By Sarah Bernstein, PhD
JERUSALEM — Patriotism has become a dirty word in many circles. It has become equated with fanaticism and extremism. To be an Israeli patriot is even worse. And because of my left-wing views, many people would be surprised to hear me describe myself as an Israeli patriot. In Israel, patriotism and Zionism are terms that have been taken over by the right-wing. Anyone who believes in the establishment of a Palestinian state is labelled a traitor, not a patriot. Yet, just as Rami Livni declared in an article in Ha’aretz (in Hebrew) last week, I am an Israeli patriot. I love this country and care passionately about it’s future. That’s why I moved here 26 years ago, that’s why I stay here, that’s why I am prepared to support my children as they serve in an army that is commissioned to do all sorts of things I abhor. Like Rami Livni, as a true Israeli patriot I am an ardent supporter of a Palestinian State.
Ervin Staub[1] makes an important distinction between what he calls ‘Blind Patriotism’ and ‘Constructive Patriotism.’ Blind patriotism is the kind of patriotism we associate with extremism – blind support for one’s own country at the expense of others, a refusal to coutenance the possibility that my country is performing immoral acts. Constructive patriotism, on the other hand, allows a love for one’s country together with a critical stance towards her acts. As a constructive patriot, I voice my criticisms when I believe my country to be in the wrong. It is my love for my country that makes me so passionate about the dangerous path I believe us to be following. Unlike the majority of Israelis, according to the most recent polls, I believe the path Netanyahu laid out before Congress is the path to self-destruction.
It is depressing indeed to read that a majority of Israelis believe Netanyahu’s visit to America to have been a resounding success. His speech before Congress made them proud to be Israeli. His support amongst the general population has sky-rocketed. I have to admit that I am shocked. Netanyahu’s speech to Congress embarrassed me. Singing the praises of the democracy that Palestinians enjoy in Israel was cynical and insulting. His refusal to see anything other than his own biased view of history is worrying in the extreme. His so-called proposal for Middle East Peace lacks any connection to reality. It seems as though the visit went exactly as he planned: his attack on President Obama and manipulative speech to Congress were designed to shore up the support of his coalition and his own leadership candidacy. Unfortunately, he seems prepared to sacrifice the future of the country on the altar of his own ambition.
As an Israeli patriot I feel compelled to raise my voice on behalf of the Palestinian people. It is way beyond time for Israelis to understand that if they want a Jewish and democratic State, they have to work to establish a Palestinian democratic state. It is time for true Zionists to stand up to the narrative of right-wing Zionism and claim back their commitment to their country – the very same commitment that makes them support the creation of a Palestinian state.
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Bernstein is active in interfaith work and peace work in Israel. She is the daughter-in-law of our columnist Rabbi Dow Marmur.
It would take someone with a PhD to come up with a phrase like “Constructive Patriotism.” As with most leftists, what she is really saying is that she is patriotic (i.e. unflichingly supportive) when her country acts as she desires. The rest of the time, she is ok with “allowing” her kids to perform “abhorrent” acts in an army that she does not necessarily support.
The left loves to make the same claim here in the US: the “patriotism has been hijacked by the right” mantra. The problem with that argument is that patriotism does not mean blindly supporting your country, but rather in the cases of Israel and the United States, it means possessing the the moral clarity to understand that your country is in the moral right. Only a moral relativist would feel the need to overly parse patriotism. If I lived in Iran or Syria, then I may feel the need to pick and choose from a menu of patriotism to feel good about my country – but NOT in the only Democracy in the Middle East.
Bernstein may be sincere, but she is dangerously delusional. If she was the only one involved, putting herself at risk would be her right. The problem lies in the fact that she refuses to consider the real facts, more specifically that the reason a majority of the Israeli is now firmly behind Bibi is that they have lost all their illusions regarding the willingness of the Palestinians to play ball and achieve a real peace. The evidence is overwhelming that they’re not interested, but Bernstein refuses to acknowledge it and accept that she is dead wrong in her assessment of the reality around her. There is no partner for peace. Abbas is a fake partner, and what more evidence does she need now of his deviousness than both his alliance with a terrorist and genocidal group, and his move to get the international community to ignore Israel and force the unilateral recognition of a non-existent state? Bernstein fantasizes herself as a true Israeli patriot. She is nothing of the sort. The Israel she wants is an Israel that is headed straight for the cliff. Her saying “I believe the path Netanyahu laid out before Congress is the path to self-destruction” proves that she has the world completely inverted. It is her version of Israel that is the surest way to self-destruction. As such, she is putting everybody else at risk. Well-intentioned and sincere, maybe, but dangerous for Israel and all Israelis just the same. As such, she is entitled to her opinion, but she in effect is siding with Isral’s enemies. That does make her a traitor indeed. When the Palestinians change their attitude and prove that they are sincerely willing to make compromises themselves at long last and recognize Israel as the only Jewish state in the world, her views may be relevant. Until then, they are as useless as they are dangerous, and she has no right to put everyone else at risk just because of her ideological preferences. That is the problem of the entire Israeli left. Well-intentioned but so stuck in their ideological blinders as to be suicidal.