Israel, increasingly fragmented and tribal, desperately needs to adopt the proven measures that have worked wonders to stamp out antisemitism, and to counter racism, and ethnic strife in America. As our Supreme Court unanimously agreed in the 1954 landmark case of Brown v. Board of Education, separate is inherently unequal. There are so many groups in Israel which live, not just in their own neighborhoods, but in their own worlds. They don't attend school together, belong to the same clubs and teams or live as neighbors. They don't socialize together or even talk to each other. Even different Jewish groups are denied equal rights and opportunities. Non-Jewish Israeli citizens are treated as badly as Reform or Conservative Jews there in some respects, and in some ways are worse off.

Jews in Israel are still in the minority and are in control of the government for now. That will not last far into this century if demographic trends continue. Arab Israeli birthrates are significantly higher than Jewish Israeli birthrates. There has been a movement of many Jews who found temporary refuge in Israel to 1st World countries -- Europe, Australia, Canada and of course the United States where they do not have to live in a sea of hostility. Once Iran develops nuclear weapons, how many Jewish mothers will urge their children to leave for safer ground while they still can? In any event, it is likely that democratic control over Israel will shift to non Jewish Israelis within a few decades. If Israel has not won over those who will be in the majority by then, the consequences will be severe for the Jews. Who would want to see the tables turned and be treated as second class citizens like they treat their neighbors? It is up to the Jews to instill a respect for equal rights and equal opportunity, for freedom and democracy, while they still control everything.

The questions of where and how to begin to eliminate discrimination against, and hostile attitudes toward the "other(s)" in Israeli society remind me of the 1960's and '70's in the U.S. when well-meaning liberals argued, almost endlessly, about how to end racial discrimination: Should the emphasis be on education, jobs, or housing? The answer, of course, is to stop debating where to begin and instead to take whatever steps are possible in all aspects of Israeli society to change the status quo. As for non-Israelis, we can be part of the solution by supporting organizations such as "Seeds of Peace" which bring Israeli Jews and Arabs together to try to change the hearts and minds of the next generation of leaders.

It seems the only way to bridge the gap between us and "the other" is to disover that we share a great deal in common with "the other". In other words, we must discover that at the very core of our being we and "the other" are very much the same.

We can only see someone as "other" if we keep them at a distance, if we look at skin color, language, religious or cultural histories, etc. If we can get beyond that and see that "the other" shares the same basic yearnings and hungers that we have, then there is a chance that we can reconcile, that we can finally see "the other" as very much like me. The other wants to raise a family in peace and security, the other has dreams of a stable, just society, the other feels pain and fear, and anger just like I do. At the very core, we all share a common humanity and that's what we must discover for it is in that common humanity that we can meet and, hopefully, discover ways to live together in peace.

It is true that many Jews are xenophobic when it comes to living integrated with Arabs. But, perhaps we should look at the other side. What happens when Jews living in the Arab countries want to live in integrated neighborhoods. Oh...wait a minute. Jews aren't even allowed to live in their countries let alone in their neighborhoods.

Those who decry the poor mistreated Arab, should look at the geography in question. they have so very much and we have so very little. Why do they want ours?

I must agree with Rabbi Feinstein on. Look, it is simple really. Just read the Koran and the Hadiths of Mohammad, and the life of Mohammad (the Sira) to see what kind of person Mohammad was by his own example. Then, look at the many of the world events occurring--an Islamist government systematically raping and killing the nonMuslim civilians in Darfur; over 10,000 Islamist terror attacks since the tragedy of Sept 11, 2001; the Taliban's rule in Afghanistan and their work with Al Quaida who plotted the attack on the United States (the second time by the way jihadists attacked the World Trade Center); Sunni's and Shites attacking each other in Iraq in the name of the same God; all the attacks of the Palestinians upon Israel over the past few years inspired by the charter of Hamas of late which clearly encourages Muslims to kill even Jews hiding behind rocks and trees and to destroy all "Zionist" organizations such as "Freemasons and Rotary Clubs" (it is in their charter folks yes it is!) etc etc.
When you read what Mohammad's plans were for nonMuslims, and realize that there are ultraOrthodox Muslims today, right now, who really want to live just like Mohammad did hundreds of years ago, and you see all the world events around you, who would want to live near such individuals?
Are all Muslims ultraorthodox in their beliefs? No of course not. I do suggest however before you rapidly embrace pleuralism and being "politically correct" read some of the works of Brigette Gabriel who clearly documented how her native country of Lebanon moved from a pleuralistic country in the late '60s and early 1970's, a country where Beirut was called the Paris of the Middle East, to a country where under the influence of Muslims and the PLO, the Christians were slaughtered brutally, and Israel was visciously attacked, all in the name of Allah and the desire to spread Sharia law. The Muslims in Lebanon would say "First comes Saturday then comes Sunday." What do you think this means?

It is well documented that about 1 million Jews were displaced from Muslim countries during the decades of the 1900's before the modern state of Israel was born and that their land, homes, bank accounts, etc were taken from them and never returned and that if all this land were "added up" it would take up a land mass 3 times the size of the modern state of Israel and be worth well over $300 billion dollars in modern times. Where is the United Nations in arguing for the rights of those Jewish displaced individuals? Instead, the United Nations has treated the "Palestinians" uniquely, granting them a special status, and totally ignored the equality, dignity and human rights of those Jewish immigrants who were absorbed into other countries. The double standard is just nauseating. The "declaration of Human Rights " that you have quoted certainly has NOT been applied to Israel, or to all the displaced Jews of the region.
Let all the nations of the Middle East first sign peace treaties with Israel, and let all the leaders of Hamas and similar groups sign documents where they agree to the right of Israel to exist as a Jewish state in peace and dignity. It is sad to say but Hamas will not do this because to do this, they will have to renounce their ultraorthodox beliefs in Islam and Sharia law. Therefore, your "declaration of Human Rights" becomes a moot point, unless you wish to add to the declaration "Jews don't count". In effect that is what the United Nations has already done.
One last point. The United Nations quote you mentioned above directly conflicts with the life and sayings of Mohammad. I recognize many people do not want to accept this but it is true. I suggest that you have all members of the Muslim faith renounce all parts of their faith (and that is no small feat!!) that conflict with the United Nations quote above, and then we can work on those issues honestly. Otherwise, your dreams of equality and peace will never happen.

M. B., my local town council in New Jersey scoffs at the idea of allowing low rent, multistory appartments in town. They said they don't want kids from those apartments in their schools. The silence of the local Reform Temple on this debate is deafening. It's easy to rack up moral points by criticizing Israelis thousands of miles away. It takes much more courage to challenge our next door neighbors to allow poor people to move into town.