Friends --
I’ve got a confession (but maybe you’re the same, so hear me out!).
I know there are tons of great reasons to donate to J Street -- their work to show you can support a safe and equal Israel while also pushing back on the settlement movement for one!
But that’s not why I donated.
I made my first donation to J Street out of maddening, exasperated rage.
If I had to hear one more time about how I was ‘betraying my Jewish identity' for criticizing the Israeli government. About how Donald Trump was the best president we Jews could’ve hoped for. About how Palestinians didn’t exist, how settlements were just neighborhoods, how I’m just ‘naive’ and ‘just don’t understand the complexity’...
Well, I think I might have exploded (and given that one of the people saying this was my boss, it wouldn’t have been great for my career!).
So instead, I gave to J Street. I gave $1,000 to J Street. And truly, I felt much better. Still do!
You don’t have to give $1,000. Any amount you're able to contribute will help J Street close the fundraising shortfall before 2022. (Here’s a donation link -- do it for your mental health!)
Next time you’re at your wit’s end, I guarantee you’ll feel better if you breathe in, breathe out, and think about that contribution.
I know that personally, I can’t keep even-tempered when facing the barrage of nonsense that too often comes out of people’s mouths when Israel comes up. I for sure don’t have the patience to deal with this issue day in, day out.
But the folks at J Street do -- and they’re pushing forward. They’re injecting nuance and compassion into the conversation, building our shared movement and mobilizing pro-Israel, pro-peace Americans to help shift US policy and politics on this issue for the better.
So I’d like to invite you now to make a contribution today in honor of *that person* in your life who just refuses to get it.
Who refuses to understand that the occupation fundamentally imperils the future of Israel as a democratic homeland for the Jewish people, and fundamentally violates the rights of Palestinians. Refuses to consider that the occupation isn't just disastrous for Palestinians, but also has a corrosive effect on Israeli society.
Refuses to realize that *they're* the ones being naive if they fall for the pro-settlement propaganda. That *they’re* the ones who don’t quite seem to understand that Palestinians are people too -- with all the hopes, dreams and ambitions to live great lives and provide a future for their families that the rest of us have.
So, confession complete. Righteous indignation can be a powerful (and noble) motivator. I know that even if it comes from a place of anger rather than sunny optimism, my donation is still making a difference -- and yours can too.
Please consider selecting a donation of your choice to help make sure J Street doesn’t fall short of this final fundraising target before heading into 2022.
Onwards.
Anthony Cantor
Fellow J Streeter
