I have very little patience for people who tell me what I am and am not allowed to talk about. I was disgusted when people who were against the war in Iraq were told they ought not to state their views because by so doing they were being unpatriotic. I believe it was a dark day for free expression when, in early November of last year, CBS succumbed to pressure criticizing it for an honest portrayal of President Reagan's homophobia, and cancelled its miniseries The Reagans. It makes me nervous when I am told to keep my mouth shut and never offer criticism of Israel lest I be labeled anti-Semitic. The salience of these events hit me when I read Rachael Silverman's letter in last week's Justice, which implied that providing a neutral forum for discussing of divestment from Israel is anti-Semitic in nature. I am not pro-divestment. In fact, I don't think anybody on the Brandeis debate team is pro-divestment, but I do acknowledge that certain actions taken by the Israeli government are not unambiguously justifiable. The fact that books like Alan Dershowitz's A Case for Israel exist goes to show that there are points of contention to be debated and policies taken by Israel that need to be examined critically.

Some believe that Israel represents the Jewish people and attacking it is an indirect way to mount a criticism of the Jewish people. It is for this very reason that people claim criticism of Israel is anti-Semitic. However it is also a reason why others do not want the government which represents them to engage in practices that they believe convey a less than desirable image of themselves and their people to rest of the world.

These people ought not to be ignored and made afraid to speak on behalf of the country they love. Their viewpoints ought to be engaged not excommunicated. Those who disagree with them should be interested in a forum both as an opportunity to hear how their fellow Jews and non-Jews, people who love Israel, defend a policy that admittedly harms the country they love. Such a forum also acts as an opportunity to persuade those who believe in divestment that, indeed, Israel's actions are justifiable.

Whether or not you think that either view is legitimate (or that both are reprehensible), a forum allows exchange of ideas; it allows ideas that are erroneous to be debunked, and it allows people to express their opinions openly to one another. Debate about gay marriage is not homophobic, debate about the Iraqi war is not unpatriotic, and debate about divestment in Israel is certainly not anti-Semitic.

Whether or not you agree or disagree with the practices taken by Israel, you must acknowledge that there are people who feel that certain practices in Israel are unacceptable and, as a result, argue for divestment. You can respond by declaring any discourse to be anti-Semitic, in which case people will persist in believing that divestment is appropriate, or you can act to engage their opinion and help to produce constructive dialogue.

Editor's Note: Andrew Bragin '04 is the President of the Brandeis Debate and Speech Society