Leaders of New Jersey's major Jewish organizations are pledging a united pro-Israel campaign in response to a pro-Palestinian solidarity conference scheduled at Rutgers University's Douglass College in New Brunswick, Oct. 10-12.

Meeting July 21, leaders representing five New Jersey Jewish federations and various Jewish agencies held what was described as one in a series of strategy sessions to counter what some described as "anti-Israel hate speech" and "terrorist rhetoric" they expect to come from participants of the fall conference.

The meeting was held at the Alex Aidekman Family Jewish Community Campus of United Jewish Communities of MetroWest New Jersey in Whippany following Gov. James E. McGreevey's decision to grant NJ Solidarity permission to hold its conference at Rutgers. David Mallach, director of the Community Relations Committee and assistant executive vice president of UJC MetroWest, is advocating a "two-pronged approach" in challenging advocates for the Palestinians.

"In terms of the activities on campus, the primary focus must be Jewish students' identification with the state of Israel," he said.

Off the campus, Mallach said, such tactics may be combined with criticism of NJ Solidarity, the group organizing the conference, and its "mission statement that seeks the destruction of Israel." While attendees expressed the hope that the Jewish organizations would reach consensus on how best to express their message of support for Israel, some said disagreements exist on specific plans and approaches.

Avi Lyon, executive director of the Jewish Labor Committee, who describes himself as "an expert on campus dissent," said, "Opposition to Israel should be fought from the Left."

Lyon said defenders should stress Israel's history as a secular socialist state and its long record of supporting workers' rights, with trade union movements that include both Jews and Arabs.

"You are not going to convince radicals who support the Palestinians unless you argue about issues of social justice," he said.

Another participant questioned whether Hillel was the proper institution for leading the pro-Israel campaign on the campus.

"Most of the Jewish students on campus don't relate to Hillel," said the critic.

"Hillel is by far the most effective Jewish presence on the campus," said Mallach. "Of course we will deal with other Jewish organizations as well, but Hillel remains the most Jewishly effective entity at Rutgers."

Also taking part in the meeting were representatives of American Jewish Committee, Hillel, the Jewish National Fund, United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, and the State Association of Jewish Federations of New Jersey, including UJA Federation of Bergen/North Hudson, and the Jewish Council for Public Affairs.

'More discussion, not less'

The meeting in Whippany came four days after McGreevey backed Rutgers president Richard McCormick's decision to grant NJ Solidarity permission to hold the conference at Douglass. The two men met for a half-hour at the New Jersey Institute of Technology in Newark on July 17. According to the governor's communications director, Kathleen Ellis, McGreevey's decision came after a careful investigation of NJ Solidarity.

"The governor's primary concern was security. He checked with the State Office of Counter-Terrorism, and they had no evidence to suggest the group was terrorist. It had no record of any legal violations," said Ellis.

The governor, said Ellis, "finds its views abhorrent, but he felt it was important that the university be allowed to serve as a forum for ideas, even the most unpopular ones." While the governor did not agree with the views espoused by the group, he had decided not to try to overturn the university president's decision to allow the conference.

"This is America and we all have a right to express our views as long as it's not a threat to anyone's safety," said Ellis. "No one gets to pick and choose who gets to speak, who gets the stage."

"The governor and I agreed that we find the views of NJ Solidarity to be reprehensible," said McCormick. "But we also agreed that the best way to counter deplorable arguments is more discussion, not less, and that the appropriate place for this kind of discourse is the university. Gov. McGreevey and I share the belief that the strength of our society depends on such openness."

A 30-member contingent from a New York-based group called Amcha-The Coalition for Jewish Concerns, picketed the Statehouse in Trenton as the governor and Rutgers president met in Newark.

Charlotte Kates, NJ Solidarity's education chair and spokesperson, sent out an e-mail to supporters last week, expressing appreciation for "support and sustenance."

"Of course, the struggle is not over," she wrote. "We are facing not only further attacks from repressive forces here, but the real need to build a strong and successful conference for divestment from apartheid Israel."

One group making firm plans to oppose the content of the conference is the American Jewish Committee.

"Our whole focus has been that there should be a drumbeat for Israel. It can't just be a reactive kind of thing," said Allyson Gall, AJC's regional executive director.

Among the items on the organization's agenda are three months of "positive programming to support Jewish students on the Rutgers campus."

"College campuses, especially, are hotbeds of free speech – and they should be," she said. "We thought it was best to just empower the students, and that's what's going to continue to be our strategy."

Robert Wiener can be reached at .