Backing Israel

Nationalfideration leaders plan rallies, debate monetary support for Israel.

JULIE WIENER
Jewish Telegraphic Agency

meetings of the United Jewish Communities, the
federation system's umbrella group. They come at a
time when the organized Jewish community is eager
New York
to help Israel but is not entirely certain how to do it.
ager to show they stand alongside Israel
The federations decided this week not to launch a
during the ongoing violence with the
"second-line" funding campaign for Israel, choosing
Palestinians, North America's Jewish fed-
instead to leave it up to local communities as to
erations are mobilizing for
whether they want to increase
two national solidarity rallies in June.
funding for the Jewish state in
Israeli medics carry the body
Simultaneous rallies — tentatively
light of the recent violence.
of Dr. Mario Goldin from the
scheduled for Sunday, June 3, in New
scene
of an explosion at a
York and Los Angeles — will feature
Kfar
Saba
bus stop on Sunday. Jewish "Illiteracy
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon (live
A
suicide
bomber
detonated
in New York and videoconferenced into
Underlying the struggle to react on
his explosives at the crowded
L.A.) and a range of top Israeli officials.
behalf of Israel is a growing concern
Together, the events, which are expect- bus stop during morning rush
that large numbers of American
hour traffic, killing himself
ed to cost approximately $2 million, are
Jews — including some in leader-
and one Israeli and injuring
intended to send a message to Israel —
ship positions — lack significant
at least 40 people.
and the Arab world — that the Jewish
knowledge and emotional ties when
state has strong backing.
it comes to the Jewish state.
Officials are not saying at this time how large a
Indeed, recent surveys have found that fewer than
turnout they hope to get.
one-third of American Jews see Israel as a "very
The rallies were announced this week during
meaningful" aspect of their Jewish identity, and
many are unaware of key information about Israel,
For the latest news, visit www.detroitjewishnews.com
such as territorial concessions made in the now-

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moribund peace process with the Palestinians.
The June rallies are intended to be the first piece
of a larger national effort called the Israel Solidarity
Initiative. But that effort is still in the early planning
stages — and the UJC, which acts only after lengthy
discussions and meetings with its member federa-
tions — is by nature slow-moving.
"The rally stood out as what we could do now," said
Karen Shapira, chair of the UJC's Israel and Overseas
pillar, or committee. The Israel Solidarity Initiative,
which Shapira described as a "call to action," is expect-
ed to include programs for educating North American
Jews of all ages about Israel, as well as fund-raising
campaigns and public relations for Israel.
At a meeting on responding to the Israel situation,
conversation turned quickly from perceived anti-
Israel biases in the media to concern that young Jews
— and even some Jewish lay leaders — lack the
knowledge to be effective pro-Israel advocates.
"We need to reach out to our own - young people and
help them understand the complexities so we have advo-
cates in the future," said Martin Raffel, associate execu-
tive director of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs.
Stephen Serbin, chair of the UJC's group for small
federations, said it is not uncommon for lay leaders
in small communities to be uninformed about Israel
and international Jewish needs.
"We've had federation presidents who have never
been to Israel," said Serbin, the immediate past pres-
ident of the Columbia, S.C., federation.
One person at the meeting on Israel requested brief-
ing papers on Israeli history and Israeli concessions
that she could share with lay leaders in her federation.
Judy Wortman, executive vice president of the
Jewish Federation of Delaware, said that federations
need information about Israel that is targeted toward
the Jewish community's leadership.
While fund-raising is also a piece of the planned
initiative, its focus remains to be decided. Initial
proposals to launch a "second-line" campaign for
Israel were dismissed by federations, in part because
there was no single need that could be attributed to
the recent outbreak of violence.

Funding Focus

There wasn't a "wall-to-wall mandate" on funding for
Israel, said Victoria Agron, the UJC's vice president
of campaign and financial resource development.
Instead, she said, it may be more critical to focus
domestically on "serious education about the realities
of Israel today." Federations that want to step up
funding for Israel as a result of the current situation
will decide themselves how to do that, Agron said.
Some federations are talking about stepping up
their support for Partnership 2000, a program that
matches North American Jewish communities with
Israeli ones for people-to-people exchanges and eco-
nomic projects in Israel.
Others are interested in focusing increased funding
on projects for Israel's Ethiopian immigrants, who
risk becoming a permanent underclass.
The discussions came in a Washington gathering, the
first large meeting where leaders of the newly formed
UJC focused on long-term programs and goals rather
than simply governance or bread-and-butter matters.
The UJC was created in 1999 out of the merger of the

4/27
2001

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