Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC)
Ambassador Dani Dayan, Consul General of Israel in New York: A Reflection
This August the Jewish Community Relations Council welcomed Ambassador Dani Dayan, Consul General of Israel in New York, to Cincinnati for the first time. During his whirlwind two-day visit, he met with diverse groups of people in the Jewish and Greater Cincinnati communities, and he spoke at a wide variety of social, educational, business, and civic forums. Dayan spoke candidly about the challenging geopolitical landscape in the Middle East, Israeli innovation and politics, as well as the relationship between American and Israeli Jews. In fact, he challenged Americans dissatisfied with current Israeli policy concerning freedom of religious expression to become even more involved in policymaking in Israel.
Federation CEO Shep Englander offered his thoughts on Ambassador Dayan’s visit and how Jewish Cincinnati is rising to Dayan’s challenge:
My video below reports on Consul General of Israel in NY, Dani Dayan visit here this week. He discussed the deep…
Posted by Shep Englander on Tuesday, August 29, 2017
One of public events during Dayan’s visit was a community forum on religious pluralism, held at the Mayerson JCC. More than a hundred people came and heard Dayan speak about the tensions between American and Israeli Jews and the barriers to expanding the freedom of religious expression in Israel. After a dialogue between Dayan and our community shlicha Maia Morag, community members had the opportunity to raise their own concerns with Dayan, including the influence of the Rabbinate and the future of the American-Israeli relationship.
In addition to the community forum, Dayan toured the Hebrew Union College—Jewish Institute of Religion and the Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives, along with the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center. Students at Cincinnati Hillel also had the opportunity to talk candidly with Dayan. They shared personal stories of Israeli travel, talked about Jewish internships, and discussed ways to be effective Israel advocates while focusing on building relationships on campus.
To conclude his visit, Dayan spoke to the Foreign Policy Leadership Council, a nonprofit volunteer group of foreign policy enthusiasts in Cincinnati. They hosted Ambassador Dayan at Xavier University for a dinner and discussion on the changing dynamics in the Middle East.
As the Consul General’s short trip came to a close, he told us he was leaving impressed by the strength and vision of Jewish Cincinnati and with the hope that our community will continue to influence and positively impact the relationship between American and Israeli Jews. We are encouraged by our initiatives to expand religious pluralism in Israel and are challenged to increase efforts to improve the Israel-Diaspora relationship, particularly among young people. We look forward to working with Ambassador Dayan in the future.
The Jewish Community Relations Council is one of over fifty programs and agencies funded in part by the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati.
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