U.S. Jews: Don't Answer the Door When Ben-Gvir Comes Knocking - Opinion - Haaretz.com
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir makes his first trip to the United States this week since 1989. He comes not as a tourist, but as an official representative of the Israeli government. This is not a moment to celebrate. Ben-Gvir's well-documented record of racism and incitement, both prior to and during his government service, are antithetical to the values of the overwhelming majority of American Jewry, including most of the members of my own Reform Movement.
As a leading member of the current government, some may argue that Minister Ben-Gvir is entitled to be heard during his U.S. travels. I hold a different view: that some ideas are so beyond the pale, so contrary to Jewish values that have sustained our people throughout the millennia, and so at odds with the values on which Israel was founded, that they do not deserve legitimization in the public square.
Between 1993-2007, Ben-Gvir was convicted 13 times of supporting a terror organization and inciting racism. He was even rejected from serving in the IDF because of his extremist views, a rare step in a society where military service is part of the national ethos and participation reaches nearly 70 percent among men. A leader should be allowed to disavow objectionable views previously held, but Ben-Gvir has not recanted. If anything, he's used his ministerial platform to amplify his dangerous ideas.
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What are some of the repugnant views espoused by Minister Ben-Gvir? Furthering the Jewish supremacist ideology championed by disgraced Rabbi Meir Kahane; denigrating the humanity of LGBTQ folks; fomenting Jewish extremist attacks on Arab communities in the West Bank; overseeing notably harsh treatment of Palestinian prisoners; and using his leverage to repeatedly scuttle efforts to return the hostages to their loved ones. Lest anyone think Ben-Gvir's actions go unnoticed, the testimony of one recently released hostage directly attributed the worsening conditions of hostages in Gaza to comments from Minister Ben-Gvir.
Sadly, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's political expedience to forge a ruling coalition led to Ben-Gvir's party being invited to serve, even though his views are supported by a minority of Israelis and even fewer diaspora Jews.
It is also no surprise that, for so many years, the Jewish Defense League (related to an entity later called "Kach" in Israel), the group with which Ben-Gvir had a longtime association, was tagged by the U.S. as a terrorist organization. No red carpet welcomes this week in Miami, Washington, or New York can wash away that ignominious designation.
Minister Ben-Gvir's penchant for inflammatory rhetoric and action is dangerous because it leads to violence. It weakens Israel's security by deepening divisions within Israel and between Israelis and Palestinians. His dark vision, in which Israelis and Palestinians are doomed to be forever at odds, causes physical harm and even death to victims of people inspired by his incendiary rhetoric.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir at an Otzma Yehudit Party meetingCredit: Naama Greenbaum
The more his hate filled words become seen as representing Jews writ large, the more diaspora Jews will find themselves isolated and unsafe in their own countries. His odious pronouncements have given talking points to those who work to demonize Israel around the globe, including those within international bodies like the International Criminal Court and the UN. It is essential to distance ourselves from him and decry his extremist agenda.
In the election for the upcoming World Zionist Congress, it is imperative to discredit Ben-Gvir's vision. Instead, we must ensure that WZC representatives support Israel as a safe, just, democratic and Jewish state where all its citizens enjoy full rights and can live with dignity and respect.
So, what should Americans do when Ben-Gvir comes to call? Don't answer the door. Don't invite him to your congregation or welcome him to your community. Educate your synagogue and Jewish community on the dangers Ben-Gvir poses. Write opinion articles, offer public statements and join coalitions that uplift the vision of Israel's founders, who wrote in the Declaration of Independence that Israel "will foster the development of the country for the benefit of all its inhabitants; it will be based on freedom, justice and peace as envisaged by the prophets of Israel; it will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex; it will guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, language, education and culture; it will safeguard the Holy Places of all religions; and it will be faithful to the principles of the Charter of the United Nations."
Today, there are hundreds of brave Israeli institutions and leaders working to fulfill that positive vision. They do that by fighting Ben-Gvir's incitement in court, in the Knesset and in civil society; by working to strengthen society at large so that it is harder for hate to take hold; and by advancing Israel's status as a nation where religious pluralism is celebrated, LGBTQ people are secure, Arab Israelis and Palestinians see a hopeful future and all people know peace. That is certainly not Minister Ben-Gvir's vision, but it's the one for which we will keep fighting.
Rabbi Rick Jacobs is the President of the Union for Reform Judaism.