The Crisis of Zionism, Peter Beinart
The Crisis of Zionism, Peter Beinart
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The Crisis of Zionism

Author: Peter Beinart

Narrator: Lloyd James

Unabridged: 7 hr 40 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 03/30/2012


Synopsis

A dramatic shift is taking place in Israel and America. In Israel, the deepening occupation of the West Bank is putting Israeli democracy at risk. In the United States, the refusal of major Jewish organizations to defend democracy in the Jewish state is alienating many young liberal Jews from Zionism itself. In the next generation, the liberal Zionist dream—the dream of a state that safeguards the Jewish people and cherishes democratic ideals—may die.

In The Crisis of Zionism, Peter Beinart lays out in chilling detail the looming danger to Israeli democracy and the American Jewish establishment's refusal to confront it. And he offers a fascinating, groundbreaking portrait of the two leaders at the center of the crisis: Barack Obama, America's first "Jewish president," a man steeped in the liberalism he learned from his many Jewish friends and mentors in Chicago; and Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister who considers liberalism the Jewish people's special curse. These two men embody fundamentally different visions not just of American and Israeli national interests but of the mission of the Jewish people itself.

Beinart concludes with provocative proposals for how the relationship between American Jews and Israel must change, and with an eloquent and moving appeal for American Jews to defend the dream of a democratic Jewish state before it is too late.

About Peter Beinart

Peter Beinart is an associate professor of journalism and political science at the City University of New York and a senior fellow at the New America Foundation. He is the senior political writer for The Daily Beast and a contributor to Time. He is a former fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and is the author of The Icarus Syndrome: A History of American Hubris and The Good Fight: Why Liberals-And Only Liberals-Can Win the War on Terror and Make America Great Again. Peter lives with his family in Washington, D.C.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Alex on May 24, 2013

I wanted to like this book more, but my issue is more an issue with myself than with the author. It's clear from the first page that this author supports Israel, in spite of some of the negative things it has done over the past three decades. Beinart is reasonable the entire book, but in his conclus......more

Goodreads review by Tucker on October 08, 2012

With his usual sharp analysis, Peter Beinart identifies several reasons why young American Jews tend to avoid pro-Israel activism. They may not be deeply committed to or involved in Judaism in the first place, and they may resent being expected to express agreement with every policy of the Israeli g......more

Goodreads review by Jeremy on June 01, 2012

Of the dozens of books I have read about the Middle East and the problems between Israel and Palestine, this is by far the best. I am stunned by Beinart's ability to write with passion and with clarity. He marshals an enormous amount of information, organizes it brilliantly, and tells a complex stor......more

Goodreads review by Joshua Glucksman on April 03, 2022

I kind of like the idea of doing book reviews centered around the questions it ponders. Are Jews histories permanent victims? NO! But why not? Is telling a group they are victimizing themselves INHERENTLY problematic? Can we define Zionism based on its racial justice + liberation + democratic principl......more

Goodreads review by Rachael on October 27, 2024

Really liked this book which was lent to me by an Israeli friend who is opposed to Netanyahu and the government. I've long been a fan of Peter Beinart. The book was written when he was still a zionist, and I imagine that the opening chapters would be hard to read for some people with connections to......more