By Deborah Ashin , JTNews Correspondent
Whether it’s seeking a way to achieve peace between Israelis and Palestinians or helping mothers understand how to connect with their babies, Yaffa Maritz believes people can find solutions if they will just listen to each other and reflect on their own values.
The Israel-born psychotherapist, who has become a strong and passionate voice for peace in the Middle East, was honored Dec. 5 at the Israel Policy Forum’s 10th anniversary dinner in New York.
A founding member of “Find Common Ground,” a local grassroots organization that promotes Middle East peace, Maritz is also the founder and clinical director of “Listening Mothers,” a program within Family Services in Seattle that encourages emotional bonding between new mothers and babies. She was instrumental in developing the Stroum Jewish Community Center’s Parenting Center and sits on the board of The Foundation for Early Learning.
Although Maritz has lived in the United States for 22 years, her connections to Israel are very strong. She served in the Intelligence Unit of the Israeli Defense Forces and graduated from Hebrew University of Jerusalem with a degree in social work.
Maritz, who now lives on Mercer Island, recognizes the dilemma of choosing to live in the United States but also having a responsibility to her homeland.
“People who live there feel such despair and hopelessness about what to do…they are so tired and can’t think straight,” she says. Comparing Israel to a container with permanent cracks, Maritz fears that if something is not done to solve the situation, the container will fall apart.
“Israel can’t sustain the current situation. It is a crisis — but how can we support Israel and yet still support the peace process?” she asks. Maritz, who has three children, realized she needed to take action when she began wondering what she could tell her future grandchildren if Israel disappeared. Yet writing checks was no longer enough.
Last year, she brought together a range of Jewish community leaders and asked them to think of new ways to support Israel, ways that reflected Jewish values of peace and justice. By encouraging this type of dialogue, Maritz knew her approach would be controversial.
“Most of the people in the meeting were very polite but seemed stunned,” she recalls. She has discovered, however, that as people reflect and evaluate what is happening in Israel, they begin to look at the situation differently. “It’s time to start posing difficult questions: What are our values? Must we show compassion to foreigners in our land? What are our moral standards?”
She strongly believes supporting the Palestinians ultimately is being pro-Israel, because it is the only way to achieve peace.
“There needs to be a paradigm shift…we need to move from zero sum to win/win,” she says. “Israel can’t be both the victim and then tout being a major military power.”
The solution, she believes, is to create a situation where Palestinian people feel secure and have dignity.
Instead of focusing on the past, Maritz believes Jewish people need to look at the present and to the future. “People are not asking questions, but reacting to the past. The current situation is not working and only leading Israel down a path to possible destruction,” she says.
She spoke about the myth that Israel will be harmed if all Jews don’t speak in one voice that wholly supports the Israeli government’s position. Just as children tend to divide the world into “cops and robbers,” Maritz believes many Jews view the Middle East in black-and-white, emotional terms.
“Having this kind of view about Israel isn’t helping the situation — it’s too simplistic,” she says. Through the organizations she’s involved with and by encouraging open dialogues, she hopes people will understand the complexities of conditions in the Middle East. .
“I am trying to help the Jewish community see that it is okay to have diverse opinions and still support Israel,” Maritz says. “I hope people will start realizing that we need to have a healthy debate in our community, in the Jewish tradition, of asking questions and pondering over issues.”
As a result, Maritz has channeled much of her passion and energy to promote peace in the Middle East through her work as an active board member the Israel Policy Forum.
IPF Executive Director Debra Wasserman says, “Yaffa brings enormous grace and energy to a task that most people would find enormously frustrating. But for Yaffa, peace not only defines her goals, but her way of doing things.”
Formed in 1993, IPF is an independent, non-partisan organization that promotes an active and sustained American role in Middle East diplomacy and in advancing Middle East peace. In addition to honoring Maritz at the 10th anniversary celebration, IPF also recognized two other American Jewish leaders: Stanley P. Gold, president and CEO of Shamrock Holdings and Seymour D. Reich, senior partner with the law firm Gallet Dreyer & Berkeley. New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman was the keynote speaker.
For more information on Israel Policy Forum, visit www.israelpolicyforum.org.