Israel Policy Forum

Too much bickering, too little listening. That’s today’s conversation about Israel.

This event is designed to change that reality by bringing together prominent voices from along the political, denominational and generational spectrums. Has Israel become just another pawn in the Washington political game? Can we bridge our religious divisions to speak in a single voice about Israel’s future? How can we develop common ground between older Jews, who grew up with one vision of Israel, and younger Jews, who have entirely different experiences?

Whether you’re a Democrat frustrated with Republican policies or a Republican convinced the Democrats don’t support Israel, an Orthodox Jew committed to settlements or a secular Jew who abhors them, a parent who can’t mention Israel to your children or a younger person convinced your parents don’t have a clue – or someone who defies these stereotypes – please cross the divide with us.

The Generational Divide:

Examining the Past, Present and Future of Israel Engagement, featuring influential voices of the upcoming generation, including:

Daniella Greenbaum Davis, Rabbi Jill Jacobs, Yair Rosenberg

Moderator: Amir Tibon 

Daniella Greenbaum Davis

Daniella Greenbaum Davis is a writer focused on free speech, the culture wars, and America’s role on the international stage. Davis, a weekly columnist for the Spectator, has written for the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, the Washington Post, the New York Post, Commentary Magazine, the Bulwark, and countless others. She was formerly a political columnist at Business Insider, the assistant editor at Commentary Magazine, and a Bartley Fellow at the Wall Street Journal. Davis graduated from Barnard College and Columbia University with a degree in English Literature.

Rabbi Jill Jacobs

Rabbi Jill Jacobs is the Executive Director of T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights, which mobilizes a network of 2000 rabbis and cantors and their communities to bring a rabbinic moral voice to human rights in North America, Israel, and the occupied Palestinian territories. She is the author of Where Justice Dwells: A Hands-On Guide to Doing Social Justice in Your Jewish Community and There Shall Be No Needy: Pursuing Social Justice through Jewish Law and Tradition, both published by Jewish Lights. Rabbi Jacobs has been named three times to the Forward’s list of 50 influential American Jews, to Newsweek’s list of the 50 Most Influential Rabbis in America, and to the Jerusalem Post’s 2013 list of “Women to Watch.” She holds rabbinic ordination and an MA in Talmud from the Jewish Theological Seminary, where she was a Wexner Fellow; an MS in Urban Affairs from Hunter College, and a BA from Columbia University. She is also a graduate of the Mandel Institute Jerusalem Fellows Program. She lives in New York with her husband, Rabbi Guy Austrian, and their two daughters. 

Yair Rosenberg

Yair Rosenberg is a senior writer at Tablet Magazine, where he covers the intersection of politics, culture, and religion. His work has also appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, and The Guardian, and his writings have received awards from the Religion Newswriters Association and the Harvard Center for Jewish Studies. He has covered everything from misrepresentations of Orthodox Jews in the media, to Muslims and Jews in comic books, to political anti-Mormonism, and in his spare time, he creates bots that troll anti-Semites on Twitter.

Amir Tibon (moderator)

Amir Tibon is an award-winning Israeli journalist who is currently the Washington, D.C. correspondent for Haaretz newspaper. He covers the U.S.-Israel relationship, the Middle East peace process and the American Jewish community. His reporting on Israel and the Middle East has appeared in The Atlantic, Foreign Affairs, Politico Magazine, The New Yorker, Tablet Magazine and other leading U.S. publications. His first book, a biography of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, was published in 2017. Amir served for three years in the IDF Intelligence Corps as an Arabic language specialist.