David Bryan/ Keyboardist/ Bon Jovi band
Dear David:
It’s been a few years since our paths have crossed and I had the pleasure of interviewing you. Hope this email finds you doing great!
I’m writing to you today not only on a personal note, but also on behalf of my Israel advocacy group GA-GA for Israel and the 1,300 signatories below.
It’s recently been reported that there are external pressures on the Bon Jovi band to cancel its upcoming October concert in Israel and to join the boycott against it. And so, I am writing today to appeal to you, to Jon Bon Jovi, and to your entire band to remain steadfast in your decision to perform as scheduled, despite the detractors, and to follow in the courageous footsteps of Elton John, Alicia Keys, the Rolling Stones, Lady Gaga, Barbara Streisand, Paul McCartney, Rihanna, Damian Marley, Chris Brown, the Back Street Boys and many others.
As a descendant of Holocaust survivors yourself, you certainly know that six million Jews never had the chance to see a Jewish Homeland. Yet, on many occasions, the lives of Jewish musicians were begrudgingly spared solely to entertain Nazi officers who murdered Jews to the melodious backdrop. David, what greater triumph over history can there be than for such a famous musician as yourself to now perform in your own Promised Land for your own free people. Your band’s hit lyrics resonate more at this moment than ever before: “Who says YOU can’t go home?”
Surrounded by so many enemies bent on her physical and economic destruction, Israel could never afford to be solely “livin’ on a prayer.” The State of Israel needs tangible support from its friends in the face of unrelenting efforts to delegitimize her and to eliminate her. Your showing up goes a long way.
As you surely must know Israel is the only true democracy in the Middle East, one with a free and open press, one that protects the rights of women, minorities, homosexuals and all faiths.
Did you know that the Israeli army is a first responder post natural disasters, including after the earthquakes in Nepal and Haiti, where its assistance was indispensable?
Did you know that on a daily basis Israeli innovations are helping millions of people around the globe–from medicine to technology to agriculture and beyond? Israel is at the forefront of creating devices that help the wheelchair-bound walk, the blind see and diabetics monitor their blood sugar via smartphones and regulate it without insulin shots. ICQ was invented in Israel, as was the B-stent, WAZE, the firewall, and even the endoscopy capsule, PillCam.
Major U.S. corporations have set up R&D centers in Israel, including Facebook, Intel, Microsoft, Amazon, Google, IBM, Yahoo, Apple, PayPal, just to name a few. Merely follow our Twitter feed for ONE day, @GaGaforIsrael, and you will be astounded by the productivity and innovation that come out of Israel on a daily basis. It is for very solid reasons that we are GA-GA for Israel.
Thank you for taking the time to read this letter, David. I hope with all my heart that you and your fellow band members will take it into consideration.
Warmest wishes always,
Aliza Davidovit Founder/President
Rhoda Sonken Administrator
