Protests in the tens of thousands have been in the streets of Israel since March. Netanyahu has had a 15% favorability rating since January. His remaining supporters are the Orthodox far right, which make up only 13% of citizens. The overwhelming majority are non-secular Jews, at 45%, and 21% of citizens are Arab-Palestinians. Anyone who defines Israelis as uniformly aligned with Netanyahu should consider the same designation for all Americans under a Trump presidency. It’s just plain ignorant.
Thanks for making this comment. I’ve seen too much lately that demonises israelis in a way that feels very “cycle of violence” for lack of a better phrase.
Yeah, that’s a good way to put it. Demonizing all Israelis for Netanyahu’s actions is no different than Netanyahu dehumanizing all Palestinians for the actions of Hamas.
A while ago, I read an account by an Israel anti-zionist where they reflected on their journey from being raised heavily Zionist, through the cognitive dissonance, to where they are now. Something that’s stuck with me is how she described the dread she felt when she was beginning to recognise the injustices being done unto Palestinians. Her “Oh God, are we the baddies?” moment came with a fear that almost pushed her back into ignorance and Zionism — the fear that if the atrocities committed in the name of Zionism weren’t necessary and justified, as she had been taught, then so many people were justified in hating her and people like her. For a brief flash, she almost doubled down on the zionism in a sort of “well, it’s too late to right the wrongs of the past, and now there really is a group of people who hate us, so now we really are fighting to stay alive”
Absolutely. It sounds like the stories I’ve read about kids who outgrew the KKK. It’s hard to understand how all the people who treat you with love are able to be so wrong about hate.
Not all Israeli families are like that. I worked with two Israeli Jews with dual citizenship in the US, and we’ve remained friends since. One attended the pro-Palestine protest at NYU. They both grew up in liberal homes in Israel. They were raised with the belief that Palestinians should have access to their holy land, and vote for one-state advocates. They are very much against Netanyahu’s actions toward the Palestinians, and his use of antisemitism as a defense, but are also very much against Hamas.
You should check the current election opinion polls. Likud and the other far right parties are currently projected to lose by several seats in some polls. I think you might be underestimating the potential yield of Bibi’s tactic to keep the zealots happy. They might be able to gain a few points and win another election, with smaller Likud in the coalition.
Protests in the tens of thousands have been in the streets of Israel since March. Netanyahu has had a 15% favorability rating since January. His remaining supporters are the Orthodox far right, which make up only 13% of citizens. The overwhelming majority are non-secular Jews, at 45%, and 21% of citizens are Arab-Palestinians. Anyone who defines Israelis as uniformly aligned with Netanyahu should consider the same designation for all Americans under a Trump presidency. It’s just plain ignorant.
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/only-15-israelis-want-netanyahu-keep-job-after-gaza-war-poll-finds-2024-01-02/
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/tens-thousands-rally-against-netanyahu-government-jerusalem-2024-03-31/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Israel
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Israel
Thanks for making this comment. I’ve seen too much lately that demonises israelis in a way that feels very “cycle of violence” for lack of a better phrase.
Yeah, that’s a good way to put it. Demonizing all Israelis for Netanyahu’s actions is no different than Netanyahu dehumanizing all Palestinians for the actions of Hamas.
A while ago, I read an account by an Israel anti-zionist where they reflected on their journey from being raised heavily Zionist, through the cognitive dissonance, to where they are now. Something that’s stuck with me is how she described the dread she felt when she was beginning to recognise the injustices being done unto Palestinians. Her “Oh God, are we the baddies?” moment came with a fear that almost pushed her back into ignorance and Zionism — the fear that if the atrocities committed in the name of Zionism weren’t necessary and justified, as she had been taught, then so many people were justified in hating her and people like her. For a brief flash, she almost doubled down on the zionism in a sort of “well, it’s too late to right the wrongs of the past, and now there really is a group of people who hate us, so now we really are fighting to stay alive”
Hatred and fear are scary things.
Absolutely. It sounds like the stories I’ve read about kids who outgrew the KKK. It’s hard to understand how all the people who treat you with love are able to be so wrong about hate.
Not all Israeli families are like that. I worked with two Israeli Jews with dual citizenship in the US, and we’ve remained friends since. One attended the pro-Palestine protest at NYU. They both grew up in liberal homes in Israel. They were raised with the belief that Palestinians should have access to their holy land, and vote for one-state advocates. They are very much against Netanyahu’s actions toward the Palestinians, and his use of antisemitism as a defense, but are also very much against Hamas.
You should check the current election opinion polls. Likud and the other far right parties are currently projected to lose by several seats in some polls. I think you might be underestimating the potential yield of Bibi’s tactic to keep the zealots happy. They might be able to gain a few points and win another election, with smaller Likud in the coalition.
Sounds like all they care about are the hostages, not all the innocents being slaughtered by the israeli military