Is Civil Discourse on Israel Possible Among Us?

Can we have a rational, courteous discussion about Israel--without hyperbole, name calling, and demonization--in American and Jewish communities? If last night's event was an example, sometimes we can. The event was a presentation by a panel of leaders of three Liberal Jewish organizations--J Street, Americans for Peace Now (APN), and the New Israel Fund--during which the three representatives shared their perspectives and answered questions from the audience.

The mood among the attendees was generally civil and respectful, despite the evidence of a wide range of viewpoints on what is best for Israel and what we as Americans and Jews can and should do about it. In fact, at the end of the evening, one of the organizers stated that this night we had modeled the behavior we wanted to see in our communities.

What was the key to last night’s successful event? Was it the good faith and good will with which the participants entered into the gathering? Was it the spirit of generosity brought about by the timing of the event--during the holiday of Hanukkah? After all, the evening was opened with the lighting of the candles for the third night by a rabbi from the Reform Temple in which we all met.

I don’t know the reason, but I was grateful for the lack of hostility displayed last night. In some environments, such as Facebook and Twitter, in which Israeli politics and US-Israel relations are discussed, emotions and rancor run high.  People denounce each other, project the most vile intentions onto the other, and assert that their opponents are ignorant, hateful, or devoid of any respect for human lives. I won’t even specify the motives ascribed to Zionists, Palestinians, Jews, Muslims, Arabs, or Israelis, by various commentators.

I continue to read online news and opinion posts by groups such as J Street and APN and reports by media outlets such as Ha’aretz and Democracy Now!  However, due to the rampant animosity, I often skip most of the comments by other readers, and I rarely post a comment of my own.

We certainly don’t have to agree on these issues.  We don’t even need to agree to disagree. Nevertheless, I would like to see us disagree with a little more respect for each other as human beings. I know that these discussions bring out deeply held fears, anger, beliefs, and assumptions in all of us, but we must strive to treat each other with more kindness, and not just at this time of the year.

As I said to a friend after the event last night, “Never mind peace between Israelis and Palestinians, can we even make peace within our own community?”