Introduction

Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) is a U.S.-based organization, which views itself as the “Jewish wing” of the Palestinian solidarity movement. Though JVP regards the organized Jewish community as its “enemy” and “opponent,” it nonetheless demands a seat at the communal table. The strategy, as stated by JVP’s executive director Rebecca Vilkomerson, is to create “a wedge” within the American Jewish community to generate the impression of polarization over Israel. The tactic is to dilute support for Israel in the Jewish community, toward the goal of reducing or eliminating the United States government’s economic, military, and political support for Israel.

In this role, JVP has actively promoted the central dimensions of the political warfare strategy against Israel, which was adopted at the 2001 Durban NGO Forum. This “Durban strategy” includes the tactics of boycotts, divestment and sanctions (BDS), a sustained campaign of demonization such as accusations of “apartheid” and “racism,” support for a Palestinian claim to a “right of return,” with the ultimate goal of dismantling Israel as a Jewish and democratic state. To these ends, JVP promotes divestment campaigns on U.S. campuses, in mainline churches, and in corporate stockholder meetings by deploying the language of demonization and delegitimization.

JVP works closely with other organizations that promote the Durban strategy, such as Electronic Intifada, American Muslims for Palestine, Adalah-NY, Code Pink, Sabeel, International Solidarity Movement, and the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation (of which JVP is an official member).

JVP amplifies the radical anti-Israel agenda through its Rabbinical Council, a youth section called “Young, Jewish and Proud,” and activism within the LGBT community. It also hosts the “Muzzlewatch” website, purporting to expose “McCarthyism” in the Jewish community. Yet, JVP has engaged in the disruption of the programs of organizations with whom JVP disagrees.

JVP’s funding sources are not transparent. Its website carries no information on its donors. Limited financial information on JVP is only available through public IRS documents (990s) and databases, which report a total budget of $876, 529 for 2011.

These sources reveal that JVP has received funding from an Arab-American foundation that also supports Electronic Intifada (the Violet Jabara Charitable trust), the Firedoll Foundation, and the Wallace Global Fund, which all contribute to numerous anti-Israel groups.

Jewish voice for peace (JVP) Financials are highlighted by a lack of transparency


JVP does not make any of its financial information available on its website. The organization’s last annual report is from 2005 and is no longer available on its website.
According to JVP’s 990s (filed with US tax authorities), from 2005 to 2011, JVP more than tripled its total revenues. In 2005, total revenues were $269,582. By 2011, revenues amounted to $876,529. Amounts for 2012 are not available at this date.
During this period, JVP’s aggregate total of “contributions and grants received” was $3,527,396. NGO Monitor was able to identify about 10% ($397,700) of JVP’s funding sources during this period. (See Appendix for table of funders.) The sources of the $3,129,696 difference are not available. In 2010, JVP announced, “Thanks to an anonymous donor, every gift we receive before the end of the year will be matched – up to $100,000.”
In 2009, JVP Executive Director Rebecca Vilkomerson earned $28,457 in salary and other compensation. The following year, her salary was $71,084, and in 2011 her salary was $74,544. Figures for 2012 are not available at this date.

Strategy
Create a “wedge” in the Jewish community to weaken U.S. support for Israel

At a May 13, 2013 Stanford University forum JVP Executive Director Rebecca Vilkomerson described JVP’s goal in creating a “wedge” within the Jewish community over Israel.

“I think part of our job as the Jewish wing of the [Palestinian solidarity] movement, is to facilitate conversations inside the Jewish community… So, I think it’s very important to think sort of how we plan a wedge… So, I think that the more and more we can sort of put that wedge in, saying the Jewish community’s not agreeing on these issues, the more we’ll make progress.”

This view of JVP’s role is corroborated by Heike Schotten, an anti-Zionist activist and academic active in JVP’s Boston chapter, who was a scheduled panelist at JVP’s 2013 National Member Meeting. She wrote:

“Groups like Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), American Jews for a Just Peace (AJJP), and the International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network (IJAN) drive a wedge between Zionism and Judaism, demonstrating by their very existence that not all Jews are Zionists (nor are all Zionists Jews). This is of enormous strategic value, particularly in the U.S. context.” (emphasis added)

Another JVP activist, Mark Gunnery, writes of how American Jews can “subvert” US support for Israel:
“Jews can get away with a lot more criticism of Israel than non-Jews. Instead of hiding from these privileges and acting like they don’t exist, we can simultaneously recognize, subvert, and utilize them… The United States maintains a special relationship with Israel that involves providing them diplomatic cover and giving them military aid... Jewish activists can work towards justice in Palestine through shifting public opinion so much that it will become impossible for the US to continue supporting Israel the way it does now. Without US military aid and diplomatic support, Israel could not maintain the system it currently does within its disputed borders. JVP is doing tremendously important and difficult work”

JVP deliberately and systematically stages disruptions of Jewish Programs and Muzzling of Free Speech

From NGO Monitor's expose of Jewish voice for Peace:

March 2012: a JVP activist disrupted a workshop at AIPAC’s National Policy Conference.
March 2012: JVP’s Seattle chapter participated in a successful effort to pressure the Seattle LGBT Commission to cancel a program featuring Israeli LGBT activists at Seattle City Hall (see above).
November 2011: JVP activists disrupted a Birthright Israel conference in New York City.
November 2010: JVP activists disrupted the speech of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the General Assembly of the Jewish Federations of North America.

NGO Monitor is based in the western part of Jerusalem, and has been characterized as being pro-Israel and is often described as right-wing.

NGO Monitor among a group of organisations who use deficiencies in NGO accountability as a pretext for politically motivated attacks to silence views with which they disagree. Edwards states that they "single out liberal or progressive groups for criticism while ignoring the same problems, if that is what they are, among NGO's allied with conservative views".[12] According to Joel Peters, NGO Monitor's activities include "high profile campaigns with the aim of delegitimizing the activities of Israeli civil society and human rights organisations, especially those advocating the rights of Arab citizens of Israel and/or address the question of violations of human rights in the Occupied Territories.

NGO Monitor is currently funded by private donors and foundations.

NGO Monitor as an organisation that opposes legal means against Israel, while at the same time being a proponent of the use of legal means against those who criticise Israel.

HRW issued a statement saying, "NGO Monitor ... conducts no field investigations and condemns anyone who criticizes Israel"



"NGO Monitor is an extreme right-wing group with close ties to the Israeli government, military, West Bank settlers, a man convicted of misleading the U.S. Congress, and to notoriously Islamophobic individuals and organizations in the United States."


"NGO Monitor doesn't have a word of criticism for Israel, nor a word of acknowledgment, even grudging, for any detail in any human rights report that shows Israel to be less than utterly blameless. In fact, on the subject of Israel's human rights record, NGO Monitor doesn't have a word of disagreement with the Prime Minister's Office."

NGO Monitor is a "rabidly partisan organization that attacks just about anyone who dares to criticize Israel on any grounds". It notes that Steinberg is dedicated to fighting "the narrative war", and has made a "special project" of attacking Human Rights Watch.


NGO Monitor "is not an objective watchdog: It is a partisan operation that suppresses its perceived ideological adversaries through the sophisticated use of McCarthyite techniques – blacklisting, guilt by association and selective filtering of facts"

You haven't disputed a word that was written. You just did the journalistic equivilent of sticking your fingers in your ears going "Nah. nah. nah. i can't hear you"

The fact that JVP conducts business with the American Free Press - founded by Holocaust denier Willis Carto, who has said that “Hitler’s defeat was the defeat of Europe. And of America...” is rather damning.

Correct - I simply pasted that from zio-wiki.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NGO_Monitor

- think about it, if even THEY have that to say about you what does that mean?

(I was just going to post a WARNING BUTTHURT DETECTED graphic, 'butt' then saw what they had to say.)

~hot zionist on zionist sex ensues~

Most contributors to JVP aren't Jewish. The organization exists to " Jew-wash" anti-Israel activism in America.

to whitewash israeli war criminals and war crimes

Last week, NGO Monitor released a detailed report of the goals, tactics, and opaque financing of Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), a U.S.-based advocacy organization dedicated to driving “a wedge” within the Jewish community to create the impression that the Jewish community is polarized over Israel.

“Since American Jews are important supporters of Israel, JVP’s attempt to divide the Jewish community is aimed at undermining U.S. support for Israel,” Yitzhak Santis, NGO Monitor’s Chief Programs Officer and the report’s author, warned. “JVP also works to weaken this support in U.S. mainline churches and on American campuses. Our researchers discovered that this summer, Jewish Voice for Peace is joining the American Friends Service Committee to train student activists at a BDS boot camp.”

JVP’s strategy, as stated by executive director Rebecca Vilkomerson and others, is in-line with the 2001 Durban NGO Forum strategy of political war against Israel.

“JVP’s tactics,” said Santis, “include boycotts, divestment and sanctions (BDS), a sustained campaign of demonization against Israel, and support for a Palestinian claim to a ‘right of return.’”

The NGO Monitor report shows that JVP views itself as the “Jewish wing” of the Palestinian solidarity movement. As such, JVP consistently partners with anti-Israel groups in the U.S. and abroad, including Electronic Intifada, American Muslims for Palestine, Adalah-NY, Code Pink, Sabeel, International Solidarity Movement, and the U.S. Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation (of which JVP is an official member). JVP members also sailed in the 2011 Gaza flotilla.

“JVP’s funding sources are far from transparent, and its website carries no information on its donors,” Santis emphasized, “Yet, we discovered that a number of foundations that contribute to JVP also contribute to other groups active in the BDS delegitimization campaign. Most of JVP’s funding sources remain hidden, leaving the question, who is funding this group?”

The report shows that JVP’s last annual report was in 2005 and its budget in 2011 was $876,529. Figures for 2012 and 2013 are not yet available.

Apparently the head of the Jewish Voice for Peace Rabbinic Council rabbi Alissa Wise assaulted a pro Israel activist in San Francisco. Setting a fine example of Jewish values, right?

There was a strange lack of Jews at the JVP sponsored BDS boot camp.

Attending were Roya Naderi, Basil Farraj, Nashiha Alam, Areej Hamdan, Taher Herzallah, Gabriella Kaiyal-Smith, Sofie Ghitman, Amina Maameri, Dov Baum, Yasmeen Hamdoun, Lauren Ballester, Danny Kaplan, Liza Behrendt, Moira Geary, Hoda Mitwally, Neal Spitzer Feldman, Agatha E Palma, Ramah Kudaimi, Jonathan Tollefson, Jennifer Bing, Julia Wedgle, Danya Al-Zaytawy, Tory Smith, Zoe Zeno, Samantha Partenopea and Fadi Disouqui.

Amina Maameri and Taher Herzallah are married. She couldn't go without an escort because it was a mixed group, so he came with her.

Taher, learn to treat your wife like an adult, or you will soon regret it. Sexism has NO PLACE at an anti-oppression retreat

Danya Al-Zaytawy was wrongly identified. She is Danya Mustafa, from the University of New Mexico

JVP intentionally exploits Jewish culture and rituals in its advocacy to reassure its own supporters that
opposition to Israel not only does not contradict, but is actually consistent with, Jewish values. Its
“Rabbinical Council” even published a Passover Haggadah in the spring of 2012 that dedicated one of the
traditional cups of wine to BDS (the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement) and added an olive to
the Seder plate in honor of the Palestinian struggle

JVP also uses its Jewish identity to shield the anti
Israel movement from allegations of antiSemitism and
provide the movement with a veneer of legitimacy. On its Web site, JVP recognizes its role as such, noting
that the group's Jewish nature gives
it a “particular legitimacy in voicing an alternative view of American and Israeli actions and policies” and the ability to distinguish “between real antiSemitism and the cynical
manipulation of that issue.”

The group’s positions on BDS, its willingness to partner with anti Israel organizations that deny Israel’s
right to exist and legitimize terror, and its refusal to support a two state solution to the Israeli Palestinian conflict, demonstrate JVP’s hardline stance.

JVP partners with the Arab Resource organizing Center- at the AROC fundraiser, they distributed "Support the Intifada" bumperstickers- that were a big hit with their youthful "peace" activists

Very few of the donors to Jewish Voice for Peace are even Jewish

Private Foundations

Rockefeller Brothers Fund – $140,000 grant in 2015
Founded in 1940, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund (RBF) aims to advance “social change that contributes to a more just, sustainable, and peaceful world.”
RBF has also distributed to funds to other anti-Israel groups, such as: American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) ($50,000 in 2015), Middle East Policy Network (Al-Shabaka) ($100,000 for 2 years in 2015), Grassroots Jerusalem ($50,000 in 2015), US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation ($30,000 in 2015), and Zochrot ($20,000 in 2015).
Firedoll Foundation – $25,000 grant in 2014
The Firedoll Foundation is a private family foundation concentrates its grant giving in the Alameda and Contra Costa Counties of the San Francisco Bay Area.
“The foundation is concerned with community development, immigrant issues and human rights, environmental conservation, survivors of traumatic brain injury and the peace process in the Middle East.”
The organization also distributed funds to pro-BDS organizations such as Center for Constitutional Rights ($27,500 in 2012). Firedoll Foundation also funds the Israeli political NGOs Hamoked ($12,500 in 2012) and Rabbis for Human Rights ($20,000 in 2012).
Bonus Fund – $20,000 grant in 2014 (Curbstone Financial Management Corporation)
The Bonus Fund gives grants to other pro-BDS organizations such as: Tree of Life-Gaza Relief ($10,000 in 2014), Grassroots International ($35,000 in 2014), and the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation ($5,000 in 2013)
The Kaphan Foundation – $20,000 grant in 2014
A non-profit foundation created by Sheldon J. Kaphan
The foundation also distributed funds to a pro-BDS organization, Center for Constitutional Rights ($300,000 in 2014 and $150,000 in 2012).
Violet Jabara Charitable Trust – $15,000 grant in 2015
The Violet Jabara Charitable Trust claims that its mission “two-fold: to help im-prove the lives of the people in developing countries of the Middle East and to foster greater understanding of Middle Eastern culture in the United States.”
In addition to supporting JVP, the Violet Jabara Charitable Trust also funds Electronic Intifada ($1,000 in 2014) and Frontline Defenders ($15,000 in 2014).
Left Tilt Fund – $15,000 grant in 2015, $15,000 grant in 2014
The Left Tilt Fund is a non-profit private social justice foundation founded in 1998. It is interested in “economic equality, civil liberties, prisoners’ rights, labor issues, racial justice, homelessness, the environment, the arts, and international solidarity work pertaining to Palestine, the Middle East, and Latin America.”
Also referred to as the Lynn Handleman Charitable Foundation (the Lynn Handleman Charitable Foundation 990 form refers to “doing business as the Left Tilt Fund”).
There is a discrepancy in the amounts awarded to JVP in the records of Left Tilt Fund ($10,000 in 2014) and Lynn Handleman Charitable Foundation ($15,000 in 2014).
Left Tilt seeks to support “a diverse range of social justice organizations, including those that do not receive funds from traditional sources.”
Left Tilt also distributes funds to International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network ($10,000 in 2015) and Electronic Intifada ($15,000 in 2014).
The Pomegranate Foundation – $10,000 grant in 2014
This foundation is associated with Kathleen Peratis, who is listed at the foundation’s only trustee on its 990 form. Peratis is a former board member of J Street. She currently chairs the Middle East and North Africa Division of Human Rights Watch and is a board member for Americans for Peace Now.
Pomegranate Foundation also funds the New Israel Fund ($45,000 in 2014) and the Institute for Middle East Understanding ($2,500 in 2014).
Bijan Amin and Soraya Amin Foundation – $10,000 grant in 2014
Founded by brothers Mark and Reza Amin in 2000. Mark Amin is an Iranian American motion picture producer, distributor, and writer.
Vivian & Paul Olum Charitable Foundation – $10,000 grant in 2014
The foundation distributes grants to organizations involved in: arms control, diseases and conditions, education, human rights, human services, international peace and security, international relations, nuclear non-proliferation, and sports and recreation
The foundation also supports Rabbis for Human Rights ($3,000 in 2014).
The Sparkplug Foundation – $6,500 grant in 2014
The Sparkplug Foundation is a family foundation that supports “the development of emerging democratic movements and communities working on issues of local democracy, justice, and sustainable energy in the rebuilding of the U.S. and global economies.”
The foundation also funds the pro-BDS group Adalah-NY (via WESPAC Foundation–$20,400 in 2014), as well as 972 – Advancement of Citizen Journalism ($10,000 in 2015) and Breaking the Silence ($10,000 in 2010).
Shams Foundation – $5,000 grant in 2014
According to Ahmad Shams, the founder and chairman, the Shams Foundation is a, “medium for funding various charitable and non-profit organizations.”
LouVin Foundation – $5,000 grant in 2014
A small family foundation
The LouVin Foundation has donated to JVP in 2012 – 2014 ($5,000 in 2013 and $13,000 in 2012).
The Nasiri Foundation – $5,000 grant in 2014
The Nasiri Foundation is a family foundation that seeks to support “progressive non-profit organizations that have tech-based platforms focused on alleviating global social problems in the areas of: education, poverty, healthcare, and initiatives promoting non-violence and diplomacy.”
Porter Family Charitable Foundation – $4,500 grant in 2014
The foundation also donated money to Education for a Just Peace in the Middle East ($1,000 in 2013).
Do Right Foundation – $3,000 grant in 2014
According to the website, the Do Right Foundation seeks to, “help mankind create a more joyful society. We believe in the joy of learning, innovation and continuous improvement. We promote respect for God and all His creations; family unity; limited government; private property; free enterprise and the rule of righteous law.”
One of the foundation goals is to support “Liberty, responsibility, and tradition…champion that which was intended by the anti-federalist, Christian founders of our country.”
The James & Mary Jane Barrett Foundation – $7,166 grant in 2014
Distributes small grants to other peace-building organizations, such as: Nonviolent Peaceforce, Witness for Peace, and Peace Tax Foundation (all grants of $7,166 in 2014).
Shimkin Foundation – $3,000 grant in 2014
Distributes very small grants to other anti-Israel organizations, such as The US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation ($100 in 2014) and the WESPAC Foundation ($200 in 2012).
Ben & Jerry’s Foundation – $2,500 grant in 2014
This is foundation is the charitable giving mechanism of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream
The grant to JVP is described as: “Trustee, Staff and Advisor Directed.”
Iqbal G. Mamdani and Shelby M. Mamdani – $2,500 grant in 2014
This is a family foundation with funds originating from Iqbal Mamdani’s fortune earned from TAIB Bank.
AJ Muste Memorial Institute Inc, – $2,000 grant in 2014
This grant was allocated towards JVP’s “We Divest Campaign.”
The foundation also donated money to the WESPAC Foundation ($2,000 in 2014).
Hope and Justice Educational Foundation – $1,100 grant in 2014
According to Guidestar, “a religious, educational, charitable, scientific or literary organization.”
Also funded If Americans Knew ($4,000 in 2014).
De La Cour Family Foundation – $1,000 grant in 2014
The Foundation is described as being “created to enable the family to contribute more generously to worthwhile organizations.”