4 | MAY 27 • 2021

Pro-Israel Rally
Shows the Flag

Israel won and Hamas lost on
May 15 in West Bloomfield
where 200 supporters of Israel
gathered waving flags and
cheering a triumphant Israel.
Hundreds of cars passed

the rally participants blowing
their horns in support of the
participants waiving American
and Israeli flags.
Many thanks to rally
creator Eugene Greenstein
and his team of Kobi Erez,
Shel Freilich (both ZOA-MI),
Rev. Tim Munger (Friends of

Israel) and Andre Douville
(Walk for Israel) for their
efforts with the very successful
rally for Israel.
Remember that Israel
has faced many difficult
times such as this and it is
incumbent on all friends
of Israel to show support

by joining pro-Israel
organizations, writing letters
to the media and to your
politicians.

— Ed Kohl

Michigan Jewish Action Council

Rally team member

Please see a related story on page 20.

guest column

Important Truths About Israel vs. Hamas
T

he recent conflict in
Israel has been a heart-
breaking experience
for Jewish people around the
world. We are horrified by the
destruction and
loss of innocent
life. Beyond that,
many of us are
struggling with
the lingering
impact of this lat-
est confrontation
in our day-to-day
lives.
It is impossible
to avoid. We have
been inundated
with discussion
and commentary,
much of it in
the media and
in our Facebook
feeds. It has been
widely noted
that the intensity
and extent of the
criticism of Israel
is fundamentally
different than it
has been in the past.
As lay and professional lead-
ers of the Jewish Federation,
we feel an obligation to assert
some important truths.

While there are many com-
plex and longstanding issues in
the region, the reality of terror-
ism is simple. Hamas and other
organizations are committed
to the destruction of Israel
and have chosen the murder
of innocent civilians as their
primary means to accomplish
this end. The tragic deaths of
Israelis and Palestinians alike
are the direct outcome of this
terrorist campaign.
Furthermore, the compari-
son between terrorist aggres-
sion and Israel’s attempts to
defend its citizens is inaccurate
and deeply unfair. It is, in fact,
the exact response Hamas
intended by situating their
launch sites in schools, hospi-
tals and apartment buildings
in Gaza, turning children and
other innocent civilians into
human shields.
The widespread condem-
nation of Israel, offered with
little or no acknowledgement
of the intent and actions of
Hamas, serves to justify ter-
rorism and emboldens anyone
who sees the murder of inno-
cent people as an acceptable
tactic. The people of Israel
want peace, and in recent

years there has been tremen-
dous strides in cooperation
and common purpose among
Jewish and Arab neighbors,
notably evident in Federation’s
Partnership2Gether region in
the Central Galilee. Hamas
works to upend this fragile
shared society with its assaults
and rejects the idea of a peace-
ful two-state solution. One side
seeks peace while the other
vows destruction.
For many years, Israel has
been held to a different stan-
dard among nations. The
same groups that admirably
champion equality and justice
are unwilling to recognize
the democratic and culturally
diverse nature of Israeli society,
unique in the region. Instead,
these voices are among the
most strident in the wrongful
portrayal of Israel, often invok-
ing Nazi Germany among
other absurd and offensive
comparisons.
It is true, also, that these
false narratives have amplified
deep-seated animosities and
fanned the flames of antisem-
itism across the world. We
are seeing the effects of this
playing out in hateful and

frequently violent attacks on
Jewish people around the
world. This, too, is part of the
strategic intent of Hamas and
others.
We must remain vigilant in
the fight against antisemitism.
The safety and wellbeing of our
local community remains the
Jewish Federation’s highest pri-
ority, and we will continue to
actively safeguard our schools,
synagogues and other institu-
tions.
Acknowledging these real-
ities does not preclude open
discussion and debate, and we
sincerely welcome all voices
from our community. Indeed,
it is part of our tradition. In the
future, we hope to find ways to
productively engage with and
explore the complexities of the
situation, with the understand-
ing that we are unified in our
hope for peace and stability
for Israelis, Palestinians and all
communities in the region.

Matthew B. Lester is president of

Jewish Federation of Metropolitan

Detroit. Dennis S. Bernard is president

of the United Jewish Foundation.

Steven Ingber is CEO of Federation.

Matthew B.
Lester

Dennis S.
Bernard

Steven Inger

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