I am surprised and encouraged by Montague’s recent vote to become an apartheid-free community, and by the courage of the former Atlas Farm Store to take on the same pledge. It is not easy to be among the first to take a stand on a controversial issue.

I am also encouraged by the thoughtful response to the latter by Benjamin Weiner of
Deerfield (“Store’s apartheid-free pledge alienates instead of unites,” Greenfield Recorder and Daily Hampshire Gazette, Nov. 24). The overall tone of Mr. Weiner’s letter indicates openness to dialogue, and he specifically asks the store owners if they might meet with him to talk about peacebuilding. This openness to conversation is very rare in my experience of activism on the issue of Palestine and Israel. Most often one side or the other claims the whole truth, and does not want to hear an opposing view.

I claim a piece of the truth based on my 19 visits to Palestine over the last 23 years, and
on listening to like-minded Jewish friends both American and Israeli. I did not know that “half of our miniscule global Jewish population calls Israel its home …”  It is helpful to know that Mr. Weiner sees it that way. No one wants their home to be attacked. However, I ask Mr. Weiner, if his home behaves badly, does he not want to criticize it and try to correct it? It seems that he does not want to correct Israel, which is the point of the apartheid-free campaign.

The campaign declares that what Israel is doing to Palestinians, and what the U.S. does to finance it is unacceptable behavior. Mr. Weiner does object to the “brutality of the occupation and the plight of the Palestinians.” His connection to Israel does not blind him to the facts on the ground, but I must ask him, “Who is responsible for the occupation and Palestinian suffering?”

One of most difficult aspects of the disagreements between defenders of Israel and supporters of Palestinians is how propagandists for Israel conflate Israel with Zionism and Judaism. By this means, criticizing Zionism is the same as criticizing Israel. As I see it, however, Zionism is a racist, exclusivist and inherently “brutal” policy which happens to be embraced by the current Israeli government. It says that all the land of historic Palestine belongs to Jews and Jews only. Other inhabitants must be expelled or eliminated.

Likewise Israel claims to be a Jewish state with exclusive religious ties to the land, theirs by right and inheritance. This entitlement manifests in policies meant to drive Palestinians from those same lands, and has led to the current genocide in Gaza and ethnic cleansing in the rest of Palestine. I don’t see Jewish values in that behavior, yet If we criticize Israel, we are called antisemitic.

I offer these thoughts in the interest of dialogue. I hope Mr. Weiner will sit down with his neighbor farmers and discuss their differences. If we can’t talk with each other here, how can we expect to see a just agreement on the ground in Israel and Palestine?

Sherrill Hogen, a resident of Charlemont and member of Ashfield’s First Congregational
Church, has close friends in the West Bank, but has not been to Gaza.