By Daniel Sokatch, NIF CEO

What does it mean to be "pro-Israel?"  At NIF, we have always known that supporting Israel is about more than soundbites and slogans.  It's about more than writing a check or planting a tree.  It is about rolling up our sleeves and, in Israel and the Diaspora, working to realize the Jewish, democratic and universal values enshrined in Israel's Declaration of Independence. 

Over the past thirty years, our way of supporting Israel has been embraced by tens of thousands of people across the world.  It has helped build a vibrant civil society that has strengthened Israeli democracy. 

It was thus very gratifying, but not entirely surprising, to see the outpouring of support for NIF - in Israel, the US and beyond, and from all points on the political spectrum - in response to the outrageous smear campaign that was waged against us last month.  In particular, the attack on our Board President, Naomi Chazan, by extreme right-wingers in Israel, demonstrated that they would stoop to anything to further their real agenda:  silence dissent and intimidate voices speaking out for human and civil rights, social and economic justice and religious pluralism.  

Those who attacked us hoped to delegitimize NIF and the organizations we support.  And while smear campaigns can be effective, for a time, in demonizing their targets, in the end truth will come out, sometimes in the least likely of places.  Speaking last week to a group of Jews in Melbourne, Australia (a community that had followed the attacks on NIF closely), I asked how many people had heard of NIF prior to the current controversy.  Only about 1/3 of those in attendance had.  I then asked how many people had heard the NIF side of the story.  Almost nobody had.  But when I was done speaking, I was overwhelmed by the enthusiastic support voiced by those in attendance for NIF and the work we support.   

But being pro-Israel also means more than speaking out against those who would delegitimize NIF and the precious values it stands for.  It also means speaking out against those who would delegitimize Israel's very existence. 

This week, some of those voices are promoting an "Israel Apartheid Week" on college campuses and elsewhere, aiming to promote the movement for boycotts, sanctions and divestment (BDS) from Israel.  We couldn't disagree more.  NIF opposes the BDS movement, and we have voiced our objections within our own family of organizations as well.  While we support an end to the occupation of Palestinian territories as a central tenet of the strategic framework in which we operate, we believe that BDS tactics are inappropriate, unproductive and ineffective, and serve primarily to delegitimize Israel, not end the occupation or promote human rights and social justice.

In addition, we deeply disagree with the use of "apartheid" in the Israeli context.  It is a historically inaccurate and inflammatory term that serves only to demonize Israel and alienate a majority of Jews around the world, including those who care deeply about issues of democracy, human rights, social justice and peace. 

In the end, we believe that "Israel Right or Wrong" and "Israel Is Always Wrong" are both wrong.  There is a third way, and that is to work for an Israel that is right.  That is the NIF way.  And that is pro-Israel.