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New Initiative to Confront Crisis in Israel-American Black Relations
(JNS) Israel Kasnett - The Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs has partnered with the Institute for Black Solidarity with Israel (IBSI) to fight the anti-Israel narrative that has swept across America. At a panel on July 11, attorney Olga Meshoe Washington, an IBSI board member, slammed Black Lives Matter (BLM) for turning black Americans against Israel and hijacking the claim of apartheid, racializing Israel's conflict with the Palestinians when, in fact, it has nothing to do with race. She added that critics of Israel should "look at...organizations such as the African National Congress, whose military wing was inspired by Israel," to understand the contribution the Jewish state has made. Dan Diker, who directs the Jerusalem Center's counter-political warfare program, noted that after the death of George Floyd in May 2020, "despite universal Jewish support for BLM, it failed to prevent a surge of anti-Semitic violence across the United States....BDS organizations have exploited simmering racial tensions by accusing Israel of complicity in Floyd's murder." IBSI CEO Pastor Dumisani Washington emphasized that "the vast majority of black Americans are not anti-Semitic, are not anti-Israel. They're actually for Israel. But this doesn't get talked about." He said Israel's enemies are "highly invested in tainting that relationship and using the black community to try and communicate a false message about Israel." He added that "even though the African National Congress is decidedly against the State of Israel, they do not speak for the vast majority of black South Africans who continue to enjoy relationships with the Jewish people in South Africa and continue to have a relationship with Israel."