April 20, 2010
“The condition upon which G-d hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance.” –John Philpot Curran, Speeches, 1808.
“Bereaved families, whose Remembrance Day does not start with the siren that calls for a minute of silence, or end with the kindling of the beacons; you who came to this place, in the nebulous light of dusk, in the chilly Jerusalem evening air, facing the remnants of the Temple.… Nothing can compensate for the sound of the steps of a son you expect to hear on the staircase, which has suddenly turned silent. The son whose uniform you hung on a hanger in the closet, which generates a yearning to smell the smell of his body one last time…. Destiny has inflicted upon you the heaviest of prices – bereavement—and bequeathed to our nation the greatest of achievements – revival.” –President Shimon Peres, Yom Hazikaron (Memorial Day) ceremonies.
As I write this column, Israel observes Yom Hazikaron, Memorial Day to 22,684 fallen soldiers and victims of terror in Israel’s long history of struggle for peace and security. It’s a stark juxtaposition to the celebrations that begin the following evening for Yom Ha’atzmaut, Independence Day, and the joy that is associated with the realization of a two thousand year-old dream of self-determination for the Jewish people in their own homeland and Jewish state. The contrast is striking but the link is inextricable; Israel’s freedom has come at, and continues to command, a terrible price.
On U.S. college campuses, pro-Israel students, faculty, and campus professionals will congregate tomorrow for celebrations of Israel’s independence. Many a blue and white iced cake will be baked and served; many a falafel ball will be fried and consumed. The joy and happiness are deserved, because they reflect not just the joy in celebrating a special connection to the Jewish state, but also a well-deserved reward to a year’s worth of hard work. Indeed, supporters of Israel frequently must work hard to promote a pro-Israel message on their campuses, and this year has been no exception.
When a concerted and sophisticated campaign emerged at the University of California-Berkeley to push an unbalanced and libelous bill through the student senate to divest funds from certain companies doing business with Israel, supporters of Israel organized to fight back. Over a series of weeks and several all-night sessions, students, faculty, campus professionals, and community supporters joined together to fight back against the distorted representations of Israel’s detractors. Although the battle is not yet over—as of this writing, the Israel detractors have not yet mustered the votes to override a veto by the student senate president—the fruits of Israel’s supporters on Berkeley’s campus can already be seen; in the student senate elections that followed the veto, the Berkeley student body voted resoundingly to provide the party that opposed the divestment bill both with an absolute majority in the incoming senate as well as the presidency. The elections demonstrated clearly and unequivocally that the Berkeley student body does not support divestment from Israel—but that result only came about through the hard work of a coordinated community effort.
Despite their defeat, Israel’s detractors are already attempting to organize similar efforts on other campuses around the country. Close attention by pro-Israel students and campus professionals have resulted in quick and clear responses on campuses such as Georgetown University and the University of Arizona. These incidents may pose but a taste of further efforts to come, both this Spring and in the Fall. The pro-Israel campus community can enjoy a well-deserved celebration on Yom Ha’atzmaut, while still recognizing that the tasks before it will remain.
Israel has paid and continues to pay a terrible price for its freedom. We as supporters of a pro-Israel campus environment must also remain vigilant and engaged to ensure that the pro-Israel message continues to flourish. With the knowledge of the work in front of us, we can and should take the moments both to remember the obligations, and the joys, associated with liberty.
Stephen Kuperberg
Executive Director