Some values non-partisan

RHONDA SPIVAK

One of the most awkward moments at the General Assembly of Jewish Federations of North America in Washington, D.C., was when the only Jewish Republican in the U.S. Congress, Eric Cantor, finished speaking at the opening session on Nov. 9.

About half of the 3,500 delegates gave him a standing ovation, while the other half stayed in their seats. There were also those who weren't sure whether they ought to stand or sit, and looked around as if to get some sign of what to do.

This was the only time there was a clear division in the crowd. After Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu spoke at the GA, everyone stood. After White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel spoke, everyone stood. After the head of the Jewish Agency, Nathan Sharansky spoke, everyone stood. But, for Cantor, it was different. I wondered why.

In his speech, Cantor looked back at the history of the Holocaust and asked the crowd, at what point, in retrospect, "did we lose the chance to save the [six million] souls?... After the Versailles Treaty? In 1936?"

Cantor concluded that what we learn from the Holocaust is that "when a man with a gun says he's going to kill you, believe him."

He said, "Many men are pointing guns at Israel, indeed, at Jews everywhere," but "too many Jews have become desensitized" and believe "it can't happen to us."

Cantor listed a number of developments that concerned him, such as the biased Goldstone Report, the Scandinavian newspaper article that accused Israel of harvesting human organs earlier this year and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's alliance with Iran. He asked again, "At what point is it too late?"

He answered, "When we allow ourselves to be lulled into silence when political correctness beckons, it may be too late."

Cantor referred to having a dialogue with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and asked, "Haven't we been down this road before?... When we dally and threaten and wring our hands but fail to do anything to really stop Ahmadinejad, where are we then?"

Referring to the anti-Semetism in Venezuela, he asked, "Why are we silent?"

Cantor said the Jewish community must speak out louder against threats to Israel and the Jewish people. He challenged the Jewish community to "remove the blinders from our eyes."

In Israel's "tough neighborhood," he said that "strength is required."

He also said, "The case I press before you is not a Jewish cause or an Israeli issue, but challenges to America." He added, "Israel's security is synonymous with our own.... People who point guns at her, will next point guns at us."

He noted that, in Europe, "leaders of the Palestinian Authority are gaining support for declaring Palestinian statehood unilaterally, even without recognizing the existence of Israel."

Cantor concluded, "I await your leadership before it is too late."

Maybe some in the crowd didn't give a standing ovation because they perceived that Cantor was being critical of American Jewish leadership for not being vigilant enough in pressing Israel's case or in calling for tougher sanctions on Iran. No one likes to be told they have "blinders on their eyes" or that under their watch, it may be becoming "too late."

Or maybe, many in the crowd, who voted for and support American President Barack Obama, didn't like the apparent criticism Cantor made of the president, by wondering whether, in "dialoguing" with Iran, Obama will miss the window of opportunity to take necessary tougher measures, such as crippling sanctions or even military action.

There is no doubt that Cantor's speech was hard hitting. Maybe too hard hitting for some. And yet, I can't help but think that if Netanyahu had delivered the exact same speech, everyone in the room would have given him a standing ovation.

This leads me to think that, in America, among Jews who have been Democrats for generations, it is simply inconceivable to give a Republican in the opposition – even one who is Jewish – an ovation. But that kind of myopia is not in the best interests of the Jewish people. The pursuit of democracy and freedom, and the need to protect Jews from anti-Semitism everywhere, which were such an integral part of Cantor's remarks, should be non-partisan values.

Rhonda Spivak is a Winnipeg freelance writer.

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