Israel or Palestine: You Don’t Always Have to Pick A Side

By Jennifer Shulkin

These past few weeks have highlighted yet another glaring example of how polarized we have become. Spurred by cancel culture, an extremely polarized American political system, and social media platforms that give everyone a microphone and a stage to voice their opinions, many people feel like they need to pick a side on every important issue and advertise it.

Contentious issues like the May 2021 outbreak of Israeli-Palestinian violence have been reduced to a black and white choice between two opposing sides. One side is right and the other is wrong. One side is good and the other is evil. Despite the high value Americans claim to place on free speech and debate, people who publicly support the wrong side in today’s world are threatened with public shaming and ostracism – i.e., being canceled. For example, the response to Andrew Yang’s May 10 tweet that expressed solidarity with Israel defending itself from terror was so negative that he felt compelled to apologize and revise his earlier statement. 

Over the past several weeks we’ve seen a near constant stream of anti-Israel sentiments on social media. Celebrities like DJ Khaled, Viola Davis, Bella and Gigi Hadid, and Mark Ruffalo (who later apologized for his post’s “not accurate” and “inflammatory” content, which had accused Israel of committing “genocide”), among others, were praised for their unequivocally pro-Palestinian posts. Many of these remarks included extreme and pointed language like “ethnic cleansing,” “apartheid,” and “genocide.”

Friends, acquaintances, and colleagues of mine jumped on the same bandwagon and engaged in similar online rhetoric. This confused me. I knew many of these individuals’ backgrounds, what they studied in school, what careers they have pursued. And like the opinionated celebrities mentioned, almost none of these friends, acquaintances, and colleagues received formal education on or worked in careers even tangentially related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

So how did they know so much to form such strong opinions? How did they know enough to decide who was right and who was wrong, who was evil and who was good? How were they sufficiently certain about their convictions to broadcast them to the world with the goal of convincing others of their own viewpoints?

They couldn’t have. This is what upset me most.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is extremely complex and nuanced. It is as far from black-and-white as anything can be. Most people commenting on social media likely have little understanding of the many twists and turns contributing to this most recent outbreak of violence, and that would only be scratching the surface of the underlying conflict. There is a deep and troubling history between the Israelis and Palestinians that dates back to even before Israel declared statehood in 1948 and then fought in its first formal war with its Arab neighbors just hours later. To become an expert on this subject, or even sufficiently educated on it, is no small undertaking.

Yet hundreds of thousands of anti-Israel posts from nonexpert individuals flooded our social media pages. Without being challenged or reproached.

Instead, reproaches were reserved for either neutral remarks or pro-Israel sentiments. Gal Gadot, for instance, was careful to express sorrow for both her fellow Israelis and her Palestinian neighbors in a tweet calling for peace but was widely criticized for not sympathizing more with Palestinian suffering. Similarly, Rihanna’s expression of neutrality received numerous criticisms and was even compared to asserting #AllLivesMatter – the troubling hashtag that now connotes racism and total opposition to #BlackLivesMatter. Why has disapproval of warfare and expressing sympathy for both Israeli and Palestinian victims of violence, especially innocent victims of terrorism, become such an evil and unacceptable opinion?

We see what happens when we either don’t pick a side or we pick the wrong side. This explains the outpouring of support for Palestinians and condemnation of Israel from so many voices on social media. It’s popular, and any position counter to it is unpopular.

What I long for far more than people being able to publicly voice a defense for Israel defending itself without being canceled or reproached is something much simpler: I long for people to be curious again – to admit what they don’t know, to ask questions, to engage in dialogue with people possessing opposing views, and to accept the intricacy of very complex situations.

This is why I was overjoyed to receive a text message a couple weeks ago from my friend, Tyler. Tyler began, “I know like .00099% of the Israel Gaza conflict and want to know more.” Without a predetermined position or judgment, he proceeded to ask thoughtful questions about Palestinian civil rights, Hamas’s rule in the territories, Benjamin Netanyahu’s leadership, and the Israeli police response at the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Not an expert myself, I told him what I knew and readily admitted what I did not know. I sent him some materials I had recently read or listened to, and I myself read more on issues that I realized I had not understood well. Our goal in having this conversation was simply to understand more, not to be the final arbiters of right and wrong. We did not come to any definite conclusions. Unfortunately, this was the only conversation I had like this during this most recent outbreak of violence.

So my plea is simple: Be more like my friend, Tyler. Be curious. Ask questions, consume materials representing a variety of positions, and attempt to understand the nuances of a very complex conflict. Fight the urge to pass judgment too soon. Don’t form an opinion immediately just so you can join the crescendo of condemnation all around you. Admit what you do not know and ask others to help fill in the gaps. Use your social media platform to promote dialogue and discussion rather than to proliferate pointed and uninformed criticism.

Resist the temptation of black and white. Embrace the shades of gray.

You do not always have to pick a side.

Jennifer Shulkin is a graduate of Harvard Law School and the University of Pennsylvania. She has served as a former judicial law clerk in the Eastern District of New York and an assistant district attorney in Manhattan. She currently works as a white-collar criminal defense attorney in Washington, DC. Read full bio here.

We Have A Responsibility to Talk to Our Children about Antisemitism

By Jennifer Shulkin

Many articles are published on how to talk to children about antisemitism, but nobody has explained why doing so is so important.

Some 88% of American Jewish adults surveyed in 2020 by the American Jewish Committee believe that antisemitism is a problem in the United States, and 82% feel that it has increased in the past five years. Approximately 37% reported personally being the victim of antisemitism over the past five years. Jewish American adults seem well aware of the intensifying problem.

For Jewish American children, however, who may not yet have social media or may be shielded from current events, much of today’s antisemitism is not so visible. This is especially true for conservative, reform, and secular Jews who have assimilated into mainstream American culture and display no outward indicators of their religion. American Jews are no longer limited to living in certain neighborhoods or attending certain universities. The rising rate of interfaith marriage is yet another indicator of assimilation and acceptance.

Like many others raised near a major metropolitan city, I personally observed little antisemitism growing up. At school, I fearlessly chatted about my bat mitzvah and Hebrew school. I, like many of my peers, extrapolated that the whole country – if not the world – was similarly accepting of Jews.

Antisemitism is Like a Riptide

Even if antisemitism is not so visible in everyday life, its danger is like that of a riptide. A riptide appears far less deadly than it actually is, gaining strength quickly and unpredictably when the waters still before dragging victims away from shore and potentially drowning them. We talk to children about riptides. We teach them to not fight directly against them but rather to swim parallel to the shore until out of the current and then back to shore at an angle.

Just like with riptides, I worry about Jewish American children being unaware and unprepared for unexpected waves and undercurrents of antisemitism. It is our responsibility – primarily parents’, mentors’, and teachers’ – to begin a dialogue about antisemitism and prepare them before they are in over their heads.

Striking the Balance Between Reality and Fear

Early conversations about antisemitism should strive for preparation and familiarity, not creating fear and anxiety. Conversations must be age-appropriate and tailored to the unique characteristics of the child. Discussing gas chambers with a five-year-old is irresponsible.

I believe that my parents struck the right balance of imparting the reality of antisemitism without disrupting the sense of safety I felt in my school, neighborhood, and synagogue.  

At age six, I understood vaguely that antisemitism was the reason both sides of my family came to the United States; Nazis drove my grandfather from Hamburg in 1939 and my father’s great-grandparents fled threats of physical harm in Russia. My parents made sure I knew that antisemitism was not just a remnant of the past, though, especially outside of America. They explained that many of Israel’s neighbors and people elsewhere in the world feel that Israel as a Jewish state has no right to exist. Similarly, if my family was traveling abroad and visiting a synagogue, they explained why we gave the taxi driver an address nearby rather than the synagogue’s name.

My parents clarified why nobody in my family wore Jewish star necklaces or displayed outward religious symbols. In general, they discouraged me from advertising my Judaism among unfamiliar people. The reason was twofold: first, to personally avoid any unpleasantness or animosity a stranger might feel toward Jews, and second – just in case – to spare myself any risk of physical harm (especially when traveling).  

Through multiple conversations that increased in complexity and specificity as I matured, my parents taught me to navigate various situations, assess probabilities of danger and animosity, and respond appropriately when personally encountering or witnessing antisemitism. This preparation proved to be necessary.

As one of the only Jewish competitors on the national junior squash circuit, I understood that my family could not join certain country clubs because of their reluctance to accept Jewish members. Additionally, as a college and law student at east coast universities, I was able to recognize anti-Zionism demonstrations on campus for what they were: veiled antisemitic criticisms. And after law school, as a Manhattan Assistant District Attorney, I recognized one defendant’s antisemitic slurs as not separate from, but rather the motivator of, a physical assault; despite resistance from my superiors, I advocated to prosecute the attack as a felony hate crime rather than a simple misdemeanor. Had it not been for the ongoing dialogue with my parents throughout my childhood, I would have been shocked by or perhaps ignorant to these incidents of antisemitism occurring all around me.

Filling in the Gaps

American schools teach very little about antisemitism – usually limited to a few paragraphs on the Holocaust in a history textbook or reading Elie Wiesel’s Night. Attempts at reform are underway, but new curriculums on inclusion and prejudice threaten to exclude the study of antisemitism.

Social media and online media are another major source of information, and we have little control over what children view on these platforms. Jewish American parents and mentors can help fill in the gaps in knowledge and understanding that schools and the internet create.

A good place to start is asking children what they already know – about both current and past events. Encourage them to read books and watch movies that explain and add context to complicated issues like the Holocaust and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Review the same materials yourself and unpack them together. Make clear that you will serve as a reference point and want to begin an ongoing discussion. Opening the door for conversations about these difficult topics will make children more comfortable asking questions about what they see, read, and listen to as they mature.

An Opportunity to Instill Pride in Being Jewish and Condemn Prejudice at Large

Children not yet exposed to the topic of antisemitism may at first have trouble understanding how anyone can despise Jews simply for being Jewish. Just as problematic may be explaining that despite some people hating Jews for being Jewish, Jewish heritage is indeed something to be proud of. Trusted adults must help navigate these confusing identity questions.

It would be a missed opportunity if these conversations were limited to just antisemitism and did not also discuss prejudice more broadly. Underscore that centuries of antisemitism have made Jews more sensitive toward, and fiercer advocates against, other forms of prejudice, as evidenced by the mass numbers of Jews walking side-by-side with black Americans in the civil rights movement and today’s BLM movement. Especially in light of America’s recent racial reckoning, we have a responsibility to discuss societal injustice beyond just antisemitism. Discussing antisemitism will open the door to these other difficult conversations.

By teaching Jewish American children from an early age about antisemitism and prejudice, we can ensure that they will be better equipped to tackle the ugly realities confronting this generation and the next.

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Jennifer Shulkin is a graduate of Harvard Law School and the University of Pennsylvania. She has served as a former judicial law clerk in the Eastern District of New York and an assistant district attorney in Manhattan. She currently works as a white-collar criminal defense attorney in Washington, DC. Read full bio here.

WHEN DESIGNING CURRICULUM ON INCLUSION, INCLUDE THE STUDY OF ANTI-SEMITSIM

By Jennifer Shulkin

In the wake of George Floyd’s murder and the nation’s calls for racial justice, many American schools have rightly committed to implementing new ethnic studies and race relations lesson plans into their curriculums. These curriculum changes encourage students to contemplate how prejudice towards and discrimination of marginalized groups of people remain infused into many aspects of our present-day world. They prioritize honest discussions about race. Yet even as inclusion becomes a higher priority than ever before, there is great risk that teaching about the dangers of antisemitism will fall by the wayside. Excluding antisemitism from this wave of anti-prejudice teaching would be a grave mistake.

The subjugation of African Americans is a unique stain on American society, and it deserves thorough treatment in American schools. I am not inviting relativistic comparisons between the African American story (or any other minority group’s story) and the Jewish story; I am only suggesting that each of these stories deserves to be told. The Jewish people have faced rampant and often deadly antisemitism in every generation and all over the world. American schoolchildren should know.

Antisemitism is easily recognizable when a shooter targets a synagogue in Pittsburgh, an attacker stabs a group of ultra-Orthodox Jews in Monsey, or a vandal draws swastikas on playgrounds. But these heinous tragedies are often written off as rare occurrences, when in fact antisemitism is far more pervasive. 

I am not an educator and know little about designing school curriculums. But I am a third generation Holocaust survivor. I am also a former prosecutor. And in that role, I learned both about how the justice system disproportionally affects black and brown people and how hate crimes embody a special type of evil. Antisemitic hate crimes reported to the FBI rose by 40 percent from 2014 to 2018. And of the 364 hate crimes reported in New York in 2019, 148 targeted Jewish people. These are staggering numbers.

Crime is not the only way that antisemitism surfaces today. College students have increasingly experienced antisemitism on campus – mainly in the form of open and outspoken anti-Zionism, which more often than not is a thinly veiled disguise for antisemitism. Separately, some people have blamed the Jews (without any logic or proof) for the global coronavirus outbreak.  As a result, antisemitism cannot be dismissed as merely a relic of our history books.

[Citation: https://www.adl.org/blog/coronavirus-antisemitism]

Yet to understand the antisemitism of today, educators must present antisemitism’s history. Without exploring past persecution, we cannot expect schoolchildren to recognize the warning signs of rising antisemitism today or in the future. 

New race-conscious lesson plans will generally include topics like the theft of Native American land and culture, the Jim Crow era, and the Japanese internment camps. In that spirit, these lesson plans should also include the slaughter of the Jews in Russian pogroms, the systematic murder of 6 million Jews during the Holocaust, and the widespread housing and university admissions discrimination against American Jews in the 19th and 20th centuries, as a start. 

School lesson plans should not separate distinct racial groups and draw distinct lessons from each episode of discrimination explored. Instead, the plight of various racial groups should be taught in a way that recognizes the overlapping features and patterns of discrimination so that schoolchildren can identify them when they come across them in their own lives. The fact that Jewish persecution is the world’s oldest and most geographically widespread form of hatred is instructive: Antisemitism is a mutable virus, and its many mutations and various chapters each carry valuable lessons about prejudice, hate, and race relations.

Many school districts and private institutions throughout the country have quickly responded to this spring and summer’s uproar over racial injustice by already incorporating race relations lessons into their curriculums this fall. Others have not yet done so, but are considering doing so in the future. 

There is danger in antisemitism being excluded (or demonized) in these new curriculum changes, as was the case in California’s first ethnic studies plan. The California plan valorized the BDS movement (an organized boycott of Israeli goods and services) and painted Israelis as colonizers. It also presented the “Black Hebrew Israelites” (a group known for preaching antisemitism) as an important religious movement to cover. Moreover, while an entire lesson plan was devoted to Islamophobia in the United States, there was not even a definition of antisemitism to be found in the glossary. The curriculum seemed to include every minority group except the Jews.

Many people today believe that antisemitism is separate from and less insidious than classic racism, but it is one of the world’s oldest and deepest forms of hatred. American schools must understand it as such to ensure that the next generation can recognize, define, and reject antisemitism going forward. 

As we rework school curriculums to be more inclusive, please do not exclude antisemitism.

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Jennifer Shulkin is a graduate of Harvard Law School and the University of Pennsylvania. She has served as a former judicial law clerk in the Eastern District of New York and an assistant district attorney in Manhattan. She currently works as a white-collar criminal defense attorney in Washington, DC.