October 11, 2023

The Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas (JCRC) applauds Minnesota’s Jewish DFL legislators for condemning the ‘Twin Cities Democratic Socialists of America Statement on Israel and Palestine,’ as well as the strong moral leadership of President Joe Biden, Senator Amy Klobuchar, House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, and Governor Tim Walz.

Under the leadership of Rep. Frank Hornstein, every House and Senate Jewish Democrat signed onto a strong statement, which is copied below in its entirety. This unanimous statement, which reflects the full ideological diversity of Minnesota’s Jewish Democratic state legislators, echoes the strong moral condemnations of the Twin Cities DSA by DFL Party Chair Ken Martin, as well as legislative Republican leaders.

Americans and Minnesotans are uniting in support of the people of Israel and the American Jewish community under the leadership of President Biden, Congressional leaders such as Senator Amy Klobuchar and House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, and Governor Tim Walz.

In sharp contrast to the Twin Cities DSA and others who — wittingly or not — enable Hamas, Americans understand that in the words of President Biden, “Hamas does not stand for the Palestinian people’s right to dignity and self-determination. Its stated purpose is the annihilation of the state of Israel and the murder of Jewish people. They use Palestinian civilians as human shields. Hamas offers nothing but terror and bloodshed with no regard to who pays the price.”

Similarly, we thank Majority Whip Tom Emmer for his letter to the JCRC, which included: “Israel is our greatest ally in the Middle East, and the world must recognize Hamas for what they are—vicious terrorists. The videos, photos, and stories of the victims we’ve seen from this weekend’s attack serve as a stark reminder of the cruelty and brutality that exists in the world.”

Last night, Senator Klobuchar spoke the following truth before thousands of Minnesotans who came together at Beth El Synagogue for our Community Gathering in Solidarity with Israel: “The strength of the Israeli people stands in stark contrast to the acts of terrorism and cowardice that we saw over the weekend … the Israeli spirit will not be broken.” 

Likewise, Governor Walz correctly observed that there was ‘not an inch of space’ between the elected officials in attendance last night, which included Speaker Melissa Hortman, Majority Leader Kari Dziedzic, Minority Leader Lisa Demuth, Senator Warren Limmer (representing the Senate GOP caucus), and dozens of other legislators,

Finally, in words we understood to be directed not just at those who are taking the side of Hamas but are also cowardly remaining silent, we could not agree more with Governor Walz that “if you do not find moral clarity about what was seen Saturday morning, you need to re-evaluate where you’re at.”

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Minnesota Jewish Legislators Condemn Twin Cities Democratic Socialists of America Statement on Israel and Palestine

St. Paul, MN – Today, Jewish state legislators of the Minnesota Legislature, Representatives Frank Hornstein (DFL-Minneapolis), Emma Greenman (DFL-Minneapolis), Heather Edelson (DFL-Edina), Sandra Feist (DFL-New Brighton), and Tina Liebling (DFL-Rochester), and Senators Sandy Pappas (DFL-St. Paul) and Ron Latz (DFL-St. Louis Park), Bonnie Westlin (DFL-Plymouth), and Steve Cwodzinski (DFL-Eden Prairie) released the following statement condemning the Twin Cities Democratic Socialists of America’s recent statement on the war between Israel and Palestine:

“In the wake of the barbaric attack and massacre of Israeli civilians, including many elders and children, we stand in solidarity with our Israeli families and friends. We are heartbroken by images of entire communities destroyed in the largest single-day Jewish loss of life since the Holocaust. We grieve the loss of all civilian life – Israeli and Palestinian – in this war.

“That is why we are appalled at a recent statement by the Twin Cities Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) that fails to even mention or acknowledge the heinous mass murder of Israelis at the hands of Hamas terrorists. In this moment of grief and pain in the Jewish communities across the globe, the failure to condemn this bloodshed is hurtful to our communities that have experienced so much generational trauma.

“The DSA statement concludes with an egregious proclamation that negates the existence of Israel. Such statements do not move us closer to a two-state solution where Israelis and Palestinians can live together in peace, security, and justice. We have and will continue to support peace efforts in the region.”