Never forget: Never again
When will we ever learn… when will we ever learn?
L’dor v’dor, “From generation to generation.”
For centuries, for millennia we have always had Jews who believed if they just lay low, acculturate, assimilate, they would be liked and respected.
Today, those Jews are found in the Democrat Party in America.
When will we ever learn?
Let’s go back to recent history and take another look at Nazi Germany and the Jews.
Jews had lived in Germany since the Middle Ages. And, as in much of Europe, they faced widespread persecution there for many centuries. It was not until the 19th century that Jews in Germany were given the same rights as Christian Germans. By 1933, when the Nazis came to power, Germany’s Jews were well integrated and even assimilated into German society. Despite their integration, Germany’s Jews still maintained a discernible identity and culture.
In 1933, the Jewish population of Germany numbered about 525,000. This was less than one percent of the total German population at the time.
Most Jews in Germany (about 400,000 people) held German citizenship. Many of these Jews came from families who had been in Germany for centuries. These families spoke German as their primary language. Most considered themselves German. In some cases, they had intermarried with non-Jews.
Many Jews saw themselves as a religious group. They were Germans who practiced Judaism. Others saw themselves as an ethnic group. They were Jews who lived in Germany.
Despite being integrated into German society, Jews faced discrimination in Germany. For example, not all Germans believed that Jews could be German. Some groups, including many university student clubs, banned Jews from membership. Some political parties, including the Nazi Party, were openly anti-Jewish. Negative stereotypes of Jews appeared in the press.
Despite the passage of the Nuremberg Race Laws in September 1935 and subsequent related decrees that deprived German Jews of civil rights, Jewish emigration remained more or less constant. The majority decided to stay. They believed that the Nazi regime might not remain in power for very long; an illusion also shared by many non-Jews at the time. The belief that a rapid return to democracy would restore the German-Jewish co-existence deterred many from leaving Germany and rebuilding their lives in other countries. It ultimately took a direct threat to their lives to make most German Jews realise that their ties to Germany were no longer a safety blanket. This occurred in November 1938, with the pogrom of Kristallnacht – the Night of Broken Glass. After this event discussion over whether to leave or stay turned to the urgent, panicked cry: “Get out, at all costs!”
Sound at all familiar? When will we ever learn?
Today, we have Jews standing with Progressives who accuse Israel of apartheid and a genocide in Gaza: forgetting the barbaric attack by Muslims who invaded Israel during a ceasefire October 7, 2023, and captured and abused and assaulted Jewish hostages, including babies.
These are proud Jews standing with those who stand against Israel, protesting on the streets of America and college campuses against the Jews. They think of themselves as progressives more than they think of themselves as Jews. Social Justice Warriors! They are acculturated and assimilated into America, like the Jews in Germany. Reform Jews, in particular, come to mind.
In 2019, I attended a service at a Reform synagogue in Baltimore Maryland. The female reform Rabbi proudly talked about Greta Thunberg and her fight against climate change. Wonder what she would say today now that Greta stands with the Palestinians while proudly wearing the kaffiyeh?
(Photo by JOHAN NILSSON/TT/TT NEWS AGENCY/AFP via Getty Images)
I believe this is the same synagogue that recently invited Jew-hating Jewish organizations to speak to the membership.
The New Israel Fund organized the Standing Together event at Baltimore Hebrew Congregation on Dec. 12. Standing Together’s co-directors, Alon-Lee Green and Rula Daood, accused Israel of being an “apartheid regime” that has committed “war crimes” and “ethnic cleansing” against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. “Within Israel, we’re not talking about apartheid, but the situation in the West Bank and Gaza is different,” Daood said. “This is an apartheid regime.” During the event, one woman spoke out in protest, throwing what appeared to be flyers with photos of Israeli hostages who have been held in captivity in Gaza since the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, after Alon-Lee Green called for a ceasefire.
“Shame on you,” she shouted as she was led away by security. At least one pro-Israel organization in the area, the Baltimore Zionist District, objected to BHC’s decision to host the two activists, saying it had tried to convey its concerns about Standing Together to BHC’s leaders.
“Their use of terms like ‘apartheid state’ and ‘ethnic cleansing’ isn’t just disturbing. It’s harmful,” wrote Caren Leven, executive director of the Baltimore Zionist District. “These words fuel global antisemitism and paint a one-sided picture that can severely damage Israel’s image.”
BHC leadership “Our commitment as a Reform Jewish congregation in these polarized times is to engage American Jews and others who care deeply about Israel and also hold a complex set of views about what supporting Israel means in a time of war and intense rhetoric,” the synagogue stated.
Would they have invited Nazis to speak to the synagogue back in the 1930’s to share a “complex set of views” in “polarized times”?
These are some of the “Jewish” organizations, many of which are funded by Founder George Soros and now his son Alex, which have sharply criticized Israeli and American policies towards the Palestinians, specifically the refusal to accept the participation of Hamas in a Palestinian government. Soros has also accused AIPAC of “endanger[ing]” Israel’s existence, and has drawn comparisons between Israel and Nazi Germany.
The New Israel Fund: Realize the civil and human rights of all individuals and groups through the protection of Palestinian citizens and other marginalized minorities, including the advancement of collective rights, and opposition to all forms of discrimination and bigotry.
Standing Together is a grassroots movement mobilizing Jewish and Palestinian citizens of Israel in pursuit of peace, equality, and social and climate justice. While the minority who benefit from the status quo of occupation and economic inequality seek to keep us divided, we know that we — the majority — have far more in common than that which sets us apart.
If Not Now Its primary purpose is to organize American Jews to “end U.S. support for Israel’s apartheid system and demand equality, justice, and a thriving future for all Palestinians and Israelis.” It deems what Israel is doing in Gaza as “genocide”
J Street is the largest and most influential left-wing Jewish group. Its support for Israel’s military assault on Gaza is not without limits. J Street concluded its statement by warning that if it does “not see evidence soon that the government of Israel is, in fact, making meaningful changes to its conduct of the war and its attitudes regarding post-war arrangements, then J Street will no longer be able to provide our organizational support for the current military campaign.” J Street endorsees now comprise 75% of Senate Democrats and 55% of House Democrats. It was the largest Jewish institutional funding source for Kamala Harris in 2024.
Jewish Voice for Peace: “the largest progressive Jewish anti-Zionist organization in the world.” It calls for an immediate and permanent ceasefire. JVP also terms Israel’s military action against Gazans as “genocide.” JVP asserts that “a future of Jewish liberation is only possible through spirited commitment to liberation for Palestinians, too.” JVP does not believe that safety for Jews or Israelis can come at the expense of others.
Bend the Arc Solidarity across race, faith, class, and gender is the only way to build power and dismantle the systems of oppression that harm and endanger our communities. We have to do it together. None of us will be free until all of us are free. (except Jews)
Then we have “Jews” like Ilan Goldenberg, senior Biden and Obama aid, now senior Vice President and Chief Policy Officer of J Street (closely allied with the Democrat Party) defending Jews who attack Israel. Seems to me these “Jews” believe they will be safe standing with those who stand against Israel. They just want to fit in with the milieu. Like there predecessors in Nazi Germany.
It seems, today, membership in the Democratic Party now requires being okay with the murder of Jews.
On June 22 1982, Joe Biden was a Senator from Delaware and confronted then Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin during his Senate Foreign Relations committee testimony, threatening to cut off aid to Israel. Begin forcefully responded,
“Don’t threaten us with cutting off your aid. It will not work. I am not a Jew with trembling knees. I am a proud Jew with 3,700 years of civilized history. Nobody came to our aid when we were dying in the gas chambers and ovens. Nobody came to our aid when we were striving to create our country. We paid for it. We fought for it. We died for it. We will stand by our principles. We will defend them. And, when necessary, we will die for them again, with or without your aid.”
Senator Biden reportedly banged on the table with his fist, and Begin retorted,
“This desk is designed for writing, not for fists. Don’t threaten us with slashing aid. Do you think that because the US lends us money it is entitled to impose on us what we must do? We are grateful for the assistance we have received, but we are not to be threatened. I am a proud Jew. Three thousand years of culture are behind me, and you will not frighten me with threats. Take note: we do not want a single soldier of yours to die for us.”
Nothing has changed within the Democrat party.
Passover is fast approaching. A time for asking questions. Perhaps it is time for Progressive Jews to ask themselves if they are on the right path.
When will we ever learn? When will we ever learn?
From the Ethics of the Fathers: “Rabbi Tarfon used to say, it is not incumbent upon you to complete the task, but you are not exempt from undertaking it.”
Diane Weber Bederman
