The Sept. 2 Shrubtown cartoon about two referendums was quite the mixed bag:
1. Good messaging on civic engagement: On one hand, the cartoon’s message, that we need to think about where we put our efforts and what is the most strategic use of our time and activities as citizens, is spot on. There is so much in our communities and the world at large that demands our attention and engagement, so choosing to get involved in any issue should be a strategic decision, based on both our sense of the moral gravity of an issue as well as the anticipated efficacy of our involvement.
2. Substantively wrong: The proposed referendum asks Oak Park voters to support the repeal of the 2015 Illinois anti-boycott law. The idea advanced by the cartoon that we cannot change our state legislation is not only wrong but also sends voters the message that they have no effective role in a democracy. In fact, this legislation that the referendum will address, has gained huge support within our community and within the state legislature, and it is because people have raised their voices in the media, in elections, in churches, synagogues and mosques, and with our legislators about the need for our state to stop shielding Israel from the people’s constitutionally protected right to boycott due of its human-rights abuses. The state repeal legislation will pass – the question is just how quickly. And Oak Park’s support of this referendum will let our legislators know how important it is to us that they make this happen soon.
3. Messaging progress: Though the cartoon’s messaging was substantively wrong, the fact that it characterized those advocating for the referendum as doing something ineffective — rather than attacking them as antisemitic — is a huge step ahead. It is because our communities are no longer cowering in fear of being wrongly accused of antisemitism just because they are criticizing Israel’s actions that this smearing attack is finally falling flat with the public, which is eager to engage with very important moral and political issues.
Rebekah Levin
Oak Park