Shortly before I ended my sophomore year of college, I found myself in my advisor’s office with an important
question:
“How can I participate in an activity when I profoundly disagree with much of its goals?”
You see, I was just about to leave for my Birthright trip, a free trip to Israel–all expenses paid–intended to
strengthen the bond between young American Jews and Israel. I’d signed up because a lot of my friends were going,
the Birthright coordinator at my school is one of the sweetest people I’ve ever met, and I wanted to get back to
Israel after having been there for a teen tour at the age of 17.
Yet I had a lot of second thoughts. Since my last time there, I’d educated myself about the complex realities of
the conflict. I understood that Birthright trips seek to promote an image of Israel among American Jews which, in
addition to being dangerously inaccurate, disregards Israel’s democratic character in favor of promoting
exclusionary nationalism. I am extremely proud of my Jewish heritage and believe the Jewish people have the right
to self determination in our ancestral homeland. However, I find it difficult to reconcile myself with a
conceptualization of Jewishness that contradicts both the Jewish values I grew up with and the progressive values I
have come to cherish.