Harvard Students for Israel Clarify Stance

To the editors:

On behalf of Harvard Students for Israel (HSI), I am deeply offended by The Crimson's characterization of our organization in "Hillel Issues its Stance on Mideast" (News, Oct. 18). This piece asserts that HSI's "members' opinions tend to be less sympathetic to the Palestinian cause," and it suggests that HSI does not want to reach out to the Arab and Moslem communities on campus in an effort for dialogue and understanding.

First of all, HSI as an organization is founded on one assertion only: the right of the Jewish nation to exist as a sovereign power in its historic homeland. We are not affiliated with any political or religious movements or organizations in Israel or abroad; we are an affiliated group of Harvard Hillel only.

As such, there exists no basis for making claims about what our opinions "tend to be." As the only person authorized to send messages to our e-mail list (which is the only means of contacting our large membership), I know that the Crimson did not take a poll of HSI membership. Therefore, the article must be basing this claim on assumptions or hearsay, neither of which has a place in an objective news article. Our members' views range greatly across the political and ideological spectra on all issues.

But what does the article mean by the vague phrase, "the Palestinian cause," to which it claims HSI members are unsympathetic? Is this referring to the hope for a Palestinian state that is determined to live in peace with Israel? If so, I would suggest that many of HSI's members are not simply "sympathetic" to, but rather are sincerely supportive of "the Palestinian cause." Or is it referring to the use of violent riots and mobs against Israeli soldiers and civilians? If this is "the Palestinian cause," then I concede that HSI members probably oppose Palestinians' using violence instead of negotiation as a means to achieve their goals. I would like to think that we are not anomalous in this regard.

Finally, the article suggests that unlike Harvard Hillel's Interethnic Committee, HSI is uninterested in having joint programs with Harvard's Society of Arab Students (SAS). This is entirely false; we very much desire such events and have been in continued coordination with Hillel's Interethnic Committee with this goal.

Unfortunately, in past years, SAS has refused to co-sponsor events with HSI. As soon as SAS agrees, HSI will gladly co-sponsor discussion events with SAS. We believe deeply in the value of dialogue and are committed to maintaining a peaceful and open environment for all on Harvard's campus.