Dear Friend,
Before he died, my grandfather Shimon Peres said: “We live in a world of differences, not in a world of likenesses. Democracy is not just the right to be equal but also the equal right to be different, and those who don’t understand that don’t understand the future of our world.”
In his final weeks, my grandfather was profoundly worried about the future of Israel. He was watching the country he had built and served lose its democratic foundation -- the right to be equal and the equal right to be different.
He would have been truly horrified to see what’s happened since: The appalling Nation State law. Netanyahu’s race to embrace West Bank annexation. The shocking moves made by President Trump to encourage the most destructive policies of Israel’s far right.
In Israel and the United States, we face a shared struggle against a far-right nationalist agenda.
And more than ever, we need our progressive partners in the US to push back against these dangerous policies and to work toward our shared vision: Two states, not annexation; diplomacy, not recklessness and destruction.
Friend, that’s why I’m asking you to contribute to J Street today. I need you -- as a pro-Israel, pro-peace partner in the United States -- to help us lay the groundwork to restore my grandfather’s vision of a democratic, peaceful Israel >>
This coming March, we Israelis will head to the ballot box for an unprecedented third election in under a year -- due in part to Netanyahu's refusal to step down, even as he faces charges in three separate corruption cases.
We will vote at a moment in which the peace process has been removed from Israel’s public agenda with alarming effectiveness. A moment in which our core Jewish values of justice and compassion seem increasingly immaterial to our leaders.
The importance of this election cannot be overstated. It is about Israel's survival, about who we are, about our very existence as a democratic homeland for the Jewish people.
We’re in this together.
Because, in the US too, Americans are faced with an election that will decide not only the character and future of their country, but the future of millions around the world who depend on global American leadership.
With so much at stake, we need to empower those who give voice to our values and stand up to fight for them. Please consider a donation of $9, $18 or whatever you can to support J Street today >>
Our countries share magnificent and unlikely histories -- nations of immigrants who fought bravely for their independence. What our nations are currently facing does not in any way lessen the magnificence of our stories -- they are still being written. And we --- you and I -- can be the authors.
We have an opportunity to deliver a vital, hopeful message to the world: The fight for democracy can be won. Corrupt leaders can be beaten.
My grandfather was once asked, “What is the stuff you are made of?”
“Me?” he replied. “I’m made of the future.”
So am I, and so are you, the supporters of J Street. That’s how I know we can shape the future together. And the future starts now.
– Mika Almog
Author, journalist and political activist
