Rebecca Vilkomerson
I have been visiting Israel my whole life. My aunt "made aliyah" as
ayoung adult, and my grandparents soon followed her. My parents
alsolived in Israel for a year before I was born. I have layer upon
layerof memories of being in Israel with my family throughout my life.
My Israeli family are religious kibbutzniks. When Iwas twelve, my
favorite cousin?s fianc? died in a car bombing inLebanon during his
last two weeks of army service. She had known himsince they were both
thirteen, and it took her years to recover. Theripples of grief this
one death caused brought home to me, in somesmall way, the impact of
Israel?s wars.
My connection to Israel was reinforced when
Nasser,the Jordanian manager of my neighborhood caf? here in San
Francisco,decided to introduce me to one of his best customers--Yoni,
an Israeli.When we married, I gained a whole other Israeli family.
Shortly
after I met Yoni, the second intifada brokeout. The combination of
these two events forced me to sharpen myknowledge of the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I had enough vague ideasabout the
occupation of the West Bank and Gaza to debate with my fatherabout
Israeli policies, but I realized I needed to know more.
In my
professional life, I am an organizer andadvocate, specifically around
welfare, homelessness, and other issuesthat affect low-income people in
the United States. In my work I haveseen enough of the negative impact
of American capitalism and racism toquestion the prevailing myths of
American opportunity and Americanhistory. The history and politics we
are taught in school often do notreflect reality--whether in the United
States or around the world.
Like many people, because of my
emotional attachmentto Israel, I had been reluctant to examine the
"story" of Israel-makingthe desert bloom, the heroic wars Israel fought
as the underdog, theduplicitousness of the "Arabs" (never
Palestinians). But then I beganto educate myself. I read books like
"The Iron Wall" by Avi Shlaim and"Drinking the Sea at Gaza" by Amira
Haas. I became a regular reader ofthe Electronic Intifada and JewishPeace News. As my own position became clearer to me, I knew I needed to becomeactive in the movement for justice for Palestinian people.
The
more I learned, the more I had to question notjust the occupation, but
the premise of a state for one religiousgroup. I had to look at my own
politics and ask myself if giving rightsto some people and not others
is consistent with my values. Forexample, do I believe that immigration
laws should be based on ethnicidentity? Would I define a country as
democratic if only Christians hadfull rights? The answer, of course, is
no. But in Israel, this is thereality.
I don't currently belong
to a synagogue, so JVPhas become my Jewish community. It is a pleasure
to struggle with otherJews to live the ethics that I associate with
Judaism in the fight forjustice in Israel and Palestine.
