For some Jewish peace activists, demands for a cease-fire come at a personal cost
Last weekend, Ally was kicked out of a family Shabbat dinner. Ally is 21 years old and from New York.
"My dad is a staunch Zionist. He said, 'You better not f***ing have gone to that protest.' "
Ally has gone to many protests.
"He was like, 'I don't want to have you in my house right now. You are not welcome at this dinner table,' " Ally said.
Ally, who requested anonymity due to ongoing harassment, has family in Israel. Some are currently in the Israel Defense Forces.
Since the Israel-Hamas war began, there have been protests demanding a cease-fire. Many Jewish Americans have joined in. Some say they've been met with hostility from within their own communities. Ally is a student at Columbia University, and is part of Jewish Voice For Peace, which is vocally demanding a cease-fire in Gaza.
What Ally wants, beyond a cease-fire, is to address the human rights violations Palestinians have endured over the years.
"My position as a Jew is that it [has] always been our responsibility, according to our religion, to stand up for all those who are targeted, all those who are oppressed, all those who are facing violence. Because as a people, we've been persecuted for so long."
Rabbi Ari-Lev Fornari, also with Jewish Voice for Peace, says lately, he's been hearing about a lot of arguments like the one at Ally's Shabbat dinner table.
"I don't know a single person in my community who hasn't had a fight with a family member in the last two weeks," Fornari says.
He says some of these disagreements are generational. While diverse in participation, groups like Jewish Voice for Peace skew young, reflecting a shift in Jewish American political views. They also reflect the Israeli government's move to the far right, something which feels incompatible to many young liberal Jews.
According to the Pew Research Center, around half of Jewish Americans 65 and over say Israel is an essential part of their Jewish identity. For Jews 29 and under, that number goes down to 35%.
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