Empathy and the “other”: Challenging U. S. Jewish ideology

During the past thirty years, dramatic changes have occurred in the politics and discourse regarding the conflicts in the Middle East. U. S. Jewish support for negotiations requires substantial changes in ideology, identity, and discourse. This essay examines a portion of progressive or liberal U. S. Jewish discourse to better understand how ideology structures social practices. A critical rhetorical position is enacted to examine how challenges to ideological tenets require both a self‐reflexive re‐examination of identity and a genuine empathy with the “Other.” In addition, focusing on identity and empathy more completely fulfills the promise of the critical rhetoric/vernacular discourse projects.