For over ten years, a group of committed activists opposed to Israel's colonialistic occupation of Palestine has held a silent vigil in front of the Beth Israel Congregation in Ann Arbor, MI calling on congregants to stop supporting Israel's crimes. The Jewish Witnesses for Peace and Friends has been calling upon American Jews through a weekly vigil at a prominent Ann Arbor synagogue for 10 years
to demand that Israel stop committing atrocities in the name of Jewish people, and take active steps to stop Israel's crimes. We’ve been slandered and libeled, condemned by city council and clergy groups, and assaulted and bullied. On the other hand, there have been many more opportunities to get our point across and to change public opinion than if we hadn’t done this. Plenty of people in the synagogue we stand at have told us that they basically agree with what we are saying about the cruelty and illegality of the Occupation, but that the vigil is harmful. When we suggest that they either join us or work toward their congregation stop supporting Israel until it changes course (by not raising money, cease sponsoring propaganda trips to Israel for their children, taking down the Israeli national flag in protest, publicly condemning Israel’s atrocities, etc.), they always have excuses. What it boils down to is they want to be able to salve their consciences without really taking moral action. The group is getting smaller, older and sicker, but we’ll challenge Jewish Power as long as we can. I pray that Jews who follow the ethics of Judaism will come to their senses and take action to stop the anti-Semitic actions of the State of Israel. --Thom Saffold
