Vision to Reality: The Reut Blog

The Jerusalem Post ran an article today on anti-Israel and pro-Israel activism in California, one of the areas Reut identifies as a hub of delegitimization. According to the incoming chair of the Jewish Community Relations Council of the East Bay, “there are over 100 anti-Israel organizations chipping away constantly at support for Israel and more than 30 anti-Israel events are held every month.”

But pro-Israel activists are finally fighting back.

The article discusses this pro-Israel response by focusing on three recently-formed organizations – the San Diego Israel Coalition, the San Diego Chapter of Scholars for Peace in the Middle East, and Teaching and Education about the Middle East (T.E.A.M.).

The strategies of these groups demonstrate a shared understanding of some key principles in combating the delegitimization of Israel:

1. Creating a Wide Tent – Collaborating with a wider array of Jewish agencies and form broad coalitions that coordinate messages
2. Ending the “silo mentality” that divided Israel advocates along organizational and ideological lines.
3. Forming a rapid reaction force that can mobilize supporters quickly
4. Engaging local media and other opinion formers