"As American Jews, we condemn the manipulation of fear of antisemitism for political gain, including the recent campaign against the online movement MoveOn.org. We stand for the Jewish value of placing hope over fear by expanding opportunity and creating justice for all Americans."

Dear [ Decision Maker ] ,

In light of its history, the Jewish community has always taken seriously manifestations of antisemitism. Our ability to combat this insidious phenomenon is undermined when antisemitism is politicized for partisan gain. That is why we are outraged at the ongoing smear campaign against the online movement, MoveOn.org.

In August of this year, anonymous individuals posted antisemitic comments on a heavily trafficked open forum run by the progressive online movement, MoveOn.org. When these comments were brought to the attention of the staff at MoveOn, the comments were immediately removed. We applaud their response and echo the reaction of Anti-Defamation League President Abraham Foxman, who characterized the incident as having been "resolved satisfactorily."

Yet despite this satisfactory resolution, a vicious campaign to unfairly portray MoveOn and its members as antisemitic has continued unabated. We strongly condemn this cynical politically motivated effort. Former Representative Sam Gejdenson put it best when he wrote about these smears against Moveon.org in an op-ed published by the Forward, a national Jewish newspaper:

"Whatever our political allegiances, the Jewish community should unite in condemning any effort by any side to demean and diminish the evil that is antisemitism by brandishing the charge for political purposes. We face enough real dangers and challenges in the world to which we need to focus our national and communal attention."

The quest for power, political and otherwise, can tempt people to play on others' fears rather than their hopes. But fear is not a Jewish value. On many occasions in the Torah, God commands our ancestors, al tira, (do not fear). To be a Jew is to refuse to give into fear, but rather to live from a position of tikva (hope).

It is this hope that drives millions of Americans to care enough about the direction of our country to spend time working toward a more just America. Through these attacks, politically motivated fear-mongers seek to trample on that hope.

We are committed to fighting real antisemitism when it appears. But we will not stand by while others manipulate our fear of antisemitism for political gain.

Signed by:

Campaign Launched:
October 23, 2006