viewpoints » S end letters to: letters@thejewishnews.com NEW MERCHANDISE ARRIVING DAILY STONE'S continued from page 5 JEWELRY 6881 Orchard Lake Rd. on the Boardwalk (248) 851-5030 2065520 www.stonesfi nejewelry.com RUG CARE EXPRESS SERVICE NOW AVAILABLE! Rug Care Express* gives your rugs a quality cleaning and they’re ready for pick-up in just two days! We’ve upgraded our Oak Park Rug Care Spa so getting your rugs clean in record time is not just a wish, it’s a reality. Bring your rug in before 1 pm, Monday through Saturday, and you can pick it up after 4 pm the second business day. 1-800-HAGOPIAN (424-6742) www.OriginalHagopian.com 14000 W. Eight Mile in Oak Park just west of Coolidge Hwy. *Only at our Oak Park location. Some restrictions may apply. 2078420 8 May 19 • 2016 see these values practiced by the cur- rent leadership in Israel. The image of Israel they received as children in Sunday school has been tarnished by the reality of West Bank occupation, settlements and the Gaza war. In response, Jewish students divide into four groups. At the extremes are left-leaning students who support the BDS movement (e.g., Jewish Voice for Peace) and right-leaning students who unyieldingly defend Israel and the actions of its government (e.g., StandWithUs). In the middle of these extremes (e.g., J Street U) are those who walk a tightrope combining affin- ity for Israel with support for a two- state solution, criticism of settlements, and concerns for discrimination against Arabs and Palestinians, wel- coming dialogue with students holding diverse opinions as long as the conver- sations can be civil. A fourth group simply doesn’t want to engage — they don’t participate in activist organizations, steering clear of involvement with Israel and even with Judaism. Sadly, Jewish community leaders often act in ways that exacerbate the divisions in the community and make students’ political situations more dif- ficult than they need be. The desire of Jewish students on some campuses to participate in events where pro-Palestinian groups and voices are included have been frus- trated in some cases by Hillel policies. That has led some students to create parallel “Open Hillel” organizations free of these imposed restraints. As J Street activists have pushed Jewish organizations toward transpar- ency with respect to funds support- ing the settlement enterprise, they have been told by some leaders that while they personally are supportive of the students’ goals, they are fearful of dividing their constituents if they express these views openly. Students also suspect that threats by major Jewish donors to cut funding are cur- tailing the kind of open discussion of conflicting views that is the essence of the college experience. These students, who make up the next generation of Jewish Americans, deserve our support for their expres- sion of pride in their Jewish identity and their love of Israel, even as they often criticize actions of the current Israeli government. We need to sup- port them by: • Encouraging open dialogue, not only on campus but also within our own communities, respecting differing opinions and not taking “official” posi- tions unrepresentative of community consensus or using threats to cut off donations in an attempt to curtail open dialogue. • Supporting the desire of those Hillel chapter leaders (including the leadership of University of Michigan Hillel) who encourage inclusiveness and foster cross-campus dialogue. • Supporting our students who reflect their Jewish values by empathiz- ing with the situation of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza and Arab Israelis. • Supporting positions that further the possibility of a two-state solution and opposing Israeli government actions that make a solution less possible. Let’s be thankful for our Jewish youth’s continued pride in being Jewish and for the desire of many of them to express their Jewish values through campus activism. As they cope with the political crucible in which they find themselves, we should provide encour- agement for their activism and not make their efforts more difficult. * Toby Citrin is co-chair of J Street, Ann Arbor.