On Thursday, March 14th, Senator Schumer delivered an historic address that reiterated the American desire for a two-state solution, the freeing of the hostages, immediate humanitarian aid to Gazans, and a just outcome for both Israelis and Palestinians. NYJA was then joined by Patrick Donovan from Senator Schumer’s office, as well as NYJA board members Rabbi Rachel Timoner, Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum, and Nancy Kaufman for a briefing on key takeaways from Senator Schumer’s address:
- It can be hard to find reasons to feel optimistic about the prospect of peace in Israel/Palestine, especially at this difficult crossroads. Nancy shared that there is continued hope for peace that we can draw from the work of many policy organizations, such as ALLMEP, whose fight for a just, peaceful future for the region is ongoing and a source of inspiration.
- Although Senator Schumer’s address was idealistic and necessarily focused on values of compassion and problem solving in order to realize true peace and security in the long term, Rabbi Timoner also discussed some of its omissions. The most pressing concern on many of our minds is what we can do to resolve the hostage and humanitarian crises in the near term. Rabbi Timoner reminded us that we will have to balance the acute needs of the immediate future with the long-term ideals that Senator Schumer discussed, such as a two-state solution and limiting the influence of Palestinian and Israeli extremists.
- We are already seeing resistance to Senator Schumer’s assertion that new elections must be held in Israel once the war winds down and that Benjamin Netanyahu is no longer a viable leader; Rabbi Kleinbaum reminded us that Senator Schumer is simply suggesting that Israelis should have a say in what a post-October 7th Israel will look like by holding new elections.
- Rabbi Timoner noted that Senator Schumer made this address in the name of the “silent majority” of American Jewry. We must remember that there will be a loud, hateful response to Senator Schumer’s focus on security and compassion for both Israelis and Palestinians in the long term, however those voices do not represent the majority of American or New York Jewry.
- Senator Schumer’s emphasis on security and compassion is the right approach for this moment. However, Rabbi Timoner, Rabbi Kleinbaum, and Nancy made it clear that even if you only care about security alone, this war is not making Israel more secure; as Senator Schumer stated in his address, Israel cannot keep fighting in Gaza endlessly and expect there to be peace at the end of the road, and a two-state solution is the only viable path forward.
We’re so glad we could urgently convene our community to collectively process this address, and we thank our NYJA board members for their insights and reflections.
