Join us for a conversation with Daniel Sokatch, author of Can We Talk About Israel? A Guide for the Curious, Confused, and Conflicted and CEO of the New Israel Fund. Sokatch’s book explores why so many people feel so strongly about Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Why does this issue alone turn some classic Jewish liberals into uber-conservatives? Why do compassionate and judicious intellectuals single Israel out for boycotts, sanctions, and a level of opprobrium they do not apply to the dozens of other state actors out there? Why do Evangelical Christians who have never even met actual Jews, or for whom Jews are basically souls to be saved, feel such fierce loyalty towards Israel? Why does it sometimes seem like Israel is the answer to “what’s wrong with the world” for half of the people in it, and “what’s right with the world” for the other half? To purchase the book, visit here or your local bookstore.

Since 2009, Daniel Sokatch has served as the CEO of the New Israel Fund (NIF), the leading organization advancing and defending democracy in Israel. Widely credited with building Israeli progressive civil society, NIF has provided over $300 million to more than 900 organizations since its inception in 1979. Before joining NIF, Daniel served as the Executive Director of the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin, and Sonoma Counties. Prior to his tenure at the Federation, he was the founding Executive Director of the Progressive Jewish Alliance (now Bend the Arc). In recognition of his leadership, Daniel has been named four times to the Forward newspaper’s "Forward 50," an annual list of the 50 leading Jewish decision-makers and opinion-shapers. He has contributed articles to leading newspapers and magazines, including The New York Times, Washington Post, the Forward, and Haaretz.

This program is cosponsored by the Lifelong Learning and Israel Committees of CBI, as well as J Street West Coast and by the Israel Peace Alternatives Group of Congregation Bet Haverim in Davis.

Please register below to attend in person. The program will also be available via Zoom.

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https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82137644157?pwd=bXVCWjFyL0JWUE5EcGk4YUF1a05RUT09

Meeting ID: 821 3764 4157, Passcode: CBI