I am writing to express deep concern as communities in our area consider adopting nonbinding resolutions declaring themselves “Apartheid Free Communities.”
Whatever one’s views about the war in the Middle East or the policies of the Israeli government, this approach does something troubling: it pulls a deeply polarizing international conflict into the civic identity of local towns. A community is not a foreign policy body. It is a group of neighbors with different histories, beliefs, and personal ties to that conflict who must continue to live together long after slogans fade.
One of the great strengths of democracy is that it allows people who disagree profoundly to share the same civic space. As Thomas Jefferson wrote, “Every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle.” That spirit — disagreement without demonization — is what makes a free society possible.
By applying a term as morally absolute and historically loaded as “apartheid” to one side of a complex conflict, these resolutions do more than express moral concern. They pressure residents to affirm a particular political narrative in order to be seen as morally acceptable. As one local resident put it, “A town should be a home, not a courtroom — we shouldn’t be asked to put one another on trial just to belong.”
For many Jewish residents, this climate can feel not only uncomfortable but unsafe. We have already seen how rhetoric about Israel and “apartheid” can spill over into hostility toward Jews themselves. The recent burning of a synagogue in Mississippi is a stark reminder that political demonization can lead to real-world harm. When a town adopts language that casts one side of a conflict as morally illegitimate, it risks making some of its own residents feel morally suspect as well.
That is not inclusion; it is moral sorting. A healthy, pluralistic community should not be in the business of issuing moral verdicts on its neighbors.
We can oppose injustice and care deeply about both Palestinians and Israelis without turning our towns into political litmus tests. Our communities should stand for something better: a place where people of different views, identities, and histories can live together with mutual respect.
Adam M. Solender, chief philanthropy officer, director of the Jewish Endowment Foundation, Jewish Federation of Western Massachusetts
Springfield