JULY 29 • 2021 | 9

that helps stock a [West Bank] 
supermarket with those prod-
ucts susceptible to boycotts. 
Even the European Union 
doesn’t ban the sale of its prod-
ucts to the settlements.
”
Regardless of where one sits 
on the political spectrum, Ben 
& Jerry’s has crossed a line that 
repulses much of the main-
stream Jewish community.

PICKING ON ISRAEL
The second way that line has 
been crossed is a familiar one 
— singling out the Jewish state. 
Will Ben & Jerry’s now boycott 
China to protest the ethnic 
cleansing of Uyghurs? What 
other atrocities will it protest 
through national boycotts? And 
why pick only on Israel?
These are not partisan ques-
tions; they are human ones. 
We’ve seen this singling out of 
Israel over and over by groups 
that ignore genocides and 

mass murders to go after the 
world’s only Jewish state. For 
decades, the United Nations, 
which reserves the majority of 
its condemnations for Israel, 
has led this anti-Zionist parade 
that effectively has signaled that 
it’s always open season on the 
Jewish state.
When a beloved brand joins 
the anti-Israel parade so loudly 
and forcefully, it concentrates 
the mind. It reminds us, first, 
of the power of the anti-Israel 
movement to intimidate and, 
second, that regardless of our 
political disagreements, some-
times it’s worth uniting for a 
specific cause.
The unfair and discriminato-
ry targeting of Israel is one such 
cause. 

David Suissa is editor-in-chief and pub-

lisher of Tribe Media Corp, and “Jewish 

Journal.” He can be reached at davids@

jewishjournal.com. This article was first 

published by the Jewish Journal.

“Ben & Jerry’s” from page 6

gratitude for the promise of 
America on their lips, and they 
directed their children to focus 
on hard work and education 
as the keys to success. At the 
same time, my family certainly 
benefited from the American 
economic system built on the 
backs of people of color. To 
which Jewish values and to 
which Jewish laws do we turn 
as we argue with the question 
of what more we can do beyond 
individual teshuvah and person-
al tzedakah to address the racial 
inequality in this country? 
I know that I am obligated 
to pursue justice, but I am also 
obligated to offer compassion. I 
know that my fellow Americans 
and that my fellow Jews are suf-
fering and therefore I am obli-
gated to help, but I am afraid 
to give up too much. I wonder 
how we might get out of the 
zero-sum approach to combat-

ing racism so that ending rac-
ism is a win-win for all.

JUDAISM AS ANTIDOTE
We are in the grips of a culture 
war in this country, with ques-
tions of race and racism at the 
very heart of the battle. Among 
Judaism’s gifts to the world, 
though, is the teaching that the 
antidote to political polarization 
is the ability, modeled by Jews, 
to participate in meaningful and 
even heated dialogue rooted in 
respect, in radical listening and 
in giving our opponent the ben-
efit of the doubt. Let us follow 
the meta-lesson of our Talmud 
and, rather than retreat to our 
own echo chambers, engage in 
discussion, listening, learning 
and growth. 

Rabbi Aaron Starr is a spiritual lead-
er of Congregation Shaarey Zedek 
in Southfield.

C
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