Thread: I have seen a number of disturbing posts recently about how Jews should renounce their Zionism due to its oppression of other people. I am perturbed by that. Here are a list of reasons why. 1) Zionism is the belief that the Jewish people, just as any other national group,

have a right to a homeland. The Jewish homeland has, and always will be Israel. 2) The Jewish people have suffered greatly trying to assymilate into unaccepting cultures, and have been kicked out of every place they ever resided (Spain, Russia, Germany, etc), so it is imperative

they have a homeland. 3) The majority of Israeli Jews are not white colonialists. That is just a claim that people use to diminish the voices of the Jewish people. The majority of Israeli Jews are Mizrahi meaning they come from Middle Eastern/Persian descent. 4) Zionism has

and will continue to stand at the forefront of social justice movements! I have and will continue to advocate for Jews to stand with BLM no matter their policies towards Israel because we know that the oppression of people of color is real. We, the Jewish people know better than,

most what it means to be marginalized. We know what it means to have ships sent home with our refugees who are being sent back into harms way. We know what it means to have a tyrant leader pick on us, and we know that when one group is marginalized, we must stand with them in

their defense. So when asked to renounce my Zionism, I say no. I will stand with every social justice movement, including Palestinians who are seeking a state of their own. I will stand against hatred and oppression within my own ranks and fight against annexation and other

policies that will be detrimental to the possibility of the two state solution. I will work to be a part of the solution, but I will not under any circumstances relinquish my belief in Zionism.

I welcome any criticisms you may have. Let's talk about this because it is a difficult topic. Let's engage in dialogue and work together to be a part of the solution.

Correction: When I comment about colonialism in Israel, it is not at all to imply any European Jews who have moved to Israel are in fact colonialists. Israel is not and has never been a colonialist state. The point was to show Israel is a diverse place not inhabited by majority

Europeans but by those of Mizrahi descent. My apologies.