From Zionist to Anti-Zionist: Memories, Dreams, and Visions of Peace

As events in the Middle East have unfolded from the attacks on Israel to the horrors of Gaza, together with the spread of military confrontation in Lebanon, Syria, and Iran, the state of Israel has come to face unprecedented criticism of its actions. In return, both the political leadership of Zionist Israel and many influential members of the world Jewish community have been vehement in labelling any who dare criticise Israel’s military actions as ‘anti-Semitic’ or worse. 

Moreover, the death and destruction in the Middle East has polarised public opinion into a black and white, aggressive viewpoint, where Jews are either labelled as party to genocide or the innocent victims of Islamic terror, fighting for their very survival. Many Western Christians have also joined this pernicious mix, condemning anyone who dares criticise Israel or the Jews for the unfolding slaughter, as a hater of God’s chosen people.  

Yet amongst the sad and tragic killing and destruction, there are voices calling for understanding and dialogue as the start of a path to peace. Importantly, these voices also come from within the world Jewish community itself. In trying to engage with these dissenting Jewish voices, however, I have found that many individuals are nervous about speaking out, some because of the backlash from the Jewish state and its security apparatus, and some because of real and perceived hatred against anyone identifying as a Jew. 

Against this backdrop, I am delighted to now be able to introduce an audio interview with a brave and quietly outspoken member of the Jewish community. Lynne Lopez-Salzedo is an author, poet, and activist who now lives in Scotland. Lynne is a member of the Radical Poets Collective and the Jewish Voice for Peace.

In arranging this interview, I have been able to learn much from Lynne about her life, experiences, and memories unfolding from her roots as a child born into a Zionist family. I am particularly grateful for her trust in myself and UK Column, as well as her courage in deciding to agree to an interview with us about personal aspects of being Jewish in a Zionist era. As an exploratory first interview, we very much hope that we will do more with both Lynne herself and other Jewish people who are prepared to speak out for peace. 

We are delighted that Lynne agreed to read out her poignant poem ‘Forests of Deception’ during the interview. Her emotive words frame the true purpose of the Jewish National Fund forests, under which lay massacred Palestinians and their abandoned villages. Lynne describes the forest planting schemes as an attempt to whitewash Israeli crimes. She adds that her poem about trees is actually a deeper poem about the Nakba; the expulsion and flight of a claimed 750,000 Palestinians during the 1948 establishment of the state of Israel. The text of the poem follows.

If I had known what lay beneath the forests
what lay beneath the fields of imported flowers
if I had only known

the voices of the dispossessed
                                                 silenced
by men of a certain class
lounging comfortably in overstuffed chairs
as befits a man of privilege
puffing on thick cigars
as they drew arbitrary lines on a map
of land not theirs to give away

and the land cried out
like raw meat
                    bleeding 
beneath the butchers knife

now I hear them
children who spoke an unfamiliar language 
mothers dressed as our ancestors dressed
I hear the guns rapport
I smell the burning flesh

those who survived
still carry the keys to their stolen homes
hold dear in memory
their martyred children

the saplings grew into trees
covered the buried villages in their green embrace
signs were placed in unfamiliar lettering
at every entrance and exit

a story was concocted
just like in a Hollywood movie
lies became truth
truth became lies

forests of deception
planted with alien seeds
but the earth still remembers

is anything still true
is anything even true anymore
what is the price of truth these days?

memories return like silenced ghosts
under the watchful gaze of the sentinel stars

and through it all
the white bird flies
across the concrete wall

still singing
still singing

©️ Lynne Lopez-Salzedo 

Lynne also wished to highlight the following notes for listeners:

The JNF Forests

The Jewish National Fund’s forests advance the Zionist project by concealing the true history of Israel-Palestine. The saplings referred to were planted to cover over the remains of destroyed Palestinian villages. The seeds used were not native to the region. The alien seeds and the new Hebrew names and signposts also obscured the evidence of a vibrant prior culture that had been decimated.

The Yinon/Eretz Yisrael Plan

The Greater Israel project was always intended by the Zionists. This is why Israel never agreed to define its borders. We see the plan in action right now, as Israel now extends into Syria and Lebanon; if not stopped, Israel will also invade surrounding countries such as Egypt and Jordan. 

Israel’s aim has always been to erase all traces of Palestinian culture and history, just as is now being done in Gaza and elsewhere. 

Israel as a Spiritual State

In Hebrew, ‘Israel’ can mean ‘He who wrestles with God’. This is a spiritual state and refers to the transformation of Jacob into Israel. The idea of Israel as a spiritual rather than a physical place is also found in Christianity. This is in direct contradiction to the Zionist idea of Israel as an ethnocentric State and a material place, where the worship of the land and the state apparatus has all but replaced traditional Judaism.

Engineering the ‘New Jew’

The Zionist plan to engineer a ‘New Jew’ was quite deliberate. Zionists rejected traditional Judaism, and decided to reinvent the Jews as strong and muscular, and capable of their own self-defence. This was in part a reaction to the Nazi Holocaust. 

Aliyah: Return/Ascent to the Holy Land

According to Jewish law, Jews are not allowed to return to Israel until God decides to end their exile. The Zionists have decided to take matters into their own hands, rather than be obedient to God’s will. Many rabbinical authorities believe that taking the land by force, rather than obeying God’s will, can only end in tragedy. 

Please do listen in to this poignant and revealing interview with Lynne Lopez-Salzedo to understand more of the reality and nuances of being Jewish in a dangerous world.