More Than 200 U.S. Rabbis Sign Letter Against Israel BDS Travel Ban
Rabbi Alissa Wise Image by Jewish Voice For Peace
(JTA) — More than 200 rabbis from the liberal movements of American Judaism signed a letter in opposition to Israel’s travel ban on leaders of the BDS movement against Israel.
The letter released on Wednesday by the Rabbis Against Israel’s Travel Ban initiative, is in response to the incident last month in which Rabbi Alissa Wise of Jewish Voice for Peace was prevented from boarding an airplane leaving Dulles Airport in Washington, D.C. to Israel. Four other people traveling to Israel as part of the interfaith delegation were prevented from boarding the flight at the request of the Israeli government.
The letter called the ban “anti-democratic.”
“We hold diverse opinions on BDS. Even though many of us have substantive differences with Rabbi Wise and other rabbinic colleagues who support the BDS movement in some or all of its forms, we believe that the decision to bar Rabbi Wise from visiting Israel is anti-democratic and desecrates our vision of a diverse Jewish community that holds multiple perspectives,” read the letter, signed by 212 rabbis as of late Wednesday morning.
In March, the Israeli parliament, or Knesset, amended the Law of Entry to prevent leaders of the BDS movement from being allowed into Israel. The amendment applies to organizations that take consistent and significant action against Israel through BDS, as well as the leadership and senior activists of those groups.
JVP said at the time of the incident that it was the first time that the amendment had been enforced before passengers boarded their flights to Israel and the first time that Israel has denied entry to Jews, including a rabbi, for their support of BDS.
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!
