Brit Tzedek v'Shalom

Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace

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Comments by Aliza Becker,
Executive Director of Brit Tzedek v'Shalom

d Press Conference, December 3, 2003
Marriot Chicago Downtown Hotel

"Brit Tzedek v'Shalom, the Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace, is honored to be a part of this Chicago coalition in support of the spirit of the Geneva Accord and to share this exciting moment with our partners for peace from the Jewish and Palestinian communities. Brit Tzedek is a grassroots chapter-based organization deeply committed to Israel's well-being through the achievement of a negotiated two-state resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In the year and a half since we were founded, Brit Tzedek has grown to nearly 15,000 members and supporters across the United States with 30 chapters in small and large cities. As Executive Director, I am pleased to represent both our Chicago-based national office and our local Chicago chapter of more than 500 members and supporters.

"The Geneva Accord is positive proof to both Palestinians and Israelis that there are partners for peace on the other side, and that they can enter into positive dialogue with each other. In briefer terms, here and now, there is someone to talk to and something to talk about--namely, peace!

"But while we celebrate this mutual discovery as a significant (and long overdue) achievement, let us make no mistake. This is a beginning and not an end. We must rise to the challenge set forth by Yossi Beilin, the lead negotiator for the Israeli team when he said:'Don't try to help us manage the conflict. Help us to end it!' So we must resolve to persevere in the necessary work ahead.

Israeli and Palestinian negotiators have pledged to take the Accord to the doorsteps of every household in the region, because they recognize that the struggle for peace must be won in the hearts and minds of the people. And so we, too, who enjoy the safety of this country--we Jewish-Americans and Palestinian-Americans must, out of our commitment to those we love, bring the practical spirit of compromise and reconciliation--the spirit of Geneva--to every doorstep in our own communities.

"Brit Tzedek is an American-Jewish organization created for the very purpose of reaching the hearts and minds of our fellow Jews in the United States with an alternative pro-Israel voice and vision--a challenge to those voices among us who insist that loyalty to Israel means nothing less than unqualified support for the standing government. We believe that the Geneva Accord shows the possibility of mutual concessions and reconciliatory measures that can end this conflict justly and without further bloodshed. The Accord rejects the negative arguments that there is no choice but to "manage" the conflict until some rosy future when negotiations are possible. It announces by its very existence that bold leadership can reach agreement--here and now!

"The road ahead is hard but there are encouraging signs and concrete tasks to perform. California Senator Dianne Feinstein, New Jersey Senator Frank Lautenberg, and our own Illinois Representative Rahm Emanuel, three Jewish members of Congress with impeccable pro-Israel credentials, have all expressed their support for the Geneva Accord by co-sponsoring bipartisan Senate and House resolutions (also carrying the sponsorship of non-Jewish members) expressing support for the Accord. We can, must and will insist that our Senators and Representatives sign on to these resolutions. All of us with a sincere interest in just and lasting peace for all peoples can take the Geneva Accord as a starting point for our own efforts.

"Brit Tzedek will reach American Jews through our 30 grassroots chapters. We will work with synagogue social action committees; we will hold house parties; we will disseminate educational materials in print and via the web, and develop for distribution, presentation and discussion, a video explaining the Accord. We will bring Israeli and Palestinian negotiators of the Accord to our communities on lecture tours. We will bring our advocacy to the leadership of Jewish religious organizations and to our elected officials through visits to their offices, letters, and e-mails. We will make our message loud and clear--that together we can make a difference; that we can bring this seemingly hopeless and bitter conflict to an end if we have the will. Whatever our backgrounds, we must boldly demand that our elected officials provide the required international leadership once and for all to end this futile conflict.

"Former President Jimmy Carter states it well. 'With full backing from Washington, follow-up negotiations could finally reach the goal of a comprehensive peace between Israel and its neighbors. It is unlikely that we will ever see a more promising foundation for peace.'

"Let us build upon that foundation".