Ceasefire
Photo: AP
A new solidarity needed amid ceasefire
Before the bombs begin to fly again, American Jews, Arabs and Muslims, should use the current ceasefire to consider how our communities can provide a more constructive response to the latest, and future, Middle East crisis
Soon after the last fighting began organizations representing each community quickly mobilized to stand in solidarity and support of Israeli or Lebanese victims, and the actions of their respective governments.
It is, of course, only natural for each community to be worried first and foremost about friends and relatives caught in the line of fire, and the many humanitarian relief efforts launched in the war’s wake will surely help innocent victims on each side of this conflict begin to rebuild their lives.
At the same time, with sectarian differences tearing countries apart the all too tribal nature of these solidarity campaigns — and the often sweeping, empty rhetoric that accompanies them — comes at the expense of recognizing our neighbor’s pain, and falls far short of what we could offer our troubled brethren philanthropically, symbolically and politically if we sought common ground and responded together.
Joint fundraising campaign
With tensions and recriminations running high, overcoming the inevitable political tests and objections to such an idea will not be easy. There does exist, however, in the UN approved ceasefire resolution, an agreement that all sides have accepted in principal and which could serve as political cover for participating organizations.
Beyond endorsing the resolution, all other political considerations should initially be sidelined and focus placed solely on a joint fundraising campaign that would bring humanitarian relief — from foodstuffs to trauma relief — to the civilian victims of the war, and could be distributed through apolitical relief networks on the ground.
The symbolic impact of such a joint relief campaign would send a strong message to the war’s actors and victims and all those intent on portraying the fighting as the latest round in a broader conflict between Islam and the West.
Furthermore, a cooperative effort, rather than sponsoring tit-for-tat rallies and ad campaigns, would demonstrate to Muslims and Jews around the world that our communities have not been sentenced to a religious battle, and that rather than take our cues from the Middle East we can in fact work together and live in peace.
Those who see such a plan as little more than pie in the sky peacenik behavior should consider which way the prevailing winds are blowing and the advantages each side would reap through working together.
While the American Jewish community continues to enjoy impressive political and philanthropic clout in the United States, both Arab and Muslim Americans have become increasingly sophisticated in these arenas, making impressive strides in communal organization — trends likely to continue as these communities grow in numbers and influence.
The sooner is better
Simultaneously and whether fair or not, America’s pro-Israel foreign policy and the activities of the so-called Israel lobby are being more directly challenged than ever before. The sooner American Jewry sees Arab and Muslims Americans as partners rather than competitors the better.
Moreover, despite the tens of millions of dollars already raised for Israel this summer, each new Mideast crisis is accompanied by a growing fear among communal activists that younger Jews’ connection to Israel is further deteriorating as many feel alienated by a Jewish state perceived as overly aggressive. A joint-campaign that recognizes Arab suffering as well as Israel’s right to defend itself might help buck this trend.
Meanwhile, both domestic and international events such Hizbullah’s aggression, Iran’s extremism and the uncovering of each new Islamist terror plot, only increase any alienation Muslim and Arab Americans have felt the past few years.
Reaching out to Jews and communally recognizing that innocent Israelis are being targeted by Hizbullah may further allay the discrimination and unfair suspicion these communities have had to endure since the United States began its “war on terror.”
The current crisis, and the context in which it is unfolding, provide a moral and communal motivation for American Jews, Muslims and Arabs to find a way to respond together.
The longer we refuse to recognize the role our cooperation can play, the less effective our responses will be and the more helpless we’ll feel as we each launch emergency campaign, after emergency campaign, after emergency campaign.
Jason Gitlin, a graduate of NYU's Center for Near Eastern Studies and the Muehlstein Institute for Jewish Professional Leadership, is a New York-based writer
