NEW YORK – T’ruah condemns Israel’s new “black list” of 20 human rights and political organizations whose members will be barred from entering Israel for supporting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, including Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) and the American Friends Service Committee. While T’ruah does not advocate BDS or affiliate with the global BDS movement, we believe that engagement in non-violent protest must not be reason to be banned from Israel. Israel must not shut out dissent but welcome it as an essential feature of democracy.
“It is a deeply troubling day for Israeli democracy when Jews, no matter their political beliefs, are barred from entering Israel,” said Rabbi Jill Jacobs, executive director of T’ruah. “This action by the Israeli government to punish its critics only provides them with more ammunition, demonstrating publicly just how fragile Israel’s commitment to democracy and civil society has become. The ban could also give Israeli authorities discretion to prevent all critics of its policies from entering the country, not just those who support BDS.”
Gagging dissent contradicts both core Jewish values and millennia of Jewish practice. As we noted last year when JVP activists were turned away from entering Israel, in the Talmud, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, Rabbi Yehudah and Rabbi Yose were each asked what they thought of the Romans’ bathhouses, markets and bridges. Rabbi Yehuda praised the Romans, Rabbi Yose was silent, and Rabbi Shimon criticized the Romans for putting their self-interest above God’s. When the Roman emperor heard, he rewarded Rabbi Yehuda with a government position, banished Rabbi Yose, and sentenced Rabbi Shimon to death (though he fled to a cave and hid). Instead of being like the Romans – the Talmud’s archetype of a non-Jewish, oppressive empire – the Israeli government should heed this lesson of the Talmud and welcome the contributions of its critics. The ancient rabbis knew what T’ruah strongly believes: Transparency is the hallmark of human rights. Israel only damages its moral standing by refusing entry to those who dissent.
###
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CONTACT:
Sarah Garfinkel, West End Strategy Team
sarah@westendstrategy.com; Office: (202) 776-7700
T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights is a network of 1,800 rabbis and cantors from all streams of Judaism that, together with the Jewish community, act on the Jewish imperative to respect and advance the human rights of all people. Grounded in Torah and our Jewish historical experience and guided by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we call upon Jews to assert Jewish values by raising our voices and taking concrete steps to protect and expand human rights in North America, Israel, and the occupied Palestinian territories.
