The Human Spirit: What so proudly we hail

July 21, 2005

By BARBARA SOFER

The Fourth of July isn't a holiday exclusively for Americans, President Moshe Katsav told the several thousand mostly Israeli guests attending the fireworks barbecue in the home of American Ambassador Daniel Kurtzer in Herzliya Pituah. So great has been the impact of American freedom on the entire world that all peoples ought to celebrate the events of 1776 as American Independence Day.

I can't help thinking of these insightful words as my plane approaches Washington DC. We Jews are especially appreciative of freedom. Our morning prayers include daily thanks for not being slaves. If our ancestors continued to recite that prayer in the ghettoes of Europe, how much more do we prize our freedom living in democratic countries, as nearly all of us do for the first time in Jewish history.

America has played a large part in liberating our people from oppressive regimes. Despite my Zionist decision to live in the capital city of Israel, as the plane nears the US capital I feel the pride of being a native-born American and the gratefulness of one whose grandparents found a safe harbor, freedom and opportunity in the US.

Not all value such freedom. On my lap in the plane is a newspaper describing the terrorists in England who would destroy the very democracy that allowed them and their families to flourish.
To my surprise, for half an hour before landing in Washington we're prohibited from getting up from our seats. This is a post-9/11 security regulation for flying over the White House that saddens me. Partly I'm sorry that Americans have to accept limitations on movement. Partly I'm nostalgic for those days when a trip abroad was a break from the threat of Middle Eastern terrorism.

I take no comfort in terrorism being everybody's problem.

BUT EVEN a short visit to Washington reassures me that those who hate freedom cannot prevail. Democracy is buoyant 229 years into independence. I love hearing people in the elevators really using West Wing vocabulary, talking about advocacy, caucuses, First Amendment rights, and gathering support for proposed Congressional bills. A satirical musical group feels free to gleefully make fun of the president a mile from the White House.

I've come to Washington to speak about Israel at the Hadassah National Convention, but the women whom I usually meet over discussion of their Israeli hospitals and educational projects are in a different mode. Two thousand of them are organized to spend "A Day on the Hill," where they feel at ease engaging their congressional representatives and senators in matters of concern. Many women know their representatives. On Capitol Hill, their agenda includes both pressing for support of Israel and urging federal financing of stem-cell medical research.

Stem-cell work is controversial in the United States. So among their carefully prepared arguments is that the potentially life-saving research has been ethically approved by the stringent rabbinical arbiters in Israel.

Even in a non-election year, they get a receptive hearing. Senators and members of Congress in this enormous country feel accountable to those they represent, and are actually interested in knowing what their constituents think. Each has staff assigned to address voters' concerns.

I realize how much we're missing precisely this type of interaction in Israel. The differences between our systems of governing go beyond our Knesset members not having direct geographical constituencies. Many of our elected officials give the impression that once voted in, they can do more or less whatever they please. This attitude creates chasms between legislators and voters that frustrate us and too often leave us feeling disenfranchised. Think how different facing the disengagement would be, no matter what side we're on, if we felt our government was directly responsive to the voices of the people. Public opinion polls are simply not an adequate substitute for legislators having meaningful interactions with individual citizens.

Interaction can work in both directions. Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz is the first Jewish woman to represent Florida in the United States Congress, and one of three women in the House of Representatives today under the age of 40. This vivacious mother of three spoke of her recent application for an increase in her life insurance. To her shock she was rejected. Her insurance company was concerned that she might one day (she has no current travel plans) visit the dangerous State of Israel.

Fortunately, the congresswoman has recourse. Before Congress adjourns in August, she's filing the Life Insurance Fairness for Travelers Act, which will prohibit discrimination in life insurance based on potential future travel. Said Wasserman Schultz: "My research has shown me that I am not the first person to whom this has happened, but I can assure you, I will work hard to make sure I am the last."

Of course, she needs the votes to get the bill passed. She looks at the sea of Jewish women in the audience and asks "Can I count on your support?"