At a moment where the stakes could not be higher — for our country and for abortion rights and access — we are sharing this call for dialogue, curiosity, and empathy.  Fifty-eight Israeli hostages remain in Gaza and the war continues to bring unimaginable suffering to the Palestinian people.  We see the current administration's exploitation of antisemitism for a political agenda, while violent antisemitic attacks on Jews in Pennsylvania, Washington, DC, and Colorado, exacerbate the fear and isolation already felt by many Jewish communities, including many Jews in the reproductive health, rights, and justice movement. These painful realities make it easier for those who do not share our progressive values and commitment to reproductive health, rights and justice to divide us.

Jews in Repro is a new and growing affinity group of more than 100 Jews working in the reproductive health, rights, and justice (RH/RR/RJ) movement that aims to create a space where we can show up with our full identities — with our values, histories, and hopes intact. We are proud Jews who celebrate the unique role the land of Israel, our ancestral homeland, has played in our identity and in the story of the Jewish people. We also recognize the deep ties of the Palestinian people to the land and believe both peoples have the same rights to safety, security, and self-determination.

We issue this call with the intention of opening a conversation — one centered in empathy over agreement, with the broader goal of strengthening our shared movement for reproductive health, rights, and justice. Our aim is not to punish or “call out” individuals or organizations — but to name the impact this has had on many Jewish colleagues and allies who support, in some way, the existence of a Jewish state.

While we are not a monolith, we share the belief that we can recognize the pain, complexity, and trauma embedded in the Israel-Hamas war for Israelis, Palestinians and their diaspora communities. And at the same time, we can reckon with the deep-rooted and systemic nature of antisemitism, which is rising globally and in the United States.

Many Jews in the RH/RR/RJ movement feel silenced, unwelcome and even targeted, despite these spaces holding inclusion as a core value. History demonstrates that antisemitism is a tool of white supremacy — present in all nations, movements, and communities — and it corrodes efforts to build a world rooted in justice and dignity for all. We must resist it at every turn. 

As dedicated RH/RR/RJ advocates, we find our political home on the Left, alongside our partners and collaborators. We are guided by our mutual values — like seeking bodily autonomy, centering marginalized voices, and dismantling oppression. These are not only our political commitments — they are also deeply Jewish values.

It is in this spirit that we express our heartbreak at some of the rhetoric and language from our colleagues that presents a false binary: that one must choose to support either Israelis or Palestinians in the struggle for freedom and safety.

Over the last year and a half, we have seen the proliferation of language in organizational statements, interpersonal communication, and movement-wide sign-on letters that malign Israelis, Jews, and Zionists. These statements signal the exclusion of many Jews, Israelis, or anyone who supports them. To many Jews, Zionism simply means the belief that the Jewish people have the right to self-determination in part of our ancestral homeland. This is not in conflict with the desire for Palestinians to have self-determination. While some may disagree with that definition or political vision, labeling Zionists as racist or genocidal implies that most Jews — who in the US overwhelmingly identify with Israel — are inherently complicit in violence or hate.

Statements such as “Zionism is racism” or “Zionists support genocide,” for example, can be taken to imply that the vast majority of Jews are racist and support genocide. In turn, individual Jews are being blamed for the actions of the Israeli government — something we would never tolerate for any other group. This rhetoric has led to calls for the functional exclusion of most Jews from RH/RR/RJ movement spaces while at the same time claiming this action isn’t fundamentally anti-Jewish. An inclusive movement must not fall into the ancient trap of only allowing those deemed “good Jews” to be allowed in. 

We are equally clear that society is rife with Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian sentiment, and that speaking out for Palestinian human rights is not antisemitic and must never be treated as such. We condemn rhetoric — whether from Jewish organizations, individuals, their allies, or anyone — that dehumanizes Palestinians in the name of Jewish safety. All forms of hate fuel cycles of violence and must be rejected.

Antisemitism plays out differently than other forms of oppression, often manifesting as conspiracy to blame Jews for things happening in our communities, country, and in the world. This sometimes takes the form of:

• Jews being blamed for the actions of a foreign government

• Jews being told they don’t need affinity spaces because they’re not marginalized

• Jews being ostracized for having family in Israel

• Jews being told they are all white or all have power 

• Jews being dismissed or ignored — especially after October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas, including the denial or minimization of the sexual assaults committed during and after those attacks

We believe we can hold multiple truths. We can engage with each other across policy differences for Israel and Palestine. We can honor all of our experiences and histories with empathy. We can honor everyone’s history and humanity without erasing our own. We can work side by side to ensure reproductive freedom in this country and around the world. And we should be able to be proudly Jewish in reproductive rights, health, and justice spaces. 

Everyone has a place in this fight for reproductive autonomy. The work has never been easy. But we are committed to continuing it — together. We believe fighting back against the forces seeking to divide us requires coming together, rejecting false binaries, and choosing a different way forward. 

We invite anyone interested in taking part in a new kind of conversation to sign up to join us or take part in a dialogue.