A controversial Harvard professor called for a more open dialogue on the U.S. policies towards Israel, last Friday in the School of International Service Lounge.
Stephen Walt, a professor at Harvard University and co-author of "The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy," spoke to a mixed group of professors and students about the public reaction to his book.
"The Israel Lobby," published in 2007, received mostly negative reviews from American media outlets. The book received more positive reviews than negative in England and continental Europe, according to Walt.
In the United States, many panned it as poorly argued and latently anti-Semitic. One University of Chicago professor called it "piss poor, monocasual social science." A Johns Hopkins University professor wrote that it was anti-Semitic and unfair.
The book argues that a loose and informal coalition of interest groups has dictated American foreign policy towards supporting Israel through their lobbying efforts. America's unquestioning support for the state of Israel and our "special relationship" with the country is contrary to the U.S.'s interests and is bad foreign policy, Walt argued.
"Washington's close relationship with Jerusalem makes it harder, not easier, to defeat terrorist who are now targeting the United States, and it simultaneously undermines America's standing with important allies around the world," he said in "The Israel Lobby."
"The Israel Lobby" also argued that the Israel lobby in the U.S. discourages open debate on the issue and marginalizes anti-Israel politicians or pundits as anti-Semitic.
"The final tactic often used to shape discourse is simply to smear anyone who questions the special relationship, who questions Israeli policy, or questions what the [pro-Israel] lobby is doing, as anti-Semitic," he said Friday.
Ayal Chen-Zion, president of AU Students for Israel, said he believes that Walt mischaracterizes the United States' relationship with Israel but that a more comprehensive debate on the issues would be beneficial.
"It is important for everybody at all the universities to understand what is going on," he said. "I think an intellectual broadening of the debate would be great."
AU Students for Israel is a student club at AU that raises awareness on campus about both Israeli politics and Israeli society. The club supports a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine, according to Chen-Zion.
Ryan DuBois, a sophomore in SIS and member of Students for Justice in Palestine, said he agreed with Walt that the debate on Israel is not wide enough.
"If you're critical of Israel you're going to come under some harsh attacks," he said. "It's a given to a lot of people that if you are anti-Israel you are anti-Semitic but it's a political institution and if you are anti-Israel you are not necessarily anti-Semitic."
There are members of Students for Justice in Palestine who do not acknowledge Israel as a state, according to DuBois.
"A lot of people in the club don't think that Israel has the right to exist," he said. "They have the view that there should be a Palestinian state in the region."
Despite having conflicting views, members Students for Justice in Palestine and AU Students for Israel have worked together to bridge the gaps between them.
Recently, the two groups hosted an ultimate Frisbee match as a gesture of unity.
Lauren Barr, president of One Voice at AU - an international grassroots organization that works to promote peace between Israel and Palestine, said she has had great experience working with clubs on both sides of the spectrum.
"One Voice has worked with AU Students for Israel and Students for Justice in Palestine and we have had wonderful experiences with both groups," Barr said. "We find that we relate to them quite well and that a lot of them relate to each other."
Despite the cooperation, there are still entrenched differences between the groups, she said.
"There are still strong ideological differences and policy preferences between the groups," Barr said. "On one hand there is a lot of consensus but there is also reason for the divisions."
You can reach this staff writer at cszold@theeagleonline.com.
