The annual Celebrate Israel Parade is meant as a public show of support for the Jewish state. But when there are elements that seek to delegitimize Israel, they must not be allowed to participate. This year, New Israel Fund, which helps other organizations attack Israel, will be marching in the parade. NIF must be barred from participating!

The theme of this year’s Celebrate Israel Parade in New York City, which falls on Sunday, May 31, is “Israel Imagines.” As the parade website advertises, “The founders of Israel had a dream. They imagined a vibrant, independent and Jewish state that would not only be a haven for Jews from all over the world, but also one that would incorporate the best characteristics of its citizens… a state whose greatest natural resource is its people who could imagine that future – one that would benefit the whole world! Today’s Israel is a result of that dream…”

But that dream is under threat.

Anti-BDS protestors during the 2014 Celebrate Israel Parade. (AP/John Minchillo)

The Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) and the UJA Federation of New York, the two organizers of the parade, are permitting New Israel Fund (NIF), which encourages boycotts, divestments and sanctions against Israel, to participate in the parade.

Yet this goes against the very rules of the parade which declare:

“All Groups must oppose, not fund, nor advocate for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel, which seeks to delegitimize the State of Israel by not recognizing it as a Jewish state.”

But NIF violates this rule, directly funding organizations that consistently work to delegitimize the state of Israel.

On its website, NIF claims it does not support anti-Israel boycott efforts known as the BDS Movement. But it then contradicts itself when it writes, “However, NIF opposes the occupation and subsequent settlement activities. NIF will thus not exclude support for organizations that discourage the purchase of goods or use of services from settlements.”

That’s called supporting BDS.

(Click here for in-depth information on NIF-funded organizations that seek to delegitimize Israel).

Protesters shout anti-Israel slogans during a rally. (AP/Jacques Brinon)

So, while JCRC and UJA Federations are both exemplary organizations in the work they do to ensure the survival and security of Jewish life in the Diaspora, their decision to include NIF in the parade is deeply misguided.

Allowing NIF to march in the parade is counterproductive to the missions of organizations that work hard to promote Israel. The presence of NIF at the parade is not only inappropriate, it undermines all that organizations such as JCRC and UJA Federations have worked so hard to build. Legitimacy cannot be given to those who damage the state of Israel.

United with Israel urges JCRC and UJA Federations to retract their invitation to NIF to participate in this year’s Celebrate Israel Parade.

United with Israel also calls on JCRC and UJA Federations to remain loyal to the founding principles for which the Celebrate Israel Parade was established.

Contact the parade organizers and protest the participation of New Israel Fund!