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Alissa Wise
Alissa Wise [Alissa Shira Wise] has expressed support for terrorists, spread incitement, demonized a Jewish organization and Israel and led protests against a Philadelphia philanthropist.
Wise has also whitewashed antisemitism, endorsed anti-Israel agitators, engaged in anti-Israel activism and is a supporter of the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.
In July 2017, while serving as Deputy Director of Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), Wise was banned from entering Israel due to Wise’s BDS activism.
As of November 2021, Wise was a member of JVP of Philadelphia (JVP Philly) since 2017.
As of May 2022, Wise’s LinkedIn page said Wise was “Deputy Director, Acting Co-Executive Director, Co-Director of Organizing” at JVP from January 2011 to April 2021.
Wise was Co-Director of Organizing at JVP in 2015 and 2016. Wise was also JVP’s acting Co-Executive Director from September 2019 to March 2020 and its Deputy Director from 2016 to 2021.
In a November 14, 2018 interview, Wise said Wise worked [00:03:15] for JVP since 2010 and was the organization’s sixth employee.
In 2012, Wise served as Director of Campaigns at JVP and as the National Coordinator of JVP’s We Divest campaign.
As of May 2022, Wise was listed as one of the rabbis on JVP’s Rabbinical Council, which Wise co-founded with Brant Rosen in 2011.
JVP’s Rabbinical Council was established as a “network of rabbis, cantors and rabbinical students that…serves as an advisory team to JVP’s leadership.”
Wise also co-founded JVP’s Facing the Nakba, an educational curriculum for “U.S. Jews and a general U.S. audience about the history of the Nakba,” which Wise began co-developing in 2010 and which became part of JVP in 2016.
The term “Nakba” is generally translated as “catastrophe” in Arabic, referring to the outcome of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. It is a term used to delegitimize the creation of the State of Israel by drawing a comparison to the Holocaust, known in Hebrew as the Shoah, meaning “catastrophe.”
Wise was an activist with Jews Against the Occupation (JATO) in New York since 2002. Wise maintained her affiliation with the group for over a decade.
As of May 2025, Wise’s LinkedIn profile said she had worked as the founder and lead organizer of Rabbis for Ceasefire since October 2023.
As of May 2022, Wise’s LinkedIn said Wise was an Independent Consultant since July 2021. In March 2022, Wise posted on LinkedIn that Wise had joined a nine-month fellowship at Faith Matters Network.
Also as of May 2022, Wise’s LinkedIn said Wise graduated from Indiana University, Bloomington (IU) with a bachelor’s degree in Jewish/Judaic Studies in 2001, and graduated from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC) with a “Masters degree and title of Rabbi” in 2009. Reconstructionist-Rabbinical Univ Indiana, Bloomington UI
Wise also previously studied at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI).Hebrew-Jerusalem
As of the same date, Wise’s LinkedIn said Wise was located in Greater Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
As of May 2022, Wise used the handle “AlissaShira” and screen name “Rabbi Alissa Wise” on Twitter and the handle “alissashira” on Instagram.
In July 2017, while serving as Deputy Director of JVP, Wise was barred from entering Israel based on a law banning the entry of leaders in organizations that publicly promote and support BDS “actively, consistently and continuously.”
Wise had planned to travel to Israel on a trip co-sponsored by JVP, American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) and the Presbyterian Peace Fellowship, when Wise was prevented from boarding a flight at Dulles International Airport to Israel.
On July 24, 2017, JVP released a statement that quoted Wise as saying: “We were told at check-in that the airline has a letter from the Israeli government saying we are not allowed to fly to Israel. I wasn’t even able to get as far as checking my bag.”
On July 27, 2017, Wise tweeted: “It truly did feel like a punch in the gut.”
Wise’s tweet linked to an article published in U.S. News & World Report titled: “Israel Enforces Ban on Travelers Who Call for Boycotts, Divestment.”
On March 8, 2017, Wise tweeted that: “... justice for Palestine is a feminist issue. Start with understanding Rasmea.” Wise’s tweet included a tweet by JVP promoting an article titled: “Jewish Voice for Peace: We stand in solidarity with Rasmieh Yousef Odeh.”
Rasmea Odeh was a key military operative [00:02:08] with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) terrorist organization. In 1969, she masterminded a PFLP supermarket bombing that killed two college students. She also attempted to bomb the British consulate in Jerusalem. Odeh later moved to the United States but was deported to Jordan in 2017 for immigration fraud.
On March 28, 2017, Wise wrote an article for Religion News Service defending JVP inviting Odeh to speak at their National Member Meeting (NMM). In the article, Wise wrote: “I believe a trusted and beloved community leader, not an Israeli military court” and referred to Odeh as “a Palestinian elder who has faithfully served her community for decades.”
On April 2, 2017, Wise was a panelist [page 35] at the closing plenary session of the 2017 JVP NMM, titled: “ALL IN!” alongside Rasmea Odeh.
Wise introduced [00:40:15] Odeh saying: “her legacy of principled resistance to Israeli and U.S. crimes against Palestinians and all other oppressed communities will be ours to continue. We welcome you today, Rasmea, with love, with appreciation, with gratitude for all that you are.”
Wise was [page 2] also a Program Committee member of the NMM.
On September 23, 2020, Wise tweeted: “Kinda incredible for FB [Facebook] to censor Palestine on the very day that we launch our #FacebookCensorsPalestine campaign.”
Wise’s tweet included a tweet by JVP saying that Facebook had removed JVP posts promoting an online panel event featuring Leila Khaled.
Leila Khaled is a leading member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and participated in the hijacking of TWA Flight 840 in 1969 and El Al Flight 219 in 1970. As of 2017, Khaled was a member of PFLP's Political Bureau. Khaled has said that the second intifada failed because it was not violent enough, advocated [00:36:07] for the use of children in terror activities and compared Zionists to Nazis.
In September 2020, anti-Israel professor Rabab Abdulhadi co-organized an online “conversation” with Leila Khaled. Zoom canceled the planned live stream of the event, and Facebook followed Zoom’s lead. YouTube shut down the event after 23 minutes, stating that Khaled’s speech violated its policies with “content praising or justifying violent acts carried out by violent criminal or terrorist organizations.”
On May 15, 2021, Wise participated in an anti-Israel protest held in Philadelphia.
On May 15, 2021, JVP Philly co-hosted an event with other anti-Israel groups, including Philly BDS and Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapters at Temple University and Drexel University in Philadelphia, titled: “PHILADELPHIA: #SaveSheikhJarrah.”
Incitement around Al-Aqsa and Sheikh Jarrah were leading factors in Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terrorists firing over 4,300 rockets from Gaza at Israel’s major centers on May 10-21, 2021. In response, Israel launched “Operation Guardian of the Walls (OGW),” striking military targets in the terrorist-controlled enclave.
Protesters held signs that said: “RESISTANCE IS JUSTIFIED” and “WHEN INJUSTICE BECOMES LAW… RESISTANCNCE (SIC) BECOMES A DUTY!!!” Other signs said “F**K ISRAEL,” claimed that “ZIONISM IS GENOCIDE” and called to “END ZIONISM.”
Zionism is the belief in the right to self-determination and statehood of the Jewish people in their ancestral homeland, Israel. The word Zion originates in the Bible, where it refers to the land of Israel and Jerusalem.
Demonstrators also displayed signs that read: “FROM THE RIVER TO THE SEA PALESTINE WILL BE FREE” and “HANDS OFF OF OUR LAND.”
The chant “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free” has also been employed by Hamas leader Khaled Mashal to call for the replacement of Israel with an Islamic state. It is a chant calling to dismantle the State of Israel.
The cover photo on the Facebook page of the event JVP Philly co-hosted was a flyer featuring a graphic of Palestinians armed with rifles and text that read: “RESISTING COLONIALISM SINCE 1948.”
The Facebook event description called for protesters to “march against the state-sanctioned violence, settler-colonialism and apartheid occurring in Sheikh Jarrah and all of Occupied Palestine” and accused Israel of “genocide and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians.”
On July 21, 2017, Wise tweeted: “Freedom to access al-Aqsa for all who wish to pray there. The end.” and linked to another tweet that read: “ Palestinians stage a protest against Israel’s restrictions on the Al-Aqsa Mosque… #جمعه_الأقصي [Al-Aqsa_friday] #FreeQuds.”
On July 14, 2017, terrorists murdered two Israeli police officers outside the entrance to the Al-Aqsa compound, reportedly following claims that the Al-Aqsa mosque was in danger. In response to the terror attack, Israel installed metal detectors and security cameras at the entrance to the holy site, which the authorities later removed, after further rioting and escalation in violence.
In 2021, Wise led three JVP Philly protests held at the office and outside the private residence of Philadelphia-based philanthropist Jeffrey Yass. The protests were part of a JVP Philly campaign of harassment against Yass.
On September 23, 2021, Wise led a JVP Philly protest on the Jewish festival of Sukkot, where JVP Philly activists erected a tent on the private lawn of Yass to protest his funding of various causes in the United States and Israel.
JVP Philly protesters gathered with signs that said: “YASS FUNDS FASCISTS” and “YASS FUNDS ISRAELI APARTHEID,” as well as “YASS CASH HARMS OUR PLANET” and “YASS CASH HARMS OUR SCHOOLS.” JVP Swarthmore also participated in the protest.
A JVP Philly Facebook post about the protest claimed: “...his money is making the world a more dangerous, violent, and unequal place…But we are watching…His neighbors are hearing about it. His employees are hearing about it. The word is out. #AllEyesOnYass 🧿.”
Wise said into a megaphone [00:00:12]: “we are everywhere, we’re gonna keep coming back because Yass…” Wise then called [00:00:23] into the megaphone, addressing Yass: “hello, can you hear us, indicate if you can hear us - you are funding apartheid and that is wrong and shameful” and led the activists in calling out “boooo.”
Wise also addressed nearby residents calling out [00:02:54] “hi neighbors, we’re here because Jeffrey Yass, your neighbor, is funding Israeli apartheid.”
JVP Philly passed out a flyer to Yass’s neighbors that claimed Yass was financing “Israeli apartheid policies which cause great harm to Palestinians and any possibility of peace in the region.”
The flyer also said: “TIRED OF SEEING US HERE? TELL JEFF HIS CHOICES ARE NOT JUST HARMING THE WORLD, THEY’RE BUGGING HIS NEIGHBORS TOO. MAYBE THAT WILL MAKE HIM CHANGE HIS WAYS!”
The protest reportedly marked the launch of JVP Philly’s “All Eyes on Yass” campaign, following two other protests they had held earlier that year against Yass.
On September 22, 2021, Wise tweeted: “We built a sukkah [a temporary structure erected during Sukkot] on Yass because these fragile structures we build in this season remind us of our obligation to refuse apartheid, dispossession and occupation. #AllEyesOnYass.”
On June 4, 2021, Wise spoke [00:08:56] at a JVP Philly protest with around 100 participants outside Yass’s home. JVP Philly accused Yass of funding “the displacement and murder of Palestinians” and demanded that he stop his support of pro-Israel initiatives.
Protesters stood in Yass’s front yard holding [00:00:24] a large sign that said: “ISRAELI APARTHEID FUNDED HERE” and shouted [00:01:30] “shame” while banging on tables.
In a Facebook live stream of the protest, Wise said [00:11:29]: “last week we were at his office… this week we’re at his house because his employees, his staff, his colleagues, his neighbors, they know what he’s doing” and continued [00:12:20]: “we must build outrage in everyone in his community until we get what we want.”
Also in the live stream, Elana Baurer, a JVP organizer, said [00:00:35] the protesters were calling on Yass to “stop participating in the ongoing Nakba.”
On May 21, 2021, Wise led at a JVP Philly sit-in at the lobby of Yass’s office in Philadelphia. Protesters held anti-Israel banners and accused [00:00:40] Yass and his business partner, Arthur Dantchik, of “funding genocide, apartheid and ethnic cleansing” in Israel, as they chanted [00:00:52]: “Israeli apartheid is funded here, Jews say Free Palestine.”
In a Facebook live stream from the protest, Wise said: [00:04:25] “I’m here today to tell Jeffrey Yass and Arthur Dantchik that they are complicit in the genocide of Palestinians.”
JVP Philly activists also placed flyers on employees’ cars that accused Israel of “the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians…and violent murder and destruction.”
The protest ended with Wise leaving a voicemail on Yass’s personal number, saying [00:21:08]: “what you’re doing to the Palestinian people is a shande [disgrace]...we’re really disgusted by what you’re funding and we want to urge you to cease funding it now...and we’ll keep coming back as long as it takes.”
On June 17, 2020, Wise tweeted: “We must all organize and agitate in our own communities. The ADL [Anti-Defamation League] dangerously claims to speak on behalf of the Jewish community and against antisemitism while really being a defender of Israel…”
Wise’s tweet included a tweet by JVP calling for the ADL to end police exchanges with Israel.
In 2017, anti-Israel group Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) launched the “Deadly Exchange (DX)” campaign, which accused American Jewish organizations of promoting human rights abuses. JVP also released a video that blamed [00:04:04] U.S.-based Jewish organizations for violence that occurs against Black and Brown communities, immigrants and activists in the U.S.
On November 12, 2019, in a JVP statement, Wise accused Israel of “extrajudicial killings and flagrant attacks on civilians,” calling Israel’s targeting of terrorist Baha Abu al-Ata “a reckless breach of international law and a flagrant political ploy.”
In November 2019, Israel launched Operation Black Belt to stop rocket attacks from Gaza into Israel. From November 12 to November 14, 2019, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terror group sent hundreds of rockets into Israel, targeting major civilian population centers.
On September 10, 2019, Wise said in a JVP statement that “...the greatest obstacle to peace in the Middle East is Israel.”
On August 16, 2019, in an article published for Religion News Service, Wise claimed Israel was not a democracy and accused Israel of apartheid and of “collective punishment” of Gaza.
On February 11, 2021, Wise wrote in a Guardian op-ed that the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA)’s definition of antisemitism “conflates antisemitism with all forms of anti-Zionism.”
The U.S. State Department adopted the IHRA’s working definition of antisemitism in 2016. Twenty-eight European countries, as well as Canada, Australia, Israel and Argentina, have also adopted the definition.
On January 27, 2021, Wise was quoted in a JVP statement that called on Facebook to exclude Zionists from its policies banning hate speech and criticized a campaign to apply the IHRA antisemitism definition in dealing with antisemitic incidents.
Wise said in the statement: “If Facebook decides to add ‘Zionist’ to its hate speech policies, it will be in order to shield the Israeli government from accountability.”
On December 15, 2020, Wise moderated a JVP online event titled: “Dismantling Antisemitism.” In Wise’s introductory remarks, Wise said [00:02:40] that the “message that we [Jews] needed Israel as a refuge from a future genocide…never sat right with me…I was instinctively repulsed by it.”
The event featured anti-Israel agitators, including Marc Lamont Hill, Peter Beinart, Rashida Tlaib and Barbara Ransby.
In November 2018, Hill was fired from his contributor position at CNN (Cable News Network) after he gave an anti-Israel speech at the United Nations. He called [00:20:47] for a “free Palestine from the river to the sea,” a phrase associated with demands to dismantle the State of Israel. Hill also accused [00:16:19] Israel of “ethnic cleansing,” as well as [00:17:49] “white supremacy” and [00:17:56] “settler colonialism.”
Rashida Tlaib was elected to the U.S. Congress in November 2018. She has advocated for a one-state solution, endorsed the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement and called for reduced foreign aid to Israel. In July 2019, Tlaib co-sponsored a pro-BDS bill in the U.S. Congress introduced by Rep. Ilhan Omar.
On October 29, 2020, Wise tweeted: “For all those concerned about actual antisemitism, please know this is *not* it. This is a cynical ploy to undermine and intimidate advocates for Palestinian rights.” Wise’s tweet referred to a news report about Jeremy Corbyn.
Jeremy Corbyn, a British politician and leader of the Labour Party, has repeatedly referenced terror organizations Hamas and Hezbollah as “friends,” shared platforms with extremists and anti-Semites and compared Israel’s government to ISIS.
On May 3, 2018, Wise tweeted in support of Dareen Tatour.
In October 2015, Tatour was placed under house arrest for incitement to violence and for support of a terrorist organization on social media. Tatour had supported the terror group Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) and posted to Facebook: “I am the next shahid [martyr].”
On December 17, 2017, Wise reportedly organized an event for pre-school children with a reading of the book “P Is for Palestine” by Golbarg Bashi.
Dr. Golbarg Bashi’s children’s book, “P is for Palestine,” was surrounded by controversy for its reported glorification of “intifada.” The book states: “I is for Intifada. Intifada is Arabic for rising up for what is right, whether you are a kid or a grownup.” Bashi has a history of demonizing Israel on social media as well as on her blogs.
A report about the book reading in the Philadelphia Inquirer said: “Wise hoped that the Philadelphia reading…would bring more understanding to the meaning of intifada and to the Palestinian culture.”
Since the early 2000s, the term “intifada,” which translates from Arabic as “uprising” or “insurrection,” has carried the connotation of violence.
On November 16, 2023, the Clever Rebel reported that Wise led a week-long series of protests and civil disobedience actions across the United States, “emphasizing the connection between Jewish principles and anti-Zionist activism.”
On November 29, 2021, Wise spoke at a “Palestinian Solidarity Day” event held in Philadelphia on behalf of JVP Philly. JVP Philly tweeted from the event that Wise spoke about “a tangible way to stand in solidarity with Palestine by supporting google and Amazon workers refusing Project Nimbus #NoTechForApartheid.”
In October 2021, anti-Israel Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) partnered with MPower Change to launch a BDS campaign titled: “No Tech For Apartheid.” The campaign called on Google and Amazon executives to revoke a contract to provide Israel with cloud technology and “end all ties with Israeli apartheid.” The campaign was endorsed by a coalition of over 50 North American anti-Israel organizations.
On October 7, 2020, in an interview posted to YouTube by the Indiana Center for Middle East Peace, Wise said [00:10:29] that Wise had spent a lot of time promoting divestment in churches.
On December 22, 2019, Wise tweeted: “To my fellow Jews who support BDS until Palestinians are free…Make yourself a BDS dreidel [spinning top] and bring it with you to your Hanukkah parties. Here’s mine!”
Hanukkah is the Jewish Festival of Lights commemorating the victory of the Jews led by the Maccabees over the Greek Empire in the 2nd century BCE. This resulted in the liberation of Jerusalem and the rededication of the Second Temple. The eight-day festival is celebrated by lighting special Hanukkah candles.
On November 18, 2019, Wise spoke on a panel at Brown University titled: “BDS: The Palestinian Right to Resist” alongside BDS founder Omar Barghouti and anti-Israel activist Linda Sarsour. At the event, Wise reportedly said that criticizing BDS as antisemitic “undermines its validity.”
On June 16, 2014, Wise featured in a JVP photo on Facebook promoting a BDS campaign called “#ChurchDivest.”
In June 2014, Wise spoke at the Presbyterian Church General Assembly in Detroit, Michigan, in support of a Presbyterian divestment resolution that won in a vote, described by Wise as “divestment from American companies profiting from the Israeli occupation.”
In 2012, Wise also attended the Presbyterian General Assembly as part of a JVP delegation supporting the Presbyterians considering a BDS resolution, which ultimately failed to pass.
In 2011, Wise launched JVP’s “We Divest” campaign to stop TIAA-CREF from “investing in companies that profit from the Israeli occupation.” In 2012, Wise was a National Coordinator for We Divest.
TIAA-CREF is the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America-College Retirement Equities, a national union and the “leading provider of financial services in the academic, research, medical, cultural and governmental fields.”
JVP Philly whitewashes terrorism, shows support for terrorists, demonizes Jewish organizations and actively promotes the BDS movement. In 2021, JVP Philly led a campaign of harassment against a Philadelphia-based philanthropist Jeffrey Yass and organized a series of anti-Israel protests.
JVP Philly created its Facebook page on April 24, 2012. The chapter has been active since 2013.
On April 4, 2018, JVP Philly posted to Facebook a link to the campaign page to stop the Philadelphia Orchestra from playing in Israel. JVP Philly wrote in their Facebook post that they had “signed onto this coalitional effort to uphold the #culturalboycott. Tell the Philadelphia Orchestra to cancel their upcoming trip to Israel.”
On May 19, 2018, two protesters for the campaign disrupted a Philadelphia Orchestra performance by playing a pre-recorded message that accused [00:01:05] the orchestra of complicity in “carnage” by Israel and of collaboration [00:01:39] “with that murderous gangster state.”
On May 31, 2018, JVP Philly posted to Facebook that they had held weekly protests against the orchestra for three months and that anti-Israel protesters in European cities were also protesting wherever the orchestra was playing. JVP Philly wrote in their post: “Now, more than ever we must call for #culturalboycott and #BDS…”
JVP Philly signed a May 19, 2021 statement by Penn Students Against the Occupation of Palestine (PAO) that called on the University of Pennsylvania (Penn) to “divest from companies that profit from and/or are complicit in the Israeli occupation of Palestine.”
The statement accused Israel of the “ongoing ethnic cleansing of Palestinians,” a “massacre of Gaza” and of having “genocidal intentions.” It also urged Penn students, faculty, staff and alumni to “call on the US government to place sanctions on Israel.”
On May 6, 2019, JVP Philly shared a Facebook post by anti-Israel agitator Linda Sarsour that said: “...Friday, Israel gunned down 4 Palestinians peacefully protesting. No condemnations. No one saying how immoral it is to kill Palestinians…”
On May 3, 2019, two Israeli soldiers, patrolling near the Gaza border, were shot and injured from sniper fire in Gaza. In response, the Israeli Air Force struck a Hamas base nearby, killing two members of Hamas’s armed wing. Two other Palestinians were killed while participating in riots along the Gaza border.
On March 30, 2019, JVP Philly held a “GreatReturnMarch Memorial and Teach-In.” The Facebook event description claimed: “Since March 30th, 2018 tens of thousands of Palestinians have marched peacefully every Friday along the Gaza/Israel border…” A JVP Philly email promoting the event described it as “A Martyrology Inspired Memorial Teach-In.”
Approximately 30,000 Palestinians in Gaza approached Israel’s border on March 30, 2018 as part of the “March of Return,” which was organized and funded by Hamas. This was used as a campaign of violent protests to spotlight the Palestinian demand to “return” to Israel.
The “right of return” is a Palestinian demand discredited as a means to eliminate Israel.
JVP Philly retweeted a January 30, 2019 tweet by JVP that said: “Another day, another Palestinian child murdered Samah Mubarak was killed by the IDF [Israel Defense Forces] at a checkpoint for an alleged ‘knife attack’...”
On January 30, 2019, 16-year-old Samah Mubarak attempted to stab an Israeli security officer and was shot by Israeli Security forces.
On May 21, 2018, JVP Philly held a protest in support of the March of Return outside the office of U.S. Representative Brendan Boyle. JVP Philly posted to Facebook that they urged Boyle to “#standupforgaza.
In May 2018, terror group Hamas instigated violent riots on the Israeli-Gaza border. Thousands of rioters attempted to breach Israel’s border fence, declaring their intention to harm Jews across the border under the pretext of “peaceful resistance.”
At JVP Philly’s protest, a JVP Philly activist read from poetry by Dareen Tatour and led [00:00:20] the other JVP Philly protesters in chanting Tatour’s words: “resist, my people, resist them; resist, my people, resist them.”
In October 2015, Tatour was placed under house arrest for incitement to violence and for support of a terrorist organization on social media. Tatour had supported the terror group Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) and posted to Facebook: “I am the next shahid [martyr].”
JVP Philly tweeted from the May 21, 2018 protest, saying: “We mourn the deaths of all the Palestinians who have been murdered by the IDF [Israel Defense Forces] since the beginning of the #GreatReturnMarch. #Gaza.”
The majority of Gazans who died from March 30, 2018 to April 6, 2018 were confirmed as terror operatives, killed while rioting against Israeli forces, carrying out terrorist attacks or trying to infiltrate Israel by destroying the border fence on its border with Gaza.
On May 14, 2018, JVP Philly held a rally to condemn Israel’s response to the March of Return riots on the Israeli-Gaza border and to protest [00:03:30] the raising of the Israeli flag at Philadelphia’s City Hall.
JVP’s narrator of the event on its Facebook live stream said [00:00:23]: “we’re here ‘coz we think it’s a disgrace that our public officials are celebrating seventy years of occupation and apartheid and turning a blind eye to violence against unarmed protesters.”
Participants at the March sent kites bearing explosive devices across Israel’s border to burn Israeli crops and homes, threw Molotov cocktails and firebombs and shot firearms.
JVP activists displayed [00:01:38] a banner with the names of Palestinian protesters that had been killed between [00:07:36] March 30 and May 11, 2018. The narrator added [00:01:40] that they didn’t have time to include the names of another 50 Palestinians who had been killed at the May 14, 2021 Gaza border protest.
Salah al-Bardawil, a Hamas senior official, stated on May 16, 2018, that 50 out of 62 protesters killed during the May 14 Gaza border protest were Hamas operatives. Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) also claimed three killed at the same protest.
After the name of each Palestinian protester was read out at the JVP Philly rally, JVP activists chanted [00:08:25]: “was a freedom fighter and he taught us how to fight.”
On June 3, 2018, JVP Philly held a protest against the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) as part of JVP’s “Deadly Exchange” campaign.
In 2017, JVP launched the “Deadly Exchange (DX)” campaign, which accused American Jewish organizations of promoting human rights abuses. JVP also released a video that blamed [00:04:04] U.S.-based Jewish organizations for violence that occurs against Black and Brown communities, immigrants and activists in the U.S.
JVP Philly protested at the ADL’s annual “Walk Against Hate” event held to “celebrate diversity and challenge bigotry.” The ADL’s first Walk Against Hate took place in 2011 in Philadelphia.
As ADL representatives were speaking on stage at the event, JVP Philly activists stood [00:00:10] in front of the stage, holding a large banner that said: “ADL STOP THE HATE END POLICE XCHANGES W/ ISRAEL.”
JVP Philly also published a petition that claimed that U.S. participation in counter-terrorism seminars in Israel contributes to “the normalization of the Israel Defense Force’s daily brutality against the Palestinians.” The petition called for activists to “pledge to not participate in the Walk Against Hate...”
On March 14, 2017, JVP Philly posted to Facebook a JVP press release titled: “JEWISH VOICE FOR PEACE IS PROUD TO HOST PALESTINIAN ORGANIZER RASMEA ODEH.” JVP Philly commented: “A powerful, informative statement about the trials of Rasmea Odeh.”
Rasmea Odeh was a key military operative [00:02:08] with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) terrorist organization. In 1969, she masterminded a PFLP supermarket bombing that killed two college students. She also attempted to bomb the British consulate in Jerusalem. Odeh later moved to the United States but was deported to Jordan in 2017 for immigration fraud.
JVP’s statement, about featuring Odeh at their 2017 National Membership Meeting (NMM), referred to Odeh as a “deeply respected Palestinian organizer” and “feminist leader.”
The statement concluded: “Rasmea’s life is a story of Palestinian resilience: a story of persistence…building grassroots leadership…”
On April 5, 2017, JVP Philly posted a link to recorded sessions from the 2017 JVP NMM for those who didn’t attend and wrote: “We missed you so much! Check out Linda Sarsour, Rasmea Odeh, and more here--and hopefully we'll be together at 2019's NMM!”
Anti-Israel agitator Linda Sarsour frequently uses the word “Zionist” as a pejorative and has tweeted that “nothing is creepier than Zionism.” She has aligned with noted anti-Semite Louis Farrakhan, dismissed [00:07:45] those who see her alignment with Farrakhan as problematic and slammed the “Jewish Media” for calling attention to it.
Zionism is the belief that Jews have the right to self-determination in their own national home, and the right to develop their national culture. Zionism is a core part of the identity of most Jews.
On April 17, 2017, JVP Philly promoted on Facebook an article written by Marwan Barghouti titled: “Why We Are on Hunger Strike in Israel’s Prisons.”
Terrorist Marwan Barghouti was sentenced to five consecutive life terms for some of his crimes, including his role in the Sbarro Cafe bombing. In 2017, he initiated the hunger strike by Palestinian prisoners known as the “Dignity Strike.” He headed the Palestinian Authority (PA) terrorist Tanzim force and founded the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, which carried out many terror attacks against Israeli civilians.
On May 8, 2017, JVP Philly posted to Facebook, promoting a JVP event featuring then-JVP Executive Director Rebecca Vilkomerson interviewing Marwan Barghouti’s son, Aarab Barghouti, who started the “Saltwater Challenge” in support of the hunger strikers
On November 8, 2017, JVP Philly held a protest outside the Philadelphia offices of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) as part of JVP’s “Deadly Exchange” campaign.
In 2017, JVP launched the “Deadly Exchange (DX)” campaign, which accused American Jewish organizations of promoting human rights abuses. JVP also released a video that blamed [00:04:04] U.S.-based Jewish organizations for violence that occurs against Black and Brown communities, immigrants and activists in the U.S.
JVP Philly tweeted from the protest: “‘we're gonna rise up, rise up till it's gone!’” JVP Philly also tweeted a photo from the protest and wrote: “JVP Philly members try to deliver our petition to @ADLPhiladelphia, but are told no one will speak to us.”
JVP’s petition for the Deadly Exchange campaign said: “Do not host another National Counter Terrorism Seminar or Advanced Training School. Dispatching US law enforcement to trade tactics with Israeli police and military agents defends and deepens Israel's systems of military occupation, and exacerbates the existing crisis of police violence in the US.”
On October 22, 2017, JVP Philly held a protest against the ADL outside the International Association of Chiefs of Police Conference (IACP), where the ADL was a participant. JVP Philly posted to Facebook that the protest was staged in order “to demand that the ADL stop funding police exchange programs between the U.S. and Israel...”
The Facebook event page for the protest said: “These exchanges exacerbate racist police violence, militarization, and surveillance both here and in Israel/Palestine...”
JVP was founded in Berkeley, California in 1996, as an activist group with an emphasis on the “Jewish tradition” of peace, social justice and human rights. The organization is currently led by Rebecca Vilkomerson and its board members include Israel critics Naomi Klein, Judith Butler, Noam Chomsky and Tony Kushner.
JVP, which generally employs civil disobedience tactics to disrupt pro-Israel speakers and events, consists of American Jews and non-Jewish “allies” highly critical of Israeli policies. A staunch supporter of the BDS movement, JVP claims to aim its campaigns at companies that either support the Israeli military (Hewlett-Packard) or are active in the West Bank (SodaStream).
Although several Jewish groups critical of Israeli policies, like J Street and Partners for a Progressive Israel, make efforts to operate within the mainstream American Jewish community, JVP functions outside. The group is often criticized for serving as a tokenized Jewish voice for the pro-Palestinian camp and is widely regarded as the BDS movement’s “Jewish wing.”
JVP denies the notion of “Jewish peoplehood” and has even gone so far as to refer to its own Ashkenazi (Jews who spent the Diaspora in European countries) leadership as “white supremacy inside of JVP."
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has accused JVP of being “the largest and most influential Jewish anti-Zionist group in the United States,” and said the group “exploits Jewish culture and rituals to reassure its own supporters that opposition to Israel not only does not contradict, but is actually consistent with, Jewish values.”
The ADL also claimed that “JVP consistently co-sponsors rallies to oppose Israeli military policy that are marked by signs and slogans comparing Israel to Nazi Germany, demonizing Jews and voicing support for groups like Hamas and Hezbollah.”
According to the ADL website, JVP “uses its Jewish identity to shield the anti-Israel movement from allegations of anti-Semitism and provide it with a greater degree of legitimacy and credibility.”
The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement was founded by pro-terror activist Omar Barghouti in 2005 to turn “Israel into a pariah state, as South Africa once was.” Barghouti has also called for Israel's destruction and the BDS movement demands would result in that same goal.
BDS initiatives include calling on institutions and individuals to divest from Israeli-affiliated companies, promoting academic and cultural boycotts of Israel, and organizing anti-Israel rallies, protests and campaigns.
The movement’s most notable achievement has been infiltrating university campuses through lobbying for “BDS resolutions.” In these cases, student governments propose resolutions to boycott or divestment from Israel or Israeli-affiliated entities. BDS activity is often aggressive and disruptive. It has been noted that universities that pass BDS resolutions see a marked increase in anti-Semitic incidents and pro-terror activism on campus.
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