(This letter was circulated before the Olympia Food Co-op boycott was passed)
Jewish Letter of Support for the Proposed Boycott of Israeli Goods at the Olympia Food Co-op
As Jewish members of the Olympia Food Co-op we strongly support and endorse the proposed boycott of Israeli goods and products.
We recognize that the United States supports Israel diplomatically, politically and militarily, and, therefore, that we all hold a stake in the occupation of Palestine. Jewish voices are often given extra weight on this issue–and we proudly raise ours in support of the boycott–but the guiding perspective must come from Palestinians. Palestinian Civil Society (an overwhelming majority of organizations representing Palestinian refugees, Palestinians under occupation and Palestinian citizens of Israel) has called for a boycott until Israel meets its obligation to recognize Palestinian self-determination and complies with the precepts of international law.
We reject the notion that Jewish identity necessitates unconditional support for the government of Israel and for its human rights abuses. This expectation is particularly egregious when it is invoked to obstruct genuine attempts at peace and justice, confining the matter to a “Jewish” affair rather than honoring our commitments to universal human rights and public accountability.
In order to reflect the values that we, the Co-op membership, share, and to respect the Co-op’s commitment to anti-racism and the mission statement goals C and D (support efforts to increase democratic process; support efforts to foster a socially and economically egalitarian society), we call on our Co-op to promptly institute the boycott.
Current signatories:
Peter Bohmer
Filemón Bohmer-Tapia
Sky Cohen
Mariel Cutler
Anne Fischel
Katherine “Asli” Glickler
Robert Gordon
Sophie Gordon
Benjamin Groves
Randal Hunt
Rae Hamblin
Selena Howard
Anna Isaacs
Ruth Kodish-Eskind
Nomy Lamm
David Langstaff
Victoria Larkin
Erica Leshon
Matt Lester
Amy Levinson
Gar Lipow
Ruth Lipow
Rosie Math
Erica Merrill
Tovah Rudawski
Kate Savkovich
Simona Sharoni
Ron Smith
Noah Sochet
Ari Wildau
Bleu Wilding Omeh
Alexa Zigman
