Dear Editor,

I simply cannot permit Bill Thibedeau’s passionate screed against “Zionism” go without an equally passionate but hopefully more balanced response.

Mr. Thibedeau seems to believe that Zionism was a creation of 19th century European Jews who suddenly decided they wanted a homeland for themselves. And that they were aided and abetted by Balfour, who conveniently gave it to them.

Historically, Jews—who lived all over the world, not just in Europe—have sought to return to their historic homeland in Israel for over 3,000 years. Everything written in Jewish academia constantly referred to a return to Jerusalem, to Judea, the name of the area that was only changed to Palestine by the Romans, one of the many empires that temporarily conquered the Hebrew/Judean homeland.

The 19th century Europeans were merely the first of the diaspora to make Zionism a political issue. And they were backed up after World War I, when the political West went on a spree creating new countries from the defeated Ottoman empire. While Balfour set aside a tiny fraction of that land for “a Jewish homeland,” the western powers “created” Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia (remember heroic Lawrence, who wrested Arabia from the evil Ottomans?), Yemen.  

None of those countries existed before WWI. Yet somehow, the only one challenged is the only Jewish country created at that time. And somehow it was also ignored that there had been Jews living continuously in Palestine/Israel all that time.

 In his brief summary of the history of Palestine/Israel, Mr Thibedeau quotes only from pro-Palestinian sources. There are, of course, many more balanced histories from which to draw information. Not to mention the un-mentioned Jewish equivalent of the Palestinian Nakba, the expulsion of virtually every Jew in Arab and North African countries shortly after Israel declared its independence in 1948.

 Similarly, when he moves to discuss the situation in Gaza, he conveniently neglects to mention how that conflict began, with the genocidal attack by Hamas on Israel, resulting in 1,200 deaths, countless rapes and tortures (well documented but rarely quoted, alas) and the cowardly snatching of hundreds of hostages who were then held literally for years in the tunnels underlying Gaza.

 He then quotes the highly challenged Hamas-government figures for casualties in Gaza, while conveniently ignoring the well-documented fact that Hamas has been shown to have stolen much of the contents of the aid trucks Israel has permitted entry into Gaza. Nor does he mention the fact that Hamas is now “cleansing” its population of anyone not committed to its genocidal goals.

 No one denies the shameful attacks made by settlers in Judea and Samaria (the “West Bank”) on Palestinians living there. And yes, they have been supported by some in the current Israeli government. But these attacks are actually on par with, say, KKK attacks on Black Southerners in this country: supported by a few and decried by most. Many diaspora Jews, including this one, despise the Netanyahu government as much as we despise and are ashamed of the Trump government here.

 I could go on at considerable length (and my apologies to those who think I’ve already gone on too long), but I need to say just one more thing: Expansionist? Israel seeks no expansion—only to remain safe and secure within her own borders, free from the avowed genocide promised by Hamas and its sponsors and allies.

Lynn Hirshman

Denton, Texas