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Dear Friend, Despite former President Trump's efforts, a violent mob of insurrectionists and an unsettlingly large number of Republican lawmakers, President Biden and Vice President Harris are now in the White House. This represents not just a long-overdue change in direction for our country -- but a major change for J Street as well. Our efforts to lay the groundwork for this new era are already paying off:
Yours, Logan Bayroff Communications Director To sustain our work in the year ahead, we’re encouraging supporters to sign up for regular, monthly contributions. Please consider joining us today as a sustaining donor to our fight for peace, justice and human rights. All new monthly donations are being matched each month in 2021. |
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Around J Street |
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J Street applauds Biden’s early statements on Israeli-Palestinian policy |
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The Biden administration is already making it clear that it will turn the page on Trump’s failed Middle East policies. In a speech to the United Nations Security Council, Acting UN Ambassador Richard Mills outlined a number of principles fully in line with J Street’s priorities. Mills stated that establishing a “viable Palestinian state” remains the “best way to ensure Israel’s future as a democratic and Jewish state, while upholding the Palestinian people’s legitimate aspirations for a state of their own and to live with dignity and security.” The administration also outlined plans to restore US assistance programs to the Palestinians and re-open diplomatic missions in Washington and Jerusalem shuttered by the Trump administration. “This is exactly the type of swift action the administration needs to take to restore American credibility as a diplomatic mediator between Israelis and Palestinians,” J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami told the New York Times. “Undoing the terrible damage done by the Trump administration starts with re-establishing a working relationship with the Palestinian leadership and people.” Unfortunately, Israel has taken a number of damaging steps toward de-facto annexation in the early days of the Biden administration that put a just and viable solution further out of reach. This includes a large-scale demolition of Palestinian homes in the Jordan Valley. This week, J Street outlined a number of steps the administration should take to push back against such destructive actions by the Netanyahu government. |
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Read our recommendations → |
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Join Our Call to Expel Marjorie Taylor Greene from Congress |
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This week, J Street joined with our progressive, Jewish, Muslim and racial justice allies to call for the House of Representatives to use its constitutional powers to expel Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. Greene is one of the most vocal defenders of Trump’s claims that the 2020 election was rigged and is perhaps the most high-profile congressional supporter of QAnon, a conspiracy theory described by Genocide Watch as a “rebranded Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion.” It’s not just our community that the Congresswoman is putting in danger. In the recent past, Greene has called for the execution of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, harassed victims of the Parkland shooting, posted anti-Muslim videos and has promoted the white nationalist ‘Great Replacement’ conspiracy theory -- the same theory espoused by the gunman who massacred 51 Muslims in Christchurch, by the gunman who killed 11 Jews in Pittsburgh and the organizers of the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville. |
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Sign and share the petition → |
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J Street welcomes appointment of pro-Israel, pro-peace officials |
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After four years with ideologically-motivated, inexperienced political appointees at the helm of US foreign policy, we’ve cheered the naming of a series of highly-accomplished and devoted public servants to the senior ranks of the Biden administration. J Street has longstanding relationships with a number of senior officials -- including Secretary of State Tony Blinken, Special Envoy for Iran Rob Malley, nominee for Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and others -- and we know they have what it takes not only to repair the damage from the Trump administration, but to advance a new, optimistic agenda for US Foreign Policy. As expected, a number of these nominations have faced strong right-wing opposition from groups devoted to frustrating President Biden’s agenda -- particularly his commitment to restoring the Iran nuclear deal. President Biden’s nominee for Special Envoy for Iran, Rob Malley, was met with backlash from the same hawks that pushed Trump to revoke the deal, triggering an escalation in tensions and an increase in Iran’s nuclear enrichment. J Street was proud to join an open letter with over 200 former diplomats, foreign policy experts and our progressive allies in support of Special Envoy Malley. |
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Check out the letter and co-signers → |
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Our Israel: MachsomWatch’s ‘thousand little wins’ |
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J Street’s 'Our Israel' project spotlights the amazing Israeli groups who share our vision and our values, and who work to build and preserve a liberal, democratic society underpinned by the principles of equality, freedom, justice and peace. Together, these groups stand on the frontlines in the fight to build a society that lives up to the founding values enshrined in Israel’s Declaration of Independence. This month, we profile MachsomWatch: Women Against the Occupation and for Human Rights as they continue their work to observe, address and report on the indignities inflicted upon Palestinians across the occupied West Bank. “We present a civilian, non-violent, feminine presence -- although to some our very presence is regarded as provocative,” spokesperson Ina Friedman says. “We consider it a win if we are able to solve a problem, however small, for an individual or two at a checkpoint, or by working behind the scenes. Our motto should be ‘She Persisted,’ because that's really what we're about, thousands of little wins accumulated over the years under disheartening conditions.” | ||
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Read and share the profile → |
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Join J Street’s first-ever virtual conference |
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After careful consideration, J Street’s 2021 National Conference -- our most important event of the year, and our first-ever virtual conference -- will now be held on April 18-19. At J Street, we’re excited to hold our largest, most accessible conference ever from April 18-19 -- and we want you to join us. Our events team has been working hard to deliver a rich and engaging experience, taking full advantage of new platforms and the global scope a virtual event affords us. While we may not be able to gather in person, this remains an important, landmark moment for our movement, for the American Jewish community and for pro-diplomacy progressives across the country. As always, we’ll be following our program with a series of advocacy meetings with senators and representatives from across the country to discuss our issues and advocate for pro-Israel, pro-peace policies. Register today with code “NewDay” for 15% off of your registration fee >> |
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Register now → |
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Israel election shakeup: A new top challenger to Netanyahu emerges |
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Since the Netanyahu-Gantz coalition crumbled and Israel’s fourth election in two years was set for March 2021, the presumptive chief competitor to Prime Minister Netanyahu has been Gideon Sa’ar -- a former Netanyahu ally who split from Likud to form his own party. In the past week, however, the race has shifted. Opinion polls have shown a steady decline in support for Sa’ar’s ‘New Hope’ party and a new competitor has risen to second place: Former Blue and White Deputy Leader and centrist opposition leader Yair Lapid. New polling could swing the dynamics of the race at any moment, but for now, the return of a 'centrist' leading-challenger for Netanyahu is a return to the usual dynamics of Israeli election campaigns. Already, Netanyahu is retreating from his initial ‘unity’ language and trying to make deals with Israel’s extreme-right Kahanist party. To follow all the ups and downs of the latest Israeli election as leaders race toward the March 23 polling date, sign up for J Street’s Israeli Election Updates. |
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Sign up → |
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© 2021 J Street | www.jstreet.org | [email protected] J Street is the political home for pro-Israel, pro-peace 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. This email has been sent to [email protected]. Don't want to get our Street Talk newsletter? Just click here. Just want less email in general? Choose to receive only occasional updates or unsubscribe here. Email not displaying correctly? View here. |
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