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Friends --

Since September has only barely begun, it’s hard to believe that the High
Holidays are set to begin in a little over 24 hours -- but such are the
wonders of the Jewish calendar!

At the end of this email, I’m going to request that you make a
contribution toward our [ [link removed] ]High Holy Days fundraising goal -- but first I
wanted to take this moment to pause and reflect on the past 12 months.

For me personally, Rosh Hashanah comes at a moment that is both very
challenging and very welcome.

Challenging, because I’ve just finished the stressful process of
relocating with my family from Israel to Washington -- completing my
transition from my former role as J Street’s Israel Director into my
current role as our Chief of Staff.

Welcome, because it provides a much-needed opportunity to take a pause,
catch a breath, and reflect on the past year and what comes next -- both
for myself, but also for J Street and our pro-Israel, pro-peace movement.

Due to the COVID pandemic and so many other challenges, the year 5781 has
been far from easy for any of us. Yet at the same time, we can also look
back with pride at just how much we were able to accomplish.

Rewinding feels like going back a decade rather than 12 months.

This time last year, we were fully in election mode. We were doing
absolutely everything we could to support our first-ever presidential
endorsee, Joe Biden, and our largest ever slate of congressional
endorsees.

Through phonebanks, virtual canvassing and fundraisers, we played our part
in a shared, mass movement to end the unbelievably dangerous Trump
presidency -- and to elect an administration and House and Senate majority
that share so much of our diplomacy-first worldview and core Jewish,
democratic values.

In April, we celebrated this new era with our first-ever all-virtual J
Street National Conference. In the midst of a pandemic, many of us weren’t
quite sure what to expect. Yet the Conference became one of our most
popular ever, with a record-high of over 4,000 participants, exciting
programming and artistic performances, and a dizzying array of major
American, Israeli and Palestinian leaders, policy experts, activists and
changemakers.

In the wake of that major event, we might have expected a few quiet weeks
-- but that wasn’t to be. Instead, threatened evictions and crackdowns on
protests in East Jerusalem helped trigger a horrifyingly intense
escalation in Israeli-Palestinian violence, with exchanges of rocket fire
and airstrikes between Israel and Hamas and unprecedented intercommunal
violence in many of Israel’s “shared cities.”

My family spent this period running in and out of our neighborhood bomb
shelter, praying the Iron Dome would protect our home and loved ones.
Feeling anguished by the devastation, grief and pain being metered out on
families in Gaza as we heard jet planes roar overhead.

At times of crisis, it’s easy to feel helpless, overwhelmed and
overpowered -- but I drew strength from the round-the-clock work we were
doing at J Street.

Together, we were the leading group in the United States calling for an
immediate ceasefire and advocating more intensive, even-handed diplomacy
from the Biden administration to help achieve one.

From the New York Times and Washington Post to MSNBC, we made clear that
the US can and should do more to end the disastrous cycle of violence --
and helped ensure that the majority of Democrats in both the House and
Senate echoed that critical message.

Giving voice to the majority of American Jews, we helped demonstrate that
the US political debate on these issues has evolved for the better -- and
that there’s more support than ever before for principled, balanced and
bold US leadership to help resolve the conflict and end the occupation. We
helped to show that you can support Israel’s security AND support
Palestinian rights while working to end the cycle that threatens both
peoples.

This seems as good a point as ever to make that High Holy Days fundraising
pitch, so here it is:

Friends -- We need to build on the progress we’ve made this past
year. We need to ensure we use the post Trump-Netanyahu era to lock in
meaningful steps forward.

That’s the kind of critical work we need to press onward with in the year
ahead -- and we simply can’t do it without your support. [ [link removed] ]If you’ve
valued the work we’ve done over the past year as much as I have, can you
make a contribution to propel us into 5782 and help us meet our High
Holidays fundraising goal?

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Friends, the new year of 5782 will bring both familiar challenges
and exciting opportunities.

While at the start of last year we were still facing down the alarming
far-right partnership of Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu, this year we
have new and far more moderate governments in both countries.

Israel’s ideologically diverse new government provides a critical
opportunity to reset the US-Israel relationship, and recenter it on
democratic values, shared interests, cooperation and firm honesty around
areas of disagreement and concern.

That means making clear that a strong, enduring US-Israel relationship
will require seriously addressing the unresolved Israeli-Palestinian
conflict and moving toward an end to occupation. It means standing up to
the Israeli prime minister as he opposes the two-state solution and
promises to preserve an unjust, unstable and unacceptable “status quo.”

In the House and Senate, J Street will have the opportunity to push
further with our advocacy for commonsense end-use restrictions on aid to
Israel, as we aim to ensure that every dollar of our aid is used for
Israel’s genuine security needs -- and not to further entrench the
occupation.

Working with our friends and allies in Congress, in the administration, in
the Jewish community and in Israel and the Palestinian Territory, we have
a critical chance to focus on addressing the root causes of the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict -- and to help ensure that our own government
is part of the solution, not part of the problem.

As I settle into my new role and my new city, I’m sometimes a little
daunted by all the hard work that we have ahead of us, both in the United
States and in the region. I will miss being there and working side-by-side
with my Israeli and Palestinian friends and colleagues, fighting every day
to create a better future for our families and communities.

But, as I feel the energy and hopefulness of Rosh Hashanah and new
beginnings, I can’t help but feel optimistic about the work we will
continue to do -- both here at home and in support of our Israeli and
Palestinian allies, as we all work together to bring about a more
democratic and just future.

With your support, J Street will be able to take key steps this year to
make change and help build a better world.

So here’s the last time I’ll make the ask: If you feel able, please
consider a donation to help us start off 5782 with the resources we need.
Every bit counts.

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[ [link removed] ]Donate $270 [ [link removed] ]Other



Thank you, and Shanah Tovah to you and your loved ones,

Adina Vogel Ayalon
Chief of Staff


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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.



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