As members of the St. Louis Jewish community, we are compelled to respond to a recent letter by some area Rabbis that mischaracterizes the record of Congresswoman Cori Bush. Bush is a supporter of peace and as a co-sponsor of Representative Haley Steven’s resolution in October 2023 she quickly and unequivocally condemned Hamas’ attack on Israeli civilians. There is no evidence of Bush exhibiting hostility towards Jewish people or the Jewish faith. Criticizing the Israeli government is not antisemitic – such claims make Jews less safe and distract from real antisemitism.
What bothers these Rabbis is that Cori Bush’s concern extends to Palestinians also. She called for a ceasefire early because she wants to save lives. She correctly describes Israel as an Apartheid state, in accordance with the most respected human rights groups including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the Israeli group B’Tselem. Bush is an anti-racist humanitarian, and she lives her values regardless of political convenience.
Her opponent, on the other hand, is receiving massive funding from organizations supporting the extreme right wing Netanyahu / Smoltrich / Ben-Gvir government in Israel. A large portion of his donors also donate to Trump and other MAGA candidates. In addition, he previously managed a GOP congressional campaign for an anti-abortion candidate.
Supporting a candidate running as a Democrat whose campaign is largely being funded by single-issue interest groups like AIPAC and extreme right-wing donors does not make anyone safer – not Palestinians, not Israelis, and not Jews in the United States. The flames of war being fanned by this Israeli government only continue to wreak havoc and bring needless suffering; if we allow this election to be bought and Bush’s opponent to take office, he will do nothing to stop the violence.
Let’s keep a principled member in Congress who fights for the needs of St. Louis. Support the reelection of Congresswoman Cori Bush for Congress.
Michael Berg
Ariel Groener
Progressive Jews of St. Louis
