Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images After initially canceling their trip to Israel amidst pressure from pro-Palestinian activists, The Sierra Club will reportedly continue with their trip to the Jewish state.
Dan Chu, president of The Sierra Club, announced in a March 15 statement that the environmental nonprofit will “update our schedule soon to offer new outings to Israel later this year.” “Recently, the Sierra Club hastily made a decision, without consulting a robust set of stakeholders, to postpone two planned outings to Israel,” he said. “The process that led to this was done in ways that created confusion, anger, and frustration. Let me be clear: the Sierra Club’s mission is to enjoy, explore and protect the planet, and we do not take positions on foreign policy matters that are beyond that scope. We do not have a deep understanding or knowledge necessary to do so, nor is it our place to do so. Furthermore, we have and always will continue to loudly condemn anti-semitism and any and all acts of hate. We are committed to working more intentionally, thoroughly and thoughtfully so we can prevent this from happening again.”
He added that the organization will be conducting “a holistic review of our outings process to better guide the destination of our trips and the itineraries of them” and will “create future outings to Israel and other countries around the world that are strongly aligned with our conservation policies and our core values.”
The Jewish News of Northern California (The J) had initially reported on March 11 that The Sierra Club had canceled their trip to Israel later in the month after a coalition of progressive activists lobbied them to do so. Since then, there has been “an outpouring of public statements and open letters from Jewish and pro-Israel organizations” and “representatives of Jewish advocacy organizations and state politicians met virtually with Sierra Club officials Monday afternoon,” per The J.
Rabbi Abraham Cooper, Associate Dean and Director of Global Social Action Agenda at the Simon Wiesenthal Center, told The Times of Israel (TOI) and The J that The Sierra Club Vice President Ross Macfarlane called him and apologized over the initial cancellation. Macfarlane said that the decision should have been reviewed by the board and that he doesn’t want the environmental nonprofit to become embroiled in “anti-Israel activity,” Cooper said.
“We appreciate that the Sierra Club acted quickly to reverse the announced cancellations of trips to Israel which placed the famed American conservation organization directly into the crosshairs of BDS, anti-Israel, and anti-peace zealots,” Cooper told TOI. “The Jewish community needs to awaken to the fact that extremist anti-Israel and antisemitic organizations will continue to try to insert their anti-peace poison pill into the mainstream of American corporate culture as they have already done on American campuses.”
Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt tweeted that he was “encouraged by the conversations I’ve had with @SierraClub leadership over past 24 hours. They made the right call to reverse their decision to cancel trips to Israel. If we want to be able to continue correcting the wrongs that we see, #OpenDialogues and teachable moments will always be key.”
Encouraged by the conversations I’ve had with @SierraClub leadership over past 24 hours. They made the right call to reverse their decision to cancel trips to Israel. https://t.co/KzY8r06BNX
— Jonathan Greenblatt (@JGreenblattADL) March 15, 2022
If we want to be able to continue correcting the wrongs that we see, #OpenDialogues and teachable moments will always be key.
— Jonathan Greenblatt (@JGreenblattADL) March 15, 2022
StandWithUs Israel Executive Director Michael Dickson tweeted, “Well done @SierraClub on seeing the light! I’m sure your Israel trips will be amazing, eye-opening and relevant to the goals of your mission.”
Well done @SierraClub on seeing the light! I’m sure your Israel trips will be amazing, eye-opening and relevant to the goals of your mission.
Sierra Club reinstates Israel trips after canceling amid anti-Zionist group pressure #BDSFail https://t.co/HhVnyHkjb1 @timesofisrael
— Michael Dickson (@michaeldickson) March 15, 2022
Creative Community for Peace Director Ari Ingel tweeted, “After initially being duped by BDS [Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions] misinformation, they [The Sierra Club] now understand what BDS is really about.”
Great to see: Sierra Club apologizes for canceling the Israel trips, repudiating the boycott call. The trips to Israel are back on their events schedule.
After initially being duped by BDS misinformation, they now understand what BDS is really about. https://t.co/oTGNkOeQl9
— Ari Ingel (@OGAride) March 15, 2022
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