AIPAC attracts Over 13,000 to 2013 Conference

Today is the opening day of AIPAC's National Policy Conference in Washington DC.  There are well over 13,000 people attending from all aspects of American life -Democrats and Republicans, activists and academics.  Its a widely diverse and multi- generational group.  They are all united by their love of Israel, and their desire for a strong American/ Israel relationship that transcends conventional political divides

Student Check-in line at AIPAC 2013

 
Whats an anti-Israel activists to do, when faced with such a huge collective display of support for the Zionist entity?  Code Pink did what Code Pink always does. 

 Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP)had a diiferent strategy.  JVP has bought ad space in the Washington metro, and issued press releases. This was printed in the Palestinian News and Info Agency website ( http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=21796) ,  WAFA being on the rather short list of media that might take JVP's claims seriously.

 American Jewish groups will unveil on Sunday 100 billboard ads in the Washington Metro that say: “AIPAC Does Not Speak for Me,” according to a statement by the groups, Jewish Voice for Peace and Avaaz. The ads, it said, highlight “the gap between AIPAC’s (the American Israel Public Affairs Committee), peace-killing policy positions and most Jewish Americans.”

The billboard ads that will appear in major subway stations across downtown Washington, DC, showcase the faces of Jewish Americans saying boldly: 'AIPAC does not speak for me. Most Jewish Americans are pro-peace. AIPAC is not.”

The ad campaign coincides with the annual AIPAC policy conference and “is designed to challenge the lobbying group’s influence on US foreign policy in the Middle East,” said the statement.

Rebecca Vilkomerson, executive director of Jewish Voice for Peace, said: “AIPAC is the NRA (pro-guns National Rifle Association) of foreign policy lobbies, pushing a right-wing agenda that does not represent the majority of Jewish Americans: Its support for military build-up and endless settlement expansion makes peace impossible. It cannot claim to speak for all American Jews.”

Hundreds of lawmakers and Vice President Joe Biden are expected to attend AIPAC’s annual gala this week.

 JVP has long given up any pretense of being a  Jewish organization.. In their Mission Statement they say they are "inspired by Jewish tradition".  Jewish Voice for Peace counts among its members Paul Larudee and Deppen Webber, local organizers of the "Global March to Jerusalem", an assault Israel's sovereignty motivated by a desire to prevent the "Judaization of Jerusalem."  And yet Jewish voice for peace has the audacity to claim they speak for the Jewish people?

The JVP annual conference will be held in Berkeley next month- in a hotel with just over 300 rooms (as of this week, there were still plenty of vacancies). When 13,000 people fly thousands of miles to stand in line for a JVP conference, maybe JVP can claim to speak to be anything other than a fringe group, whose sole reason for existence is to "Jew-wash"  the demonization of Israel.   That day isn't coming any time soon.