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[2]Street Talk: J Street's Monthly Newsletter

Friend,

A new year brings both new challenges as well as new opportunities. We
know we have a difficult road ahead.

From the upcoming 2022 midterms, to an alarming rise in settler violence,
to the urgent need to reach a diplomatic resolution with Iran, we thank
you for being with us as we take on critical fights for democracy,
equality and justice at home and abroad.

Thank you,

Logan Bayroff
Vice President of Communications

AROUND J STREET

Pushing for Accountability, Justice and an End to the Surge of Settler Violence

[1]Pushing for Accountability, Justice and End to the Surge of Settler
Violence.

Disturbing, menacing attacks by armed settlers against Palestinian
families and Israeli peace activists have continued unabated in recent
months. In December, a [ [link removed] ]report by the Times of Israel found that settler
violence increased by nearly 50% in 2021, and it has shown no sign of
slowing down into the new year. Israeli soldiers and police simply have
not done enough to date to curtail and prevent these attacks, or to hold
their perpetrators fully accountable.

In the United States, J Street has led the charge for accountability,
justice and leadership, making clear that settler violence is a severe
threat to the rights of both Palestinians and their progressive Israeli
allies. We have been circulating a letter to Secretary of State Antony
Blinken, stating that the United States cannot turn a blind eye to this
ongoing crisis, and urging the State Department to press Israeli
authorities to do much more to confront these attacks and to hold
perpetrators of violence accountable. [ [link removed] ]Read, sign and share our petition
here >>

A growing chorus of leaders both in Israel and the US have recently spoken
out about settler violence. Seven prominent Jewish organizations wrote a
letter to Israeli leaders condemning Jewish Israeli extremists and acts of
terrorism and political violence. [ [link removed] ]You can read their letter here.

JStreetPAC Endorses Rising Star Jessica Cisneros in Key Congressional Race

[5]JStreetPAC Endorses Jessica Cisneros in Key Texas Congressional Race

Next month, voters in Texas’ 28th Congressional District will cast ballots
in one of the most competitive (and one of the earliest) primary elections
of the 2022 midterm cycle. The outcome will determine whether a fresh,
principled, new progressive voice aligned with J Street enters Congress,
or whether a right-leaning representative described as “Trump’s favorite
Democrat” will keep his seat. The incumbent, Representative Cuellar, has
repeatedly aligned himself with foreign policy hawks and opposed a
critical measure designed to prevent Trump from taking us into a
disastrous war with Iran.

The stakes are high, which is why JStreetPAC has endorsed Jessica Cisneros
-- a passionate immigration and human rights attorney who will fight for
democratic values at home and for principled American leadership abroad.
[ [link removed] ]Learn more about JStreetPAC and how you can get involved with its work
here >>

Defending Iran Diplomacy as the Biden Administration Pursues a Return to the
JCPOA

[7]JCPOA Negotiations.

President Trump put Iran and the US on a dangerous collision course to
conflict when he senselessly withdrew from the JCPOA nuclear agreement
negotiated by President Obama and other world powers. Now, the stakes are
high for President Biden's ongoing efforts to bring both the US and Iran
back into full compliance with the successful agreement, to constrain
Iran's nuclear program and avoid another catastrophic war in the Middle
East. J Street is among the leading groups promoting the path of diplomacy
-- and pushing back on the hawks who want the US to double down on Trump’s
disastrous “maximum pressure” policies.

“The clearest lesson of American policy disasters in the Middle East in
the past generation is that we must not listen to the same hawkish voices
urging conflict and pressure and instead rally strongly behind diplomacy
and peace,” wrote J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami in an [ [link removed] ]op-ed in
Business Insider. “Diplomacy has proven to be the only effective way to
prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon and avoid war. Leading
American and Israeli security experts have made clear that there is no
viable military solution to this problem,” he added in a letter to the
editor in the Wall Street Journal.

As talks continue in Vienna, we know from experience that any announcement
is likely to draw a firestorm of disingenuous attacks and controversy from
hawks and special interests who want diplomacy to fail. J Street stands
ready to be a leading voice in Washington, DC and nationwide in support of
a peaceful, diplomatic resolution.

[ [link removed] ]Read and share Jeremy’s Op-Ed >>

J Street Launches Action Fund to Support Candidates in Priority Races

[10]Future Voter.

J Street is thrilled to announce the launch of a new J Street Action Fund.
The fund is designed to strengthen our movement by making targeted
independent expenditures to help give voice to our values in key
Congressional races. In the 2022 midterm cycle, we plan to raise and spend
$1 million in support of candidates who adopt principled, pro-Israel,
pro-peace, anti-occupation positions. That work will be critical to
shaping the perception of what it truly means to be “pro-Israel.”

“With American democracy under threat and groups to our right increasingly
spending millions to push candidates toward more hawkish positions, the
Action Fund will be a critical new tool allowing the pro-Israel, pro-peace
movement to play a more involved role in key races of national
importance,” said J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami, as reported in both
[ [link removed] ]Politico and [ [link removed] ]Haaretz.

J Street is also directly supporting the fight for our democratic rights
and freedoms by launching J Street Grassroots Action, a new fund to
partner with and support local grassroots organizing. We’re excited to
partner with Georgia Alliance for Progress and LUCHA (Living United for
Change) in Arizona, critical states in 2022 that will help determine the
shape of the Senate for years to come.

[ [link removed] ]Learn more about the J Street Action Fund and all of J Street’s
political work here >>

New Dates for 2022 J Street National Conference

[14]Register to join us at our National Conference this December.

The J Street National Conference in Washington, DC is the year’s largest
gathering of pro-peace, pro-Israel activists -- and one of the most
important, talked-about annual events in the worlds of foreign policy and
progressive politics.

This month, J Street announced that due to the ongoing health crisis our
conference, initially scheduled for April, will now take place on December
3-5, 2022. While we’re disappointed to have to reschedule, we’re confident
that this is the best way to ensure the safety and comfort of all our
supporters -- and to ensure this year’s conference is as large, vibrant
and meaningful as we know it can and should be.

The upshot? Early Bird pricing is back for the new December dates.
[ [link removed] ]Reserve your tickets now >>

Meet The Rabbis Standing on the Front Lines of the Fight Against Settler
Violence

[16]Rabbis for Human Rights.

Across Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory, grassroots advocates
are fighting for a more just, equal and peaceful future for Israelis and
Palestinians. J Street is proud to support and champion their work.
Through our Our Israel profiles, we're proud to spotlight groups like
Rabbis for Human Rights who are making a difference on the ground.

Rabbis for Human Rights is an Israeli organization that works throughout
Israel and the Occupied Territory to monitor human rights violations and
combat the impacts of settler violence. Volunteers from the organization
were among human rights activists injured during recent settler violence
in Burin while helping Palestinian farmers plant trees.

Rabbi Ruti Baidatz, a member of the organization, said last month while
speaking with J Street, “As a rabbi, I have to raise my voice. It has
meaning to speak up. I represent more than just myself.” [ [link removed] ]Read and
share our profile on Rabbis for Human Rights here >>

Must Reads

* [ [link removed] ]Why US Lawmakers Should Witness the Israeli Occupation Firsthand,
+972 Mag

* [ [link removed] ]The Anatomy of a Sanctions Failure, Washington Post

* [ [link removed] ]Top Israeli Military Officials Say Trump’s Iran Deal Exit Was a
‘Mistake,’ Bad for Israel, Responsible Statecraft

* [ [link removed] ]Instead of Being Shocked by Settler Violence, Israel Must Separate
From the Palestinians, Haaretz


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© 2022 J Street | [ [link removed] ]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.



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