The Only Route to a Permanent Peace in the Middle East

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As troubling as the terrible events of October 7 were, I have been tremendously upset by the subsequent angry, partisan, and divisive statements made by students and faculty in colleges and universities–where intelligent minds should know better. These statements and actions only encourage hatred, justify and even glorify violence, and pit people against one another in a way that perpetuates and assures a future of more of the same.

So here is my manifesto, put here for endorsement by people who hope for peace, who hope for change:

We are Israelis and Jews, we are Arabs and Muslims, we are people of all persuasions in all corners of the Earth, and we call for an end to violence, hatred, and hate-speech. We call for attempts by all parties in the Middle East who believe in peace and peaceful co-existence to assert themselves and step forward, for voices of reason and compassion to move to the forefront, and for efforts by those who believe in moderation and partnership to receive the full backing of peoples and governments.

We recognize the right of Israel to exist and to exist in peace, safety, and respect, side by side with its Arab neighbors. We also recognize the voices of Arabs for self-determination–within a context that assures security and peaceful coexistence. We recognize that there have been circumstances in the distant and recent past that justify anger and fear on the part of Arabs who live among Jews and Jews who live among Arabs . But we assert absolutely that there is no justification for the kind of brutality that took place on October 7, and we condemn these vile acts in the strongest way. We can neither justify nor accept the kind of brutality that occurred on that day.

We recognize that this is a time when movements toward conciliation and cooperation face their greatest challenges. Nonetheless, we believe that this is the time when we must stop the terrible vicious cycle in which anger, violence, and retaliation on the side of one serves to beget anger, violence, and retaliation on the part of the other.

We reject extremism and all my-group-centered acts that hurt the other. We call for Arabs and Jews to stand side by side, to walk arm in arm in the cause of peace and mutual respect. The voices of hatred have been the loudest for far too long. And, in the face of too many voices of anger and hatred, we ask you to speak up for peaceful coexistence, for common interest, and for mutual assistance. If we do not, we will only guarantee future cycles of hatred and bloodshed. But if we do find common humanity at this most trying time, we can envision a world in which people live together as neighbors and friends, in security, respect, peace, and happiness.