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The final day of the J Street National Conference featured a series of important conversations with leaders, advocates and foreign policy experts.
Together, we focused on how we want to see US foreign policy better align with our shared pro-Israel, pro-peace, pro-democracy vision, and how we can work together to achieve that goal.
Capping off the conference, J Street supporter Nancy Goroff announced she would personally match up to $25,000 of new contributions over the next 24 hours. “We need J Street, and J Street needs us,” Goroff said.
There’s still time to take Nancy up on her offer if you’d like to make a contribution here >>
⬇️ Highlights Below ⬇️
Lawmakers Hail J Street Education Fund Trips to Israel, West Bank
Four top alumni of J Street’s comprehensive, no-holds-barred educational trips to Israel and the West Bank spoke powerfully about what the experience meant for them.Â
Representatives Melanie Stansbury, Sean Casten, Jennifer Wexton and Madeleine Dean spoke of how impactful and lasting their J Street Education Fund congressional delegation’s had been.Â
“It changed my perspective on many of the issues that I had thought about and cared about for many years,” Stansbury said, “and of course, [the trip] gave me a renewed sense of urgency for the work that we have to do here in the United States.”
Dean described the trip as “life-changing” while Casten praised the balance, care and nuance delivered to participants. “I’ll never look at the situation there the same,” Wexton said. “It has changed the way I look at things now -- the way I approach policy and everything.”
Keynote Addresses from Gerry Connolly, Becca Balint and Peter Welch
Day three featured powerful keynote addresses from Congressman Gerry Connolly, Congresswoman-elect Becca Balint and Senator-elect Peter Welch.
Congressman Connolly spoke candidly about the need for more muscular American leadership to help resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “I want to see a secure, stable, free, democratic Jewish state,” he said, “and I also want to see a stable, democratic, free Palestinian state.”
Congresswoman-elect Balint spoke movingly about our shared fight for democracy in Israel and the United States, recalling that her grandfather, Leopold Bálint, was killed on a forced march from Mauthausen Concentration Camp in the last few weeks of World War II.
“I'm grateful to you for being so clear and so direct about what's at stake,” Balint said. “We must all do everything that we can to stand against those who seek to destroy our democracy, and we have to be ever vigilant and tend to those threats overseas as well -- including in Israel.”
Senator-elect Peter Welch capped off the night with a spirited call to keep up our shared fight for equal measures of justice, freedom and independence for all. “Our deepest commitment is not to the United States as it is or to Israel as it is,” he said “Our commitment is to the ideals upon which America was founded and Israel was founded.”
Leaders from Palestine and Jordan Address Conference
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh and Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi both delivered video addresses to the J Street conference, following earlier conference remarks from Israeli political leaders.
Prime Minister Shtayyeh called on the United States to engage more fully in diplomatic processes to encourage peace and equality. Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi called on all parties to reject extremism. “We cannot allow radicals on both sides of the divide to determine the future,” Safadi said.
In a panel discussion, foreign policy experts called for stronger US engagement, strategic multilateral diplomacy, and for Palestinian political leaders to truly embrace democracy and reject extremism.
J Street Honors Ilyse Hogue, Amy Spitalnick and Randi Weingarten
J Street was thrilled to honor longtime fighters for justice, equality and empowerment Ilyse Hogue, President of Purpose, Amy Spitalnick, Executive Director of Integrity First for America, and Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers, at our 2022 Gala Dinner.
In her comments, Randi Weingarten made a powerful defense of the right to hold true to a proud, just, equal and democratic vision for both Israel and the United States.
“I'm not letting people take my patriotism away from me,” Weingarten said. “You can be a fighter for democracy, a fighter for justice, a fighter for public education, and criticize the government of the United States, and we can do the same thing in terms of Israel and still be pro-Israel -- that's why I feel at home with J Street.”
Spitalnick, who led a successful landmark lawsuit against the organizers of the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, spoke of the need to keep up the fight.
"Fascism, authoritarianism, extremism, it thrives on making us feel hopeless and helpless. That is their core tactic,” she said. “That is how it spreads and that’s been true throughout history, and we can't let that be the case."
Ilyse Hogue delivered a powerful condemnation of right-wing attempts to silence open debate about Israel
"We're Jews!" she said, lamenting attempts to shut down the conversation. "We debate, we interrogate, we challenge each other.”
"What we saw this last election cycle was inexcusable,” Hogue said. “We saw Israel weaponized in service of endorsing election deniers, people who supported January 6. That is not the Judaism I was brought up with, that is not the support for Israel that I know to be consistent with Judaism or democracy, and I am going to speak up on it and I’m going to challenge each and every one of you to speak up on it.”
Nancy Goroff Announces Matching Donation Challenge
Capping off the conference, J Street supporter Nancy Goroff announced she would match up to $25,000 of new contributions in the final hours of the conference. “We need J Street, and J Street needs us,” Goroff said.
Thank you, Nancy, for your moving speech and generous support. There’s still time to take Nancy up on her offer if you’d like to make a contribution here >>
Today: Advocacy Day
Today, conference attendees from across the country are heading to Capitol Hill to advocate for our values and priorities directly.
Together, we’ll be pressing for our leaders to show real leadership: To speak out against demolitions, settlements and human rights violations; to live up to our commitment to peace, equality and international law; and to pursue policies that are truly pro-Israel, pro-peace and pro-democracy.
A huge thank you to everyone joining us for Advocacy Day, everyone who came together to make this year’s conference such a great success, and the impressive and dedicated hard work of the entire J Street team.
Best,
Logan Bayroff
VP of Communications, J Street
