The following is a report by a Jewish woman who lobbied her US congressman (for a district north of Boston, Massachusetts) along with about a dozen other peace activists, to address the situation in the Middle East:
Today I met with my US congressman for a district north of Boston, Massachusetts along with about a dozen other peace activists, to address the situation in the Middle East. As the only Jew, I spoke up about the need to stop the cycle of revenge and blame on both sides, and to understand the humiliation, oppression, and desperation of many of the Palestinians in the Occupied Territories, and the terror and rigid responses of many of the Israelis to all the anti-Jewish hatred and killings.I shared my experience as a person whose family was directly affected by the Holocaust and who has reached out to Germans and children of Nazis, that we need to build bridges, listen to each others' stories, and understand how we are oppressing each other, and not seek revenge or military answers, which only add to the cycle of violence and retribution.
I assured him that there are many Jews who are "pro-Israel", but do not agree with the Israeli military response or other governmental policies, and who support the right of both people to live in peace and security, without all these senseless killings, and that there are other ways of being a friend to Israel than by giving 30% of our foreign aid budget to the Israeli military.
We spoke of ways we could support this congressman in his efforts to have a less militaristic response to September 11th and for helping others to understand some of the root causes of terrorism, and appreciated many of his efforts so far.
I wrote a letter to him on my return, thanking him for meeting with us, appreciating his efforts to influence public policy, encouraging him to continue to speak up, and offering to support these efforts. Wilmington, Massachusetts, USA
Page last updated April 30, 2002