An open letter to U.S. Rep. Janice ("Jan") Schakowsky

Dear Honorable Representative Jan Schakowsky,

I wanted to take a moment to offer you my sincere thanks for the email you sent. I am happy to see that our opinions on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza are similar. Your letter reflects an awareness of both the severity of the situation Palestinians find themselves in and the desperation to be heard that your constituents feel.

In particular, I appreciate the fact that you see the death told as “truly tragic” and that you reached out to both the International Committee of the Red Cross and Israeli Ambassador Meridor to expedite humanitarian relief. And while I am glad you feel that we need to address the Israel/Palestine situation diplomatically, I am a bit concerned about the way you present the preconditions for peace. You state that Palestinians must recognize Israel’s “right to exist” and to “abandon terrorism” while neglecting to mention that Israel must recognize certain Palestinian rights, such as the right to not be bombed by the IDF, to receive necessary medical care, to import necessary goods such as fuel and medicine, to cross borders, and basically to be allowed some modicum of self-respect and security.

As for Israel’s survival as a Jewish democratic state, well, considering the current rise of Avigdor Lieberman and his party's desire to have all Israelis (Jews, Arabs, and the like) sign loyalty oaths or lose their citizenship, one might wonder if Israel is going to be able to save itself and remain a democracy or if it will descend into a McCarthyistic fascist (thought Jewish!) state. And as for the two-state solution you mention, I agree that we need a place to start, and I guess even moldy bread would look good to the starving. But I wonder if this will truly bring sustained peace and prosperity to both the Israelis and Palestinians. If certain other issues, such as the status of Jerusalem, the right to return, and the settlers are not handled openly and equitably, no number of states (2 or 2000) will save the people.

Personally, I am deeply concerned about the way politicians and leaders (Israeli, Palestinian, and American) are manipulating this tragedy to secure their own power. I desperately hope that mercy and justice, rather than racism/antisemitism and revenge, begin to guide our policies. I believe that we are moving in that direction, but I, like many others, am growing impatient. Ultimately, it is not for us Americans to decide what is good for the Middle East. We must avoid be perceived as imposing our will and instead allow the sides to reach a common agreement for goodwill.

Recently, I had a less favorable exchange with a certain senator from our state. He too responded to my call and emails for a cease-fire and for strengthened humanitarian intervention, but his response was nothing more than a myopic, militaristic love fest in which he touted his unwavering support for Israel (even when its actions are, as some describe, genocidal) and his backing of $30 billion dollars for defense aid to Israel as though these things were diamonds to showcase and not the dog turds they truly are.

So again, I would like to thank you and your staff for the correspondence. I hope that you take it as a badge of pride that some have called you a moonbat. Someone needs to be pulling to the left to keep us moving straight and centered.

Blessed are the peacemakers.

Sincerely,
Meredith