Outgoing Ambassador Slams U.N.

Israel’s outgoing Ambassador to the United Nations Prof. Gabriella Shalev received an enthusiastic sending off in New York from of a friendly crowd, as she delivered the 5th Annual Gershon Jacobson Memorial Lecture.

The lecture, entitled “Representing Israel at the UN: Challenge or Opportunity?” took place Tuesday, August 24, at the Park East Synagogue and was hosted by the GJCF and the Algemeiner Journal.

Ambassador Shalev took the opportunity to share the various hardships facing Israel at the UN, and also shared details of positive growth and development.

“Sadly, there are countless human tragedies and immeasurable human suffering around the globe. Yet the United Nations reserves the overwhelming majority of its condemnation only for Israel. This can only be interpreted as the “politically correct” modern anti-Semitism,” she said.

“We cannot stop the witch-hunt against Israel that regularly takes place at the United Nations today,” she stated.

Shalev insisted that despite the challenges, Israel must not walk away from the UN, quoting President Woodrow Wilson who said: “I would rather lose in a cause that will someday win, than win in a cause that will someday lose.”

Shalev also spoke of the dangers of rhetoric saying “Some may simply dismiss all of this –– all these meetings, resolutions and letters (at the UN) –– as purposeless diplomacy, or as mere rhetoric.”

But, she said, “We must also acknowledge the danger of words. The horrific genocide of the Holocaust did not begin in the gas chambers –– it began with the inciting words of Nazi leaders.”

The Ambassador also acknowledged the positive power of words, stating: “Words, indeed, may have a powerful force. Think, for instance, of the words of the United States’ Constitution or Israel’s declaration of independence; or the words of great leaders such as Washington, Lincoln, Herzl or Ben Gurion.”

This annual lecture is one of many programs of the Gershon Jacobson Jewish Continuity Foundation (GJCF), established in memory of the long-time editor and publisher of the Yiddish-English weekly, The Algemeiner Journal.

The GJCF is directed by Simon Jacobson and Dovid Efune, and is overseen by a prestigious tribute committee that includes Dr. Elie Weisel.

To learn more, visit GJCF.com. To view the event journal – click here

VIDEO: The full speech