Israel President Reuven Rivlin Meets Black Community in New York
Israeli President Reuven Rivlin began his first visit to the United States as president with a speech to leaders of the African-American community.
Speaking at the Christian Cultural Center in New York, Rivlin compared the establishment of Israel to the civil rights movement, and recalled the friendship of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel. He said the proximity of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day last week and International Holocaust Remembrance Day this week is “no coincidence.”
“I also have a dream, that we will once more hear God knocking on the door,” said Rivlin. “I dream, and believe, that Jerusalem, which is a microcosm of the whole world, will serve as an example of coexistence between different religions and communities. Jews and Arabs are not doomed to live together, we are destined to live together.”
Rivlin also met with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger on the trip. He will not be meeting with President Obama, citing conflicting schedules.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we need 500 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Our Goal: 500 gifts during our Passover Pledge Drive!