Sunrise demonstrators protest. Their signs say "for the air we breathe, for the water we drink, for the people we love, for the places we call home, we deserve a future."

Sunrise DC Quits Rally Because of ‘Zionist’ Groups’ Participation

When bikers, walkers and runners convene on Saturday at the Freedom to Vote Relay's finish line near the Capitol, one group will not be in attendance: Sunrise DC. The group’s decision is due to the participation of groups “in alignment with and support of Zionism and the State of Israel” at the rally.  Sunrise DC, the Washington chapter of a youth-led movement called Sunrise, gained traction in 2017 as a climate change advocacy group. This Sunrise “hub” is specifically dedicated to uplifting the voices of city residents who, they believe, should have a say in the national government. Other speakers at the rally will raise awareness about the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and DC statehood, two topics central to the Sunrise DC mission.  Citing its commitment to racial justice, self-governance and indigenous sovereignty, the group...

Continue reading

For JPVP Participants, AIPAC Was a Bipartisan Affair

In the weeks leading up to their annual policy conference, AIPAC made headlines with its controversial ad attacking “radical” Democrats and Bernie Sanders’s public boycott of the conference. #BoycottAIPAC trended on Twitter as many on the left defended Sanders’s claim that AIPAC gives voice to “bigotry.” But for Jewish Political Voices Project participants attending the conference, AIPAC is more bipartisan than the public perception. Alma Hernandez, a Democrat from Arizona says that she’s “never been involved with an AIPAC event or project that is advertising or promoting hate or discrimination against anyone. It’s frustrating to see how we were all categorized as bigots.” Ohio Republican Andrew Smith partially attributes the negative perception of AIPAC to Benjamin Netanyahu’s long tenure as Israel’s Prime Minister: “AIPAC tends to support the Israeli government. Because of that, people associate...

Continue reading

Is Brooke Davies the American Jewish Establishment’s Worst Nightmare?

Brooke Davies spent ten summers at Camp Ramah, confronted anti-Semitism routinely as a child in the South, and fell in love with Israel as a teenager. She also had a close call with terrorism, less than two years ago, when a young boy attempted to stab her in Jaffa. But when became a national leader in J Street U, she faced opposition from the Jewish community and even from those in her family. Now she is reconsidering her relationship with the Jewish community altogether.

Continue reading