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Who we are
We are a growing movement of Jews in the UK seeking to end our community’s support for apartheid and occupation, and to mobilise it in the struggle for dignity, freedom and democracy for all Palestinians and Israelis.
Our name, meaning ‘We will stand’ in Hebrew, references the word used to call Jews to read from the Torah in synagogue: ya’amod/ta’amod (he/she will stand). It reflects our steadfast commitment to stand up for what we know to be right and to stand alongside Palestinians, while connecting to the teachings that drive our activism.
Na’amod was first founded in 2018. Following a period of reflection after its initial few actions, the group formally launched in 2019 and became a powerful voice uniting Jews behind its message of opposition to occupation. In 2022, the movement – now some 300-strong – elected to enter a hiatus to reflect on how to adapt to changes on the ground in Palestine/Israel. Now, in September 2023, we embark on a new phase of action with a strategy that allows us to respond powerfully to the intensifying crisis there.
I’m donating out of gratitude for the hope you give, the hope that people can care about justice and their fellow human beings so much.
WE STAND ON THE SHOULDERS OF GIANTS
From organising boycotts of Nazi goods to the Battle of Cable Street, Jews in the UK have a proud history of organising for our people’s safety and freedom, often in defiance of official communal organisations. These experiences of fighting our own oppression led many amongst our ancestors and elders to organise as Jews for the rights of others – joining the Spanish Civil war, picketing the South African Apartheid embassy, campaigning for refugees in the UK, and – for generations now – organising to end the Israeli occupation.
Continuing this legacy, we want our community to reaffirm the principle of b’tselem elohim (that we are all created in God’s image). We are motivated by the call to not stand idly by the blood of our neighbour. The dehumanisation of Palestinians and the justification of their oppression by people who claim to represent British Jewry is an affront to everything we were raised to believe through our Jewish education.
OUR MEMBERSHIP
Our members reflect the diversity and inclusivity of Jews in the UK:
- We welcome members of all observances, denominations and backgrounds.
- We celebrate the diversity of our membership and are inclusive of Jewish people who face additional oppressions, including Jews of colour; LGBTQI+ Jews; disabled Jews; Jews by choice, Jews from interfaith families, women and non-binary Jews.
- We live across the United Kingdom and span all age groups.
Regardless of our backgrounds, we are all inspired by our longstanding Jewish tradition of championing the rights of oppressed people, everywhere.
We are the future of the British Jewish community and we cannot stay silent as Israel dispossesses Palestinians of their land, strips them of their dignity, freedom and rights, and violently suppresses all efforts to challenge an unjust status quo.
We will win. The occupation and apartheid will end. Join us.