SHMUEL LEGESSE

An Ethiopian Israeli should also be capable of leading a major Zionist or Jewish institution, and should appear on CNN, Fox News, the BBC, or Sky News.

Israel has become a military, technological, and economic powerhouse. Yet as its strategic strength has reached historic heights, its international legitimacy has increasingly come under attack.

Beyond Netanyahu, Israel must counter distorted narratives by telling the full story of Jewish history and Zionism.

The mayor of New York City has one of the most demanding jobs in America, leading a city of more than eight million people and managing challenges that affect millions of lives every single day.

Israel is not just another issue in American politics. It is not a convenient weapon for the Left or the Right. It is a living country in a dangerous region, surrounded by enemies.

Ethiopian Jews are not Israel’s diversity story. They are its Zionist proof.

When was the last time you saw an Ethiopian Israeli representing Israel on CNN, Fox News, or even in our own national English-language media? Maybe almost never.

Sacks dedicated his life to teaching that covenant is stronger than politics, and that Jewish survival depends not on uniformity but on mutual responsibility.

As someone who has carried the identity of being Ethiopian, Jewish, Israeli, and American, I have learned that nations are not strengthened by outsiders who define them only by their failures. 

The Israel Day Parade is about the connection between the Jewish people and the State of Israel.