For anyone who has doubts about Israel, clear them; Israel is not going to go anywhere, Roey Gilad, Israel’s Consul General to the Midwest, said on the University of Wisconsin campus Thursday evening.
Gilad, who spent a day in Madison visiting the Wisconsin Institute of Discovery and meeting with Chancellor Rebecca Blank, spoke about Israel’s challenges in the current Middle Eastern climate in an event at UW Hillel.
“I don’t think any challenge can bring down the state of Israel,” Gilad said, citing the immediate Palestinian conflict, regional unrest and growing tensions with Iran.
However, despite optimism about Israel’s ability to cope with regional conflicts, in an interview with The Badger Herald Gilad said the state of Judaism in the United States is “very worrying.”
According to a recent Pew Research Center study, Judaism in the United States is on the decline–primarily among the younger generations. In 2013, 32 percent of Jewish people born after 1980 said they did not identify with the religion, the report said.
Gilad said he understands with all of the challenges facing the state, their is a “big” temptation to ignore events in Israel, however added that Israel is a defining feature of Jewish life.
“Maybe… Israel is less attractive to young Jewish people,” Gilad said. “But I say the life of a young Jew in the United States cannot be full, even if he is very successful and very rich, he has a great job and a great family, yet I really believe he cannot fulfill his life as a modern Jewish student or youngster in the United States if he lacks any affiliation with the state of Israel.”
Although emphasizing Israel’s strong economy, Gilad confirmed the reality of an apparent “brain drain” from Israel to the United States, citing his own brother who works in academia in San Diego.
However, according to Gilad, if the Israeli diaspora community stays in dialogue with Israel, this “brain drain” is an asset to the state, adding that dialogue includes criticism.
Nonetheless, Gilad said the American perception of Israel remains strong—much stronger than in European nations.
Previously the head of the Political Affairs Department in Israel’s Embassy in London, Gilad said he attributes Europe’s less positive view of Israel to the “impact of the Muslim constituency” and “strong liberal voice.”
However, this was not to say that the conservative voice in the United States is the only party carrying Israel’s message, noting that J-Street, a liberal pro-Israel, pro-peace advocacy group and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee are both “legitimate voices” in the country.
Gilad said the only mistake J-Street made concerning the “Iranian challenge” was “deciding to divide the Jewish community.”
According to Gilad, Americans and Israelis have “similar DNA” and as long as the Jewish people remain connected with the state of Israel, the relationship will remain strong.
“Generally speaking America’s support has been a corner stone of our strategic stability… and let alone the Jewish support in the United States,” Gilad said. “If… there is an erosion here, it is a dangerous erosion. It is not that Israel cannot do without the United States, Israel can do. But I think it can do much better if we have the United States with us.”
Read The Badger Herald’s full Q&A with Gilad here.
