This past June, I taught a course at the Federation on the life and times of Menachem Begin, the sixth prime minister of the state of Israel who successfully made peace with Egypt in 1979. As I watched Israeli President Herzog speak to the US Congress today, I thought about Begin’s legacy and the need for his voice in the current Israeli conflict over its democracy.
In 1977, Menachem Begin became the very first non-Labor party member to serve as Israel’s prime minister. He achieved this feat through his commitment to the disenfranchised Sephardic community – who had become increasingly marginalized by Israel’s political left. Begin spent his entire career speaking about the value of hadar or Jewish pride. He believed in the dignity of the Jewish people and found his purpose in doing whatever he could to protect it. Whether it be through necessary military action in Iraq, the search for peace with Egypt or the care of Israel’s non-Jewish Arab population, Begin emphasized Jewish responsibility and obligation. Author Daniel Gordis has called Begin Israel’s only ‘Jewish’ Prime Minister for this unusual dedication to Jewish values.
Like Benjamin Netanyahu, Menachem Begin was from the Likud party—which represents a conservative political view. However, unlike Netanyahu, Begin was deeply committed to Israel’s democracy and the protection of Israel’s minorities. Begin had served for long enough in the minority to understand the necessity of checks and balances. In 1952, he stated, “We have learned that an elected parliamentary majority can be an instrument in the hands of a group of rulers and act as camouflage for their tyranny.” In 1956, he argued that Israel must “provide the people with a constitution and issue legislative guarantees of civil liberties and national liberty”.
Benjamin Netanyahu’s desire for so-called judicial reform flies in the face of everything that Menachem Begin stood for. Netanyahu seeks to destroy the power of Israel’s Supreme Court—leaving authority at the hands of its current legislators. Israelis continue to march in the streets and demand an end to these authoritarian political maneuvers. They are fighting for the very soul of Israel’s democracy and we as American Jews must stand by them.
President Herzog noted today the vital need for the United States to continue standing with Israel. He noted that “our bond may be challenged at times, but it is absolutely unbreakable.” He is right and we as American Jews must continue to support the Jewish state with all of our soul.
But let us also remember those Israeli leaders who stood up for what matters most – let us be inspired by their stories and find their equivalents in Israeli society today. Menachem Begin was a Likud right-leaning politician who recognized the need for democracy in Israel – we need his voice and we need to remember his legacy more than ever—
