...and their general hypocrisy about human rights. Addressing such a letter to the disgraceful Abraham Foxman is pointless, of course, but perhaps the others have an actual conscience--in any case, it's a good letter.
ADDENDUM: The letter I was sent to sign did include discussion of the Islamic Community Center, the letter linked above does not, unfortunately. The one I did sign is slated to appear in The Forward in a few days. Here are the opening paragraphs of that letter:
We, like many, have been disappointed by your refusal to support the unconditional rights of American Muslims who seek to build the Cordoba Community Center in Manhattan. At a time of increasing anti-Islamic and anti-Arab sentiment in this country, your statements are doubly worrisome. Sadly, we've seen time and again bias against Muslims and Arabs used by your organizations as a way to shore up support for Israel, even when Israel itself is acting non-democratically(1). Fueling these sentiments in an attempt to invalidate legitimate Palestinian claims does nothing to help achieve a lasting peace for Israelis and Palestinians.
We are equally concerned by your stance against freedom of worship in Manhattan and by your silence in response to the increasing repression in Israel. We ask you to stand by the values you claim to promote.
ANOTHER: As a reader points out, some Jewish groups have been out front on this issue.
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