How Jamaal Bowman Lost My Vote | Opinion

My first interplay with Jamaal Bowman was in 2021. I used to be advocating for faculties to totally re-open after they closed within the early days of the pandemic. A yr later, many had been nonetheless closed or working with dysfunctional hybrid schedules, but it was not doable to disregard the detrimental toll distant “studying” was having on essentially the most weak youngsters in our communities. Many different international locations and states had already reopened faculties, or had by no means closed them, and as an important employee, I used to be nicely conscious that the chance of COVID-19 to children was minimal. I joined a bunch of fogeys desperately making an attempt to get weak children again to high school.

We repeatedly reached out to our congressman, Jamaal Bowman. However he was the other of receptive. When he did reply to our queries, it was with a flippant tone, like many different progressives. He would generally reply to us on Twitter, and I bear in mind him saying that it was higher for teenagers to be affected by being out of college than for them to be lifeless, or for his or her academics to get sick.

That is true, in fact, and I’m conscious Rep. Bowman suffered his personal COVID losses. But the way in which by which he minimized our considerations as mother and father was notable. And he continued to toe the college lockdown line, even after academics had been prioritized for the vaccine.

I did not assume a lot about him after that—till October 7. That is when his flippant disregard for the considerations of fogeys curdled into one thing far more sinister, and I may not prolong the good thing about the doubt to him.

A mere month after Hamas’ brutal assault in opposition to Israel, throughout which militants mass murdered and mass raped, burning males, ladies, and youngsters—complete households—to dying, Bowman was already accusing Israel of propaganda, which was the phrase he used to confer with the well-documented rapes of Israeli ladies (after his ballot numbers began to tank, he apologized for calling Hamas rapes “propaganda”).

Jews in his district and across the nation began to note how he would regurgitate the Hamas-led “Gaza Ministry of Well being” speaking factors—but would deny or ignore the trauma endured day by day by Israelis. He known as for one sided ceasefires, hardly ever if ever mentioning the a whole bunch of hostages nonetheless being held by Hamas, and he ignored rising antisemitism in his personal district and all through the nation.

After George Latimer, a Democratic politician with deep roots in Westchester County, entered the race in opposition to him, Bowman turned singularly targeted on AIPAC and their funding for his main opponent, which was important. It by no means appeared to have occurred to him or his many defenders on the Left that perhaps AIPAC was spending thousands and thousands to unseat him due to his gross antisemitism.

And it’s antisemitism. He accused Jews of dwelling in “segregated” communities, based on Politico, invoking the racism of the South. “There’s sure locations the place the Jews dwell and focus,” Bowman stated. “Scarsdale, elements of White Plains, elements of New Rochelle, Riverdale. I am certain they decided to try this for their very own causes … however because of this, when it comes to combating antisemitism, I at all times push — we have been separated and segregated and miseducated for thus lengthy. We have to dwell collectively, play collectively, go to high school collectively, study collectively, work collectively.”

Apparently, Jews dwelling in communities the place they’ll pray and educate their children is an excessive amount of for Jamaal Bowman, and justifies antisemitism!

The quote revealed that the obsession with Israel is about greater than Israel’s defensive struggle in opposition to Gaza. Regardless of the host of points we’re coping with in our district—homelessness, drug abuse, the border, training, housing, healthcare—Bowman is singularly obsessive about the world’s one Jewish state—and the Jews dwelling in his state.

This previous Saturday, he held a rally with progressive stars Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Bernie Sanders, which appeared targeted on passionately decrying AIPAC. Does Rep. Bowman actually assume his constituents care a lot concerning the pro-Israel lobbying group? For certain, a dialogue ought to be had on political donations by Tremendous PACs, however specializing in solely this one? He even misplaced J Avenue’s endorsement, and they’re removed from AIPAC ideologically.

Why would not Bowman focus on his accomplishments throughout his first two phrases or objects he’d prefer to work on going ahead?

It feels creepy that Bowman thinks that doubling down on “the Jews” will assist his horrible polling. (Perhaps he’s trying previous this election—to a job with UNRWA, maybe.)

Jews world wide are traumatized, not solely by what occurred on 10/7 however by the response of a lot of the world instantly after. There have been celebrations, requires ceasefire even earlier than Israel retaliated, and fixed gaslighting about what’s and is not antisemitism. Trace: We’re not cool with you spraying graffiti on our companies, harassing and assaulting our faculty college students, defacing our synagogues, and threatening us with requires resistance “by any means obligatory.”

Many people additionally need this struggle to finish—however making assumptions about American Jews (that all of us dwell collectively, as Bowman urged) or blaming them for the actions of a international authorities is one thing everybody would know to frown upon if it had been every other group.

Bowman might keep that he’s not an antisemite, however his singular concentrate on Israel in a various district coping with so many issues is telling.

Here is the actual reality: Having AIPAC as a bogeyman is saving Rep. Bowman from having to speak about his meager accomplishments in workplace.

I’ve at all times voted for Democrats. I used to be born and raised in New York Metropolis and have at all times beloved the range of this metropolis. I bear in mind going to varsity upstate and instantly noticing the shortage of range, which felt very unusual and inauthentic. I’ve household in Israel, however we’re not spiritual and are typically politically Left leaning or centrist. However the previous 9 months have made Jews like myself replicate extra on our personal identities and search solidarity throughout the neighborhood in methods we hadn’t earlier than.

There at the moment are Jewish college teams the place mother and father be a part of in an effort to know the place it is protected to ship their children. Synagogues are websites of violence, within the identify of Gaza. On X, many Jews comment that there’s a new Charlottesville daily.

Mr. Bowman ignores all of that and as an alternative complains about being the sufferer of darkish cash. He calls Israel “the Zionist entity.” However with out even involving Israel, should not this American congressman be involved about defending his constituents in his personal district from antisemitism?

No, as a result of he can not help however to scream about Jewish cash all day.

For these causes, I proudly forged my poll for George Latimer, and encourage my neighbors to do the identical.

Ilana Horowitz is a social employee in New York Metropolis.

The views expressed on this article are the author’s personal.