Dear friends,
A new, ultra-nationalist government is about to take office in Israel, and it means business. The profound change underway is encapsulated by the slogan: “It’s time to be the landlords in our country.”
This was the election rallying cry of Kahanist politician Itamar Ben Gvir. Now he is set to become national security minister, while his equally right-radical colleague Bezalel Smotrich will have control over civil administration in the West Bank.
“Landlords in our country” is code for: Jewish supremacy on both sides of the Green Line, de facto annexation of large swaths of the West Bank, brutal enforcement of the occupation, and erosion of human rights, and not just of Arabs. The incoming “landlords” have already made threatening noises about measures to hamstring civil society organizations (aka those who protest their agenda). Their extremist rhetoric has already encouraged violence against Jewish peace activists. (LGBTQ and women’s rights are also in jeopardy because of the ultra-Orthodox partners in government, but our mandate at CFPN is the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.)
This extremist agenda is inimical to Israel’s founding values of justice, equality, freedom and peace.
Peace Now will be working with all its power to resist the radical-right agenda. Israel’s premier peace movement will redouble its efforts to expose, educate about and protest ruthless, lunatic policies that further jeopardize the two-state solution and eventual peace.
The peace activists are up against formidable forces. They will need all the help they can get, including from people like you and me.
Diaspora Jewry has a role to play in the dramas that will unfold between the Jordan and the sea in coming months. True, we don’t live there. We don’t live with the consequences of policies good or bad. Still, we can support the Israel we believe in, the Israel of its founding vision. As human beings and as Jews we can speak out against an agenda that goes against deep-seated Jewish values and that will only lead to more violence, heartbreak and disaster for both Israelis and Palestinians.
As the new year approaches, please help Canadian Friends of Peace Now continue to be a voice for sanity and peace. Help us support the activists on the front lines in Israel. If you have not yet donated, please consider doing so now. If you have donated, we extend our heartfelt thanks. Each gift, large or small, is a contribution towards hope for 2023.
On behalf of the entire CFPN team, I wish you and yours a safe, healthy and happy New Year.
Gabriella Goliger, National Chair
Canadian Friends of Peace Now
PS Don’t forget: donate before end of December 31 to receive a tax receipt for 2022.
To Donate Go to https://www.peacenowcanada.org/donations/
To give a donation over the phone, please get in touch via email: [email protected].
To donate by cheque, please send it to: Canadian Friends of Peace Now, 82 Laird Drive, Suite 517, East York, ON M4G 3V1
To donate by e-transfer (and save us the credit card fees) go to your online banking site. The “recipient” should be Canadian Friends of Peace Now, and the email address is [email protected]. The transfer is automatic. No need for a secret question and answer
