From Mearsheimer and Walt to the birth of J Street.

In March 2006 two prominent academics; Professor John Mearsheimer of the University of Chicago and Professor Stephen Walt of Harvard University published what has been described as the most controversial essay in International Relations discourse since Samuel Huntington’s widely celebrated work, The Clash of Civilizations.

The essay that was originally commissioned and then rejected by the Atlantic Monthly had a simple objective and that was to discuss the impact of the Israel lobby on US foreign policy. While at face value and certainly to many IR scholars outside the US the topic is nothing new and a many conversations and articles have opined on its intricacies. In the US, however, the article unleashed a firestorm, indeed one does not exaggerate when saying that nothing like it has ever been published certainly not by two intellectuals – agree with them or not – of the stature of Mearsheimer and Walt.

The title of their groundbreaking piece was appropriately enough, The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy. Their hypothesis was equally non-radical, after describing the impressive degree of material and diplomatic support the US provides to Israel, the writers argue that this support cannot be understood or explained on strategic or moral grounds. Indeed they state that “it was due largely to the political power of the Israel lobby, a loose coalition of individuals and groups that seeks to influence American foreign policy in ways that will benefit Israel”. They go on to explain that not only does the lobby encourage and pressure the US government into providing unequivocal and unconditional support to Israel, it has played an influential role in shaping foreign policy towards the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the invasion of Iraq, the confrontation with Syria and the Iranian stand-off. Their final assertion is that the policies pursued have in fact been detrimental to both countries’ long-term interest.

The response to the piece was predictably fiery. As foreseen by the writers, charges of anti-Semitism were levelled against them. Their essay was erroneously criticized for its supposed factual and historical omissions that, in the view of their critics, weakened their argument. Indeed much of what has been said about Mearsheimer and Walt corresponds with the vitriol leveled against former president Jimmy Carter for his book, Palestine Peace not Apartheid. While many academics around the world, and I stress this point purposefully, lauded the book for its moral courage and encouraged the discussion around an issue key to US foreign policy but seldom openly discoursed, the reception it received in the US was far from positive. At least in the traditional circles of foreign policy and security studies.

However, something changed in the perception, a seismic shift not only in the way Americans perceived their special relationship with Israel but, more pointedly, in the way American Jews related to the lobby that has historically assumed a prominent role in supposedly representing their wishes. Although the lobby is made up of numerous individuals and groups, its most vocal voice is the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. A hard-line organizations whose membership includes a vast catalogue of right-wing neoconservative military hawks. For too long they have been the pro-Israel group with the most influential voice, they have as the writers outline pressured consecutive American governments to provide an uncritical cover for Israel. This support has obviously manifested itself in favorable military aid grants, an automatic veto of any resolution condemning Israeli aggression at the Security Council, and an unrelenting stream of funds to subsidize anything from expanding settlements to the development of more “effective” cluster bombs.

Today though the tide is changing. While many decried the piece as anti-Semitic and bigoted, it received respectful and favorable reviews from traditional pro-Israel outlets including The New York Times and Israeli newspaper Haaretz. The more encouraging development though was the debate born out of an attempt by two academics to discuss the ultimate taboo in American politics. Whether or not they are included in the ensuing debate is irrelevant. What is important, however, is that more people, American and Jewish are discussing the influence of the lobby, its hawkish policies, and its ultra-conservative slant, evaluating whether or not these positions and policies promoted by organizations like AIPAC truly benefit the long-term interests of the US and Israel.

The reality, is that they do not. As a result, an organization long overdue has been created. J Street was founded to promote meaningful American leadership to end the Arab-Israeli and Palestinian-Israeli conflicts peacefully and diplomatically. They support a new direction for American policy in the Middle East and a broad public and policy debate about the US’ role in the region.

The organization has won the backing of many individuals with extensive experience in the region including; Former Israeli Foreign Minister and Public Security Minister Shlomo Ben Ami, Former US Sentaor Lincoln Chafee, Maria Echaveste Former Deputy White House Chief of Staff, Sara Ehrman Former Political Education Director at AIPAC, Robert Greenwald from Brave New Films, Robert Pastor Former Senior Director of the National Security Council, Eli Paster Executive Director of MoveOn.org, Kevin Quigley President of the National Peace Corps Association. View more supporters of J Street here.

The organization has openly rejected the kind of support the traditional Israel lobby has solicited from the US government in claiming to represent American Jews:

One of its current campaigns is “Don’t go, Joe!”, its aim to get Sen. Joseph Lieberman to withdraw his commitment to speak Pastor John Hagee’s Israel Summit in July in Washington D.C. Sign the petition.

The organisation is already facing an uphill battle. It has taken challenge, it is going to change the political map in Washington and with it the Middle East map, but before it does that it’s going to face a hell of fight from the tradition Israel lobby, they have already begun their efforts, J Street will only survive with our support. Sign up to the J Street newsletter here and help put a pro-Israel, pro-Peace voice in Washington by donating.