Ginia Bellafante wrote about the absurd politicization of food coop purchases, where the extremist “BDS” boycott Movement (which, incidentally, even Norman Finkelstein recently exposed as being a “cult” that seeks to destroy and replace Israel with a Palestinian State, rather than a realistic solution of two states for two people) is seeking to ban Israeli grocery products from the shelves of the Park Slope Food Coop, and pro-Israeli groups are countering it, turning the whole experience of buying kale into an extraordinarily uncomfortable one.
In her story, Bellafante mentions PeaceWorks’ products, made through cooperative ventures among neighbors striving to coexist, including Israeli Jews, Israeli Arabs, Palestinians, Turks, and until recently, Egyptians. As the founder of PeaceWorks and the OneVoice Movement, I have noticed not just the silliness of those extremist efforts by BDS, but more so, the negative impact these fights have on the very Palestinian farmers these people purport to support. Never mind that Palestinian farmers have never heard of these BDS people, who out of the comfort of their armchairs in Berkeley, can afford to advocate extremist positions. What has happened over the last few years is that anti-Israel activists have begotten anti-Palestinian activists and both of these negative groups, rather than thinking how to strengthen moderates seeking peace on both sides and join forces to achieve a solution, have instead attacked one another publicly and sought to boycott each other’s products at grocery stores across the USA. Consequently, many friends of mine in the grocery industry are uncomfortable importing Palestinian products or promoting Palestinian or Israeli products, hurting the very people that need this trade most. Retailers just don’t want to be dealing with these extremists and the headaches they bring.
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