If you don’t stand up for yourself, then why even bother standing at all?

I’d rather die standing, than live on my knees: those are the brave words said by Stéphane Charbonnier, not long before he was murdered by terrorists at the Charlie Hebdo office.

I live by those words. This is the reason why I started blogging on The Times of Israel. That’s why I started my website and my Facebook page. This is the reason why I so stubbornly try to fight back, even though it feels more than hopeless sometimes. Someone once asked me why I even bother, because “no matter what we do, they’ll hate us anyway”. I honestly don’t understand that attitude. If you don’t stand up for yourself, then why even bother standing at all? I understand the frustration though. I feel it everyday. We’re not talking about a few Jew-hating, Israel-bashing nut jobs here (I could live with that), but an entire frigging movement! The extreme Left teaming up with Islamists, the aggressive BDS-movement, the media with their biased and twisted headlines… They talk about a Jewish conspiracy but who are we kidding here? If anything, it’s a conspiracy against us!

And after reading another vile comment thread on Facebook, I wonder if things are getting worse or the haters louder – or both? Where do they all come from? You write something positive about Israel, and they pop up like weed in an instant. It’s always the same: “I don’t hate Jews, just Zionists. I have Jewish friends.” “Israelis are like Nazis.” “Israel is an apartheid state.” “You murder babies, you stole the land from the Palestinians – no wonder people hate you!” “Go back to Poland!” I’ve heard it all a thousand times before, and know from experience that there’s no point in arguing with these knuckleheads. They will never change. They have their minds set up, and the truth is not important to them. They’ve all read the Pro-Palestinian Propaganda Bible and believe every word of it.

So what do we do? How do we reach the ones who are undecided on the matter? How can we make them hear our voice and not just the voice of the haters (and clearly they are the loudest and most organized)? How do we get away from the point where we are constantly defending ourselves to the point when we don’t have to, because the voice of sanity and truth is finally louder and clearer than that of the other side?

I admit it, I’m exhausted. I’ve been doing this for so long, and I can’t see an end to it – they are getting louder and louder and more aggressive. It’s hard to stay positive and keep on fighting. But then again, what choice do I have? What choice do you have? We fight or we die, right? But sometimes I just want to sit down and throw my hands in the air and scream: F*ck it! They drain you of energy with their comments, their boycotts, their battle cries and their lies. It’s like the devil is rewarding their ignorance and hate by giving them extra energy. I’m tired of them constantly attacking us. So damn tired! They are too many! Too loud!

To all of you who are fighting everyday: thank you from the bottom of my heart for standing up for Jews and for Israel and for the truth! Thank you for standing up for democracy, freedom of speech, women’s rights and all that makes this country great. Thank you for shining your light in a world that gets darker and darker. Your voice is important, don’t ever forget that.

Love, Anna

Ps. If anyone says differently (and they will), remember this: Zionism is nothing more – but also nothing less – than the Jewish people’s sense of origin and destination in the land linked eternally with its name. It is also the instrument whereby the Jewish nation seeks an authentic fulfillment of itself.