How Campus Communities Are Discussing Israel Today

We’ve got a college-aged friend who has had enough with the protests, yelling, and screaming about Israel on campus. He’s seen his Zionist friends walk up to protestors or heard them in class after a fellow student makes an anti-Zionist remark. It’s always the same – a duel of facts. The anti-Zionist states his “fact”, the Zionist cuts back with theirs. All who are listening don’t know whom to believe. 

Our friend has begun taking a different approach. Rather than entering into the familiar back-and-forth, desperately trying to convince the anti-Zionists, he’s started inviting them to have real conversations. He’s become genuinely curious about how someone can come to see Israel so negatively, about why Israel matters more to them than so many other causes. And he’s hoping that he can interest them in why Israel is so important to him. 

The Challenge We're Facing

If you work with Jewish students or communities, you’ve probably felt this tension. Most students seem to have come to the conclusion that certain conversations, especially about Israel, just aren’t worth having outside our their friendship groups. As educators, we are getting the impression that any attempt to facilitate these conversations will just blow up. So we might fall back on what we know: traditional advocacy. We can arm students with talking points and hope it’ll be enough when they’re challenged by classmates, professors, or friends. 

Most people are more complex than we give them credit for

Most people’s relationships with Israel and with Jewish identity – more broadly – are far more nuanced than the headlines suggest.

The political science student who questions Israel’s settlement policies might still be open to understanding the Jewish connection to the land of Israel. The progressive activist who uses punchy language about Israel-Palestine might also be concerned about antisemitism and interested in learning about Jewish experience. The student who refuses to speak up might simply be unsure how to begin. 

But the nuance doesn’t only exist among critics of Israel. The Zionist student might feel proud of Israel’s existence and their connection to it, and at the same time feel uneasy about its present. They may struggle to reconcile their values with what they’ve learned, or with what they’re currently seeing. They might long for spaces where they can hold both love and critique at once.

These complexities get flattened, and sometimes erased, because our current frameworks don’t always make room for them. 

Here’s What Gives Us Hope

There are people who want to have these conversations. They’re on campus, in classrooms, and in your communities. Maybe you’re one of them. 

The question isn’t whether these conversations are possible, our workshops and research show they are.

The question is: are we using the right approach to invite them in?

Toward Connection

That’s why we developed the Hazmana series –  Hebrew for invitation. Instead of trying to convince people that Israel is right, we invite them to explore what’s really behind the questions and tensions they’re holding. Instead of defending positions, we build relationships that can handle disagreement, while staying grounded in who we are. 

We know this shift from Hasbara (explanation) to Hazmana (invitation) can feel risky. What if the conversation changes someone’s mind in the wrong direction? What if a student hears something persuasive from an anti-Zionist peer? It is certainly a risk. But if we’re too afraid to let students wrestle with hard questions, we shouldn’t be sending them into these spaces at all. Our teaching emphasizes the importance of entering an argument not with the intention of being right, but to model openness and desire to gain new perspectives. If we want others to soften, we need to be willing to do the same.

We also know that not every conversation is worth having. That’s why we help educators and students develop the judgement to recognize when a conversation is possible and when it’s best to turn away. 

We need tools for the conversations that are already happening, and for the ones that aren’t happening yet, but should be. 

If this resonates with you, you’re not alone! We’re working with educators and campus professionals across North America who are ready for a different approach. Learn more about our approach here.