Friends,
Today, my country stops.
Servers stop serving. Teachers stop teaching. Drivers stop driving. Together, we make time to stand as one and remember and honor all those we’ve lost to terror, violence and conflict.
For thousands of Israelis, this is no abstract memorial. We grieve for the absence of a parent, the lost smile of a son, the unfulfilled ambitions of a sister.
We share anger. We share pain. We share a world less whole for the loss of the ones we loved.
As a former Israeli Defense Forces officer, I realized long ago that the only way we can end this cycle of loss, grief and pain is to end the cycle of conflict and injustice itself. To work toward a future in which no other family -- Israeli or Palestinian -- has to lose a child to a conflict fueled by those who have lost sight of our shared humanity.
That's why I’ll also be attending a joint memorial ceremony for both Israelis and Palestinians. A recognition that just as this conflict has exacted a terrible price from both sides, so too must both sides share an investment in ending it.
It’s one of the largest and most moving events of its kind, and one which has also been loudly protested by right-wing extremists in the past. But I see this shared memorial event not only as a demonstration of a shared commitment to peace, but as a profound expression of Jewish values. Of empathy, compassion, justice and resolve.
The Israelis and Palestinians who join together to recognize our shared loss give me greater hope that we will one day bring this conflict to an end.
Tomorrow evening, we will move from a day of mourning and solemnity to one of celebration.
On Yom Ha’atzmaut -- Israel’s Independence Day -- we celebrate the hard-won achievements of a small nation borne amidst struggle and founded upon the values of justice, equality and peace. We celebrate our nationhood, our self-determination, our place in the world.
And as we celebrate the egalitarian vision and values laid down in Israel’s Declaration of Independence, we remind ourselves that the institutions and ideals of liberal democracy are not guaranteed to last forever.
That Israel, like the United States, continues the struggle to make true the dreams and ideals of its founders -- even those they could not live up to themselves.
That today, and every day, we face a continuing struggle for freedom, equality and justice.
We remind ourselves that together, we must commit ourselves to this work. That we must take action to protect the values we hold dearest. That we must stand strong and we must stand together.
As we work toward a more just and equal future, I am truly humbled that we can continue to stand together.
Thank you, sincerely, for helping sustain the fight.
Nadav Tamir
Executive Director, J Street Israel
