We are both proud veterans who have served honorably in conflicts abroad; We are also Jews who strongly support the existence of the State of Israel, a safe haven for Jews.

We grew up in liberal Jewish enclaves on the Upper West Side of New York City and the northern suburbs of Chicago, respectively.

We both come from families fleeing pogroms, the Holocaust and fascism in Europe. The long history of antisemitism is why Israel has always remained a haven for Jews around the world.

Our loyalty is also uniquely American. Our rights and security as Jews are protected under the Constitution. We took an oath to support and defend the Constitution and joined the military out of patriotism and duty. One of us was almost killed in an IED attack in Iraq.

Our parents were initially less than enthusiastic about our desire to join the military after college; We were not from parts of the country where voluntary military service was common. But they felt as indebted to America as we do, for giving our families new life at a time when global Jewry was in great despair. We made them proud with our military service.

We can both say that we have never experienced anti-Semitism while in uniform. Steve served as an Army engineer and deployed twice to Iraq, and Andrea continues to serve in the Reserves as a Navy intelligence officer on multiple missions. Historically, us army It hasn’t always been a hospitable place for Jews, but in 2024 we feel more supported and safer by our military friends and colleagues than in traditional liberal spaces and some college campuses (even our own Harvard).

Since the terrible incident on October 7, 2023 Hamas After the terrorist attack on Israeli civilians, including dozens of American citizens, the progressive political environment that once supported us fell silent.

Tikkun Olam–Repairing the world is a Jewish value. Jews have historically been ardent supporters of civil rights, the protection of LGBTQ+ individuals, and reproductive rights. But in contrast, the progressive community has largely abandoned liberal Jews who support Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish State, asking Jews to reject the Jewish homeland in order to exist in these areas. The definition of Zionism has been deliberately distorted and chosen to fit an anti-Semitic narrative.

The irony here is that Jews have been fighting for these rights since the Civil Rights era and long before. After all, the Labor movement was partly founded by Jews. The harsh reality is that if Hamas becomes the ruling government, as we hear at rallies and on college campuses chanting “River to Sea,” LGBTQ+ individuals will lose their rights and potentially lose their lives, and there will be no access to abortion. care.

On Veterans Day, many Americans say “thank you for your service” to those who wear the uniform. This Veterans Day, we ask for: Democrats And Republicans They reject extreme and anti-Semitic voices coming from their own party’s circles.

We must also recognize that today’s vitriolic anti-Zionist rhetoric is implicit anti-Semitism. Portraying Jews who returned to their ancestral homeland after the most horrific genocide of the modern era as colonialists (when Jews were indigenous to the Middle East) is shameful and destroys Jews’ unbroken ties to the Land of Israel.

It is not right to criticize the Prime Minister Benjamin NetanyahuJust as it is fair to point out our failures in Iraq and Afghanistan, so is his government’s and Israel’s conduct in the war against Hamas. But based on our own military experience in combating terrorists in the urban environment, we understand and accept the measures the IDF has taken to reduce harm to civilians in nearly impossible conditions against an enemy prepared to sacrifice its own civilian population for the purpose of destroying its own civilian population. State of Israel.

Unfortunately, lacking a basic understanding of the laws of war, advocates against gender-based violence, primarily on the left, downplayed the rape of Jewish women, and many openly wore and supported or stood by those who wore Hamas and Hezbollah. terrorist outfit. It is un-American to support these groups. Hezbollah is responsible for the killing of scores of Americans, including 240 Marines, in Lebanon in 1983. On October 7, Hamas kidnapped and executed Americans attending a music festival. Houthis in Yemen opened fire on US Navy warships in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea. Sea.

This newfound affinity for Islamic terrorist groups is reprehensible, especially coming from progressive fields and elite universities that pride themselves on defending human rights.

Our message on behalf of tens of thousands of Jewish veterans is that we are here to stay and we will not stand idly by and allow antisemitism to grow and fester. We want Americans from all walks of life—Democrats, Republicans, and Independents—to work together as allies to remove this rot from our political discourse.

Service to the greater good is the principle that brought us both to the military’s door. We view eradicating intolerance as a social struggle and one in which we must prevail for the benefit of all Americans. Historically, nations that turned a blind eye to antisemitism, such as the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany, became brutal, inhospitable, and outdated ash heaps.

Now we have to find the right path.

Andrea N. Goldstein was an active-duty Navy officer from 2009-2016 and continues to serve in the Reserves. He deployed three times, twice on ships and once in Naval Special Warfare (SEALs). He was a senior Congressional staffer and senior appointee in the Biden-Harris Administration at the Department of Defense.

Steven Katz was an active duty officer from 2003-2009. He served two tours of duty in ground combat leadership positions in Iraq: 2004-2005 in Tikrit and 2006-2007 in Ramadi.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Department of Defense, members of Congress or the U.S. Government, or Newsweek. These are the authors’ own.