Hannah Einbinder, Don’t Give Up on Us Israelis

When I heard Hannah Einbinder declare at the Emmy Awards that she feels an obligation “as a Jewish person to distinguish Jews from the state of Israel,” I felt deep sadness. Not anger—sadness. It felt as though she had given up on us, Israelis. At a time when we are facing tragic circumstances—both from external enemies and from internal failures of leadership—we long for support from our Jewish family abroad, not distance.

Today, Israelis live under a double assault. Externally, we face rockets, terror, and global delegitimization. Internally, we are locked in fierce debates about the democratic ideals and human values many of us hold dear. For ordinary Israelis, this reality is exhausting and frightening. We spend nights running to shelters when sirens sound. Many of us have loved ones serving on the front lines, some of whom have not come home. Our democracy, once a source of pride, feels fragile.

And yet, despite all this, tens of thousands of Israelis continue to march in the streets, demanding an end to the war in Gaza, the safe return of our hostages, and a future that prioritizes peace and justice. In the midst of fear and uncertainty, this is nothing short of extraordinary.

So when Jewish voices abroad separate themselves from Israel as though the country is only its government, when they say, “That state does not represent me,” it is disturbing, almost offensive. Because Israel is not just its leaders. Israel is its people. And among those people are countless individuals risking everything to build a different future. If there is a separation to be made, it is not between Jews and Israel – it is between Israel’s leadership and its citizens.

Let’s be clear: Israelis themselves are often the government’s harshest critics. Week after week, tens of thousands of us fill the streets of Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Haifa to protest. We shout against the collapse of democracy. We demand accountability for the failures that led to war. We plead for policies that value human life – Israeli and Palestinian – over political survival. Our voices are loud, but they are often drowned out abroad by the simplistic narrative that equates Israel with its government, or worse, with the most extreme policies pursued in its name.

That is why Einbinder’s words sting. To draw a line between Jews and Israel is to erase the lived reality of millions of Jews who are Israel. It suggests that Israel is something foreign, something other, rather than the home of half the world’s Jewish population. It ignores the fact that, for all our flaws and struggles, Israel remains a place where Jewish life in all its richness thrives – religious and secular, left and right, Ashkenazi and Mizrahi, old immigrants and new.

Of course, criticism of Israel is not only legitimate but necessary. Many Israelis, myself included, criticize our leaders daily. But there is a difference between criticizing policies and disowning the very connection between Jews and Israel. For us, in the middle of a brutal war, such disowning feels like abandonment.

The truth is, Israelis do not need more condemnation from the Jewish world. We have plenty of that already, both from our enemies and from ourselves. What we need is recognition and support for the majority of Israelis who see the tragic reality unfolding in Gaza and in Israel and who long to bring it to an end. We need our Jewish brothers and sisters abroad to stand with us as we call for the release of hostages, for new leadership, for peace.

Israel today is a nation in crisis. But it is also a nation of resilience, of protest, of hope. When Jews abroad distance themselves from us, they strengthen the extremists on both sides who insist that peace and partnership are impossible. When they stand with us – with the ordinary Israelis who fight daily for a better future – they strengthen the very forces that can bring about change.

Hannah, and all Jews watching from afar: do not separate yourselves from us. Criticize us, yes. Challenge us. Hold us accountable. But do not abandon us. For Israel is not just its government – it is its people. And those people, bruised but unbroken, are still fighting for a tomorrow worth believing in.