Susan Talve is the progressive rabbi in St. Louis who has been active in racial justice issues in Ferguson while supporting Israel’s occupation of Jerusalem and its onslaught on Gaza during her Israel lobby-sponsored trip to the Jewish state last summer. I have made a lot of Talve’s example because as a proponent of the lobby group AIPAC, Talve is emblematic of a contradictory stance throughout the liberal Jewish community, and one that must be called out. In St. Louis, Talve supports black protesters who she says have no “other arena” than “militant nonviolent resistance” to an oppressive government there. And meantime she has blamed Palestinian militants (and the media) for the fact that Israel is getting criticized for killing 2100 Palestinians last summer:

Egypt cut off the militant Hamas and in their economic desperation they escalated the terror of missiles launched at Israel knowing that Israel would have to return the fire and cause the kinds of heartbreaking casualties in Gaza that turns public opinion and brings in money for aid. The world and especially the press, loves the underdog, and the suffering.

Back to St. Louis. Last weekend Talve participated fully in “a weekend of resistance,” actions calling for racial justice. I am told that on Sunday evening she spoke on stage at a rally at St. Louis University, sharing the stage with Cornel West, who also spoke, and many other leaders in the pro-Palestinians movement, including poet Remi Kanazi, and St. Louis Palestine Solidarity Committee members Sandra Tamari, Suhad Khatib and Hedy Epstein. The Solidarity Committee has been working day and night on the Ferguson issue, I’m told– not in an opportunistic way to bring attention to the plight of Palestinians, but as an act of solidarity, out of the belief that while many details are different it is the same struggle. Of the solidarity group only Epstein and Kanazi got a chance to speak, because young black men and women in the audience took over, telling the older folks to stop giving the same tired speeches that don’t help. But Kanazi, Epstein and Cornell West all linked the struggles in St. Louis to those in Palestine.

“Occupation is wrong no matter who,” says West in damning indictment of Israel & those who label its critics anti-Jewish. # FergusonOctober Hedy Epstein states she supports Palestine unequivocally against the oppressive policies and practices of the Israeli military to cheers. What about # Palestine, Susan?” AIPAC supporter Ravbi Susan Talve gets heckled at her talk about civil rights. “Black and brown lives matter,” says rabbi Susan Talve. She forgot to add the disclaimer, “except for in Gaza.” [link to Talve coverage] Pro-AIPAC rabbi Susan Talve now speaking against racism in STL while supporting racism in Israel.

“It is personal for us but even if it wasn’t, it is something that is a justice issue that we know about because in the early part of the 20th century, Jews were profiled,” she said. “Jews didn’t have equal treatment in the legal system so we know about this and we can’t let it happen.”

Rabbi Susan Talve inviting police officer to repent.

From an account of that repentance march, Talve speaks movingly about racial injustice in the U.S.

“Standing on the steps of the Old Court House in St Louis the night before the funeral of Michael Brown, we stopped protesting and prayed quietly for his family and for the families of so many black men who have died from police and gun violence,” said Rabbi Susan Talve with the Central Reform Congregation in St. Louis. “Today I stand with the faith community to lift up the voices of young leaders who tell us that their lives matter.”

Last weekend was titled “weekend of resistance.” Here’s an interesting interview with Talve on St. Louis radio from a couple weeks ago. Here she speaks for the movement, stating the demands of the protesters, and explaining why civil disobedience is necessary.

“Their cries were for justice from the police, they wanted the police to hear their concerns about uses of force…. and that’s what their cry is. They want justice…. That’s their only arena. Their arena is the front line in the street. “One of their chants last night was, We are human, we are people. “This is about a sea change, a culture change. What are our young people, especially our young people of color saying. They don’t feel safe…. that’s not to say that the majority of police are not out there keeping them safe… “These are very bright articulate wonderful young people. These people are our future…. [They stand out in the streets to make sure] we don’t go back to business as usual.”

The hosts of the show challenged Talve for participating in a “weekend of resistance”: October 10-13. Are you part of that, asks the host?

“I am. I think we’re going to have a lot of training going on. Militant, non-violent resistance. Militant non-violent civil disobedience…. to be taken seriously… so it’s not just a moment that happens but a movement that creates change that makes things better for everyone…. to make sure that we really have equality. We’re facing the issues of racism that this issue has raised.

Again, I’d note that Palestinians are practicing civil disobedience across the occupied territories to protest the fact that they have no freedom of movement and no political rights to consent to the government that controls their lives. Talve has said she’s against the Israeli occupation, but she’s worked with an organization, AIPAC, that supports everything Israel does in the occupied territories. Oh and last night Israeli soldiers raiding a protest in a village killed a 13-year-old Palestinian boy. I don’t think you can be for justice in Ferguson as a Jew and not confront the intolerance in our community epitomized by AIPAC.