I’ve been asked to sign a letter commenting on the war — how should i decide whether to do it? Image by Yoav Einhar

The Patient: Nathan is a Jewish writer who has long been an advocate for human rights, including Palestinians living under Israeli occupation. He has signed onto many open letters, petitions and other actions over the years.

The Problem: A close friend and colleague asked Nathan to sign onto an open letter calling for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, which is something he supports. But the letter did not acknowledge the events of Oct. 7 in a way Nathan felt comfortable with.

The Prescription: There are a lot of letters being circulated all over the place with a plethora of frameworks, statements, positions and phraseologies. Sometimes, there’s a murkiness between a policy position and a moral call. We want these to be one and the same, but they aren’t — at least not always.

Here are some of the things I look for when being asked to sign something.

• Is it tapping into what I want to cry out from my heart? Or is it a practical proposal that takes into account the needs, constraints and interests of all relevant parties? The first may satisfy my need right now, but the second is what the world needs.
• Does it come from seeing the world as it is or from seeing the world as we would want it to be?
• What would my muses say? This is amorphous. But we each have those people sitting on the balconies of our minds whose guidance we treasure, whose approval we crave. One of mine is always my zeyde (grandfather), Louis Lenkinski; another is my friend Tamer, a Palestinian artist with Israeli citizenship. As I write, think, talk or sign onto open letters, I ask: What would Zeyde and Tamer do? What would they be proud to see me say? Ask yourself: Who are my muses? Would they sign this letter?

Those were a little vague. Here are some more specific questions I ask myself before signing anything regarding this conflict:

• Does it recognize the full humanity of Palestinians?
• Does it recognize the full humanity of Israeli Jews?
• Does it try to get above or underneath the traumas of both people (lived or ancestral) or is it furthering them?
• Is there a concrete call to action?
• Would that call to action matter? Are those who are signing voices that can make the call to action happen or inspire it to happen? Or are we shouting into the void?
• Is it describing the events in a way I believe is accurate?
• Is it providing enough/appropriate context for these events?

The answer does not have to be a hard yes to all of these, but if it misses too many of them, it’s probably a no-go. And then I ask myself: Am I afraid? Am I paralyzed? Can I do something anyway?

I apologize that this isn’t as simple as yes or no. It depends on the specifics of the letter — and on your own checklist. I’m sharing my checklist rather than solving this specific dilemma because I’m sure this won’t be the last letter you’re asked to sign.

Are you struggling with a personal dilemma regarding Israel and its war with Hamas? Send a query to [email protected] and Libby may reach out to you for a future column or podcast.

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