Zionism’s Original Vision By A Schindler Jew’s Son
What happens when a political movement’s original intentions become overshadowed by decades of conflict, competing historical narratives, and deeply rooted prejudice? As the son of a Holocaust survivor, who was on “Schindler’s List,” I have spent much of my life confronting a similar question about the beliefs I inherited from my mother. In my memoir, In the Midst of Darkness, I explain how her experiences of Nazi persecution and loss of her entire family – both parents, four sisters and a brother in Auschwitz and the Belzec death camps shaped my brother’s and my understanding of Germans, particularly our German stepmother, without allowing us to discover the full truth for ourselves.
Today, I see important parallels in the increasingly polarized debate surrounding Zionism, Israel, and Palestinian rights. To understand this debate, I believe we must begin by examining what Zionism originally sought to achieve rather than relying exclusively on how the movement is portrayed through contemporary political conflict.
Theodor Herzl, David Ben-Gurion, and the Promise of Equality
Modern political Zionism, associated with Theodor Herzl in the late nineteenth century, emerged partly in response to centuries of Jewish vulnerability, discrimination, and persecution. Its central objective was to secure Jewish national self-determination through the establishment of a homeland where Jewish people could live without depending entirely upon the protection of other governments.
When David Ben-Gurion proclaimed Israel’s independence on May 14, 1948, the founding declaration expressed aspirations that extended beyond Jewish national security. It guaranteed complete equality of social and political rights to all inhabitants, irrespective of religion, race, or sex, alongside freedom of religion, conscience, language, education, and culture. These commitments presented an ideal of a democratic society where Jewish self-determination could coexist with universal civic rights.
That founding promise is central to my understanding of Zionism. Although inequalities affecting Palestinian Arab citizens and other communities have existed, and government policies can vary significantly depending on the political leadership, those inequalities should be examined against the declaration’s stated commitment to equality. At the same time, Palestinian opposition to Zionism cannot be understood without acknowledging the displacement, dispossession, and loss of homeland experienced by Palestinians in 1948.
How Political Narratives Can Become Inherited Prejudice
Recent anti-Zionist protests, including those surrounding New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and an October 7 coexistence gathering, demonstrate how emotionally charged these debates have become. Mamdani’s criticism of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, including his use of the term genocide, reflects a position that remains deeply contested politically and legally.
I am concerned when opposition to Israeli government policies becomes generalized condemnation of Israeli Jews or Jewish people collectively. However, criticism of Zionism, support for Palestinian self-determination, and allegations concerning military conduct should not automatically be equated with antisemitism.
My mother could not make similar distinctions about Germans. After surviving the Holocaust and losing all of her family, she taught my brother and me to associate German identity with Nazi persecution. Her resentment intensified when my father left her for Kathy, a German woman, and her hatred became the foundation of our childhood perceptions.
The extraordinary contradiction was that my mother had survived through the actions of Oskar Schindler, a Nazi Party member who helped save Jewish lives. I did not discover this until 1993, five years after her death in synagogue on Yom Kippur day from my father after the Rabbi’s sermon was the story of Schindler’s List (the film’s debut would be six weeks later). I have often wondered how differently I might have grown up, let alone what happened to my brother, if we had known.
Remembering the Original Promise
Israel’s Declaration of Independence provides an important standard for evaluating its government’s actions, just as the historical experiences of Palestinians must remain part of any serious discussion about equality and national rights. The original declaration’s promise was not that political conflict would disappear, but that citizenship and fundamental rights would not depend upon religion, race, or sex.
My childhood taught me the consequences of allowing inherited perceptions to replace individual judgment. I believe we must examine political claims with the same willingness to question assumptions, distinguish people from governments, and recognize that no community should be defined solely by the actions of others.
The Need for the Truth
The memoir I’d written explores how my mother’s Holocaust experiences shaped decades of resentment, family conflict, and inherited prejudice. Through my relationship with my German stepmother and the revelation that Oskar Schindler saved my mother’s life, I confront the devastating consequences of learning to hate before understanding the truth.
