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Monday, May 14, 2012

Purpose of J-Street is not to reflect US Jewish opinion, but to change it (updated)

I received this video from ProIsrael Media showing Carinne Luck, Vice President of Field and Campaigns for J-Street, speaking at what appears to be an internal meeting.

In it, she seems to admit that most of J-Street's support comes from outside the Jewish community. Moreover, she contradicts J-Street's claims to represent the majority opinion of American Jews; and she states that J-Street's goal, following the demands of left-leaning politicians and the Obama administration, is to "move" the American Jewish community towards the left, so this is "primarily" what the organization does.

I do not have access to the entire video so I cannot verify 100% that these quotes are in context, but if accurate it looks pretty damning for the "pro-Israel, pro-peace" J-Street.

UPDATE: The video was taken down by YouTube but I got the entire video, without edits. Here it is - you can make up your own minds as to whether the statements were in context of not.


Here's a partial transcript:


Man: We have some support and interest in the Jewish community. We get much more support outside the traditional Jewish community. We know that for political reasons we have to be sensitive to the composition of the leadership. Can you address this very uncomfortable question?
Luck: Is this Jewish/non-Jewish? Is that the question you were going to ask?
Man: Yes.
Luck: Our theory of change and the one we've been told as what people on the Hill and in the administration, what they are looking to from us. It is very specific. And we are a primarily Jewish but not exclusively Jewish organization and they want us to see us primarily moving Jews. American Jews. And so that is where the bulk of our resources go...
I think for us building power is "how do we build power in our own community?"...Even in our small Jewish community they are still looking to us to give them cover....
But that is why for our leadership, you know we want our leadership to be comfortable going in and meeting with someone saying "as an American Jew I do this" and if that's inauthentic, you know, I mean look I would never tell someone to lie. If they choose to that's their business....
And I do know there is this feeling like "but there's all these people that are supportive". Certainly there is nothing wrong with getting them to be part of our numbers. Like we do not say we are an exclusively Jewish organization and if they want to sign up to our list, that's great.

(h/t Daled Amos)