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Friend,

Seventeen years ago, we launched J Street to change the definition of what
it means to be pro-Israel.

In 2009, the New York Times profiled our new organization, and I was
quoted saying:

“We’re trying to redefine what it means to be pro-Israel. You don’t have
to be noncritical. You don’t have to adopt the party line. It’s not,
‘Israel, right or wrong.’”

That was our vision: To create space for honesty, to shatter the silence –
not just in politics, but in Jewish communal life as well.

The New York Times has returned to the story. Their new reporting details
how Democrats in Washington are increasingly rejecting AIPAC’s
stranglehold and refusing to accept its “Israel, right or wrong” approach.
That shift is real, and it’s exactly what we set out to achieve.

[1]The New York Times: Democrats Pull Away From AIPAC, Reflecting a
Broader Shift. A quiet retreat by Democrats from the pre-eminent
pro-Israel lobbying group is the latest evidence of a realignment underway
in Congress on Israel.

And the change isn’t just happening in Congress.

This High Holiday season, rabbis across the country spoke from their
pulpits with courage and honesty that had long felt constrained. For
years, many rabbis wrestled privately when Israeli government policies and
actions conflicted with Jewish values and the country’s long-term
interests. Now, more clergy are finding space to openly voice their love
in all of its complexity with their communities.

The fact that so many, who clearly care deeply about Israel, finally feel
free to speak from the heart is also a revolution. In the days ahead,
we’ll be compiling highlights from sermons where rabbis spoke out.

The silence, in Washington and in our synagogues, is precisely what we
launched J Street to break. And together, we are breaking it.

Of course, AIPAC and other old guard organizations still throw their
weight around.

But there’s no denying it: The conversation has changed. 

The old definition of “pro-Israel,” blind loyalty and unconditional
support to the Israeli government, is collapsing. In its place, we are
building a stronger, more honest, more sustainable vision of how to
support a secure, Jewish and democratic state.

That’s the movement you’ve built with us: Pro-Israel, pro-peace,
pro-democracy. One that gives politicians and rabbis, activists and
community members the cover and the courage to speak up, and the power to
be heard.

Seventeen years ago, the Times announced our arrival. Today, it’s
documenting the political progress we’ve made. And this week, rabbis
proved that change is transforming Jewish communal life as well.

We still have enormous work ahead: To defeat the extremists, to protect
democracy, to ensure US policy truly serves Israel’s security and values,
and to keep building the power we’ll need for peace.

But today, we can see the tide turning. That should give us hope, strength
and determination to fight even harder.

Yours,

Jeremy Ben-Ami
President, J Street

PS: If you’d like to hear more about how we define "pro-Israel," please
[ [link removed] ]click here.


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© 2025 J Street | [ [link removed] ]www.jstreet.org | [email protected]

J Street is the political home for pro-Israel, pro-peace, pro-democracy
Americans who want Israel to be secure, democratic and the national home of the
Jewish people. Working in American politics and the Jewish community, we
advocate policies that advance shared US and Israeli interests as well as Jewish
and democratic values, leading to a two-state solution to the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict.



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