but I think
that if you get to know me, you will change your
views about me and my positions. For too long,
too many Israelis have been afraid of enemies
from within and without. No more!
The reality in which Jews flee from mobs in
the heart of Jerusalem is a self-defeating and
ghetto-like reality. Mothers in Beersheva should
not be afraid to let their teenage girls go to the
mall or walk the city’s streets; a soldier on leave in
Akko shouldn’t have to take off his uniform when
he comes home. The Start–Up Nation has lost its
staying power to deal with threats from within.

Running away, apologizing and giving in have
become the norm. That’s what the election was
about, and that’s why we won it.

Our Jewish identity is not sectorial or political,
it is the rock of our being and our very essence.

In the Diaspora, we suffered persecution and we
united, yet here in our own country we have built
our Jewish heart beats fainter. Reconnecting to it
cannot be accomplished through coercion — such
an attempt would be doomed to failure — but
we must become reacquainted, we must refresh
our memories and bring ourselves closer to our
heritage. towns of the periphery, on Rothschild Boulevard
in Tel Aviv, and in Sderot and Beersheva. We
must restore for everyone — for Religious Zionist
Party and Otzma Yehudit voters and for Labor and
Meretz voters — the governability we have lost in
the Negev and the Galilee.

Israel’s Arab citizens, too, are entitled to pro-
tection and a feeling of security. The problem of
crime in the Arab sector has swelled to danger-
ous proportions. We cannot accept this shocking
reality in which innocent people are murdered
in broad daylight without the issue topping the
public agenda and without us being required to
provide safety and protection to Israel’s Arab
citizens as well. The truth must be stated, even
if it is painful: The complacency that the state of
Israel shows toward murder and crime in the Arab
If you will let us get closer, if you will listen to
what we have to say, you will discover that we are
all brothers. You will discover that we agree on
90% of the issues and that the message that we
bring and the things that we will do are for you
just as much as they are for us.

There are many of you who feel frustrated, and
those feelings often lead to fear, which can man-
ifest as hatred. But these are feelings that come
from being distant and unfamiliar.

If you will let us get closer, if you will listen to
what we have to say, you will discover that we are
all brothers. You will discover that we agree on
90% of the issues and that the message that we
bring and the things that we will do are for you just
as much as they are for us.

The ax raised against a mother in Haifa or the
knife drawn against a young man in Ashkelon
don’t have electoral considerations. The same
goes for our national security, which we so des-
perately need: It is not there to defend a particular
sector or political affiliation. We all need personal
security — in the kibbutzim of the left, in the
sector is immoral, unacceptable and harms us all.

In the coming days, with God’s help, a national
government will be formed. There will be many
disputes and controversies, and there is plenty to
argue about; the 10% that keeps us apart could fill
countless television broadcasts and newspaper
editions. But there is no reason for fear or hatred
— we are brothers! JE
Itamar Ben-Gvir is a Knesset member and the
head of the Otzma Yehudit Party. This op-ed first
appeared in Israel Hayom.

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