This Pesach, Freedom Feels Heavy

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Dear friends,

The story of Passover inspired the notion of freedom for billions of people.

Not as a given, but as a hard-earned right.

A struggle inspiring billions - Jewish and not - around the world.

This year, that notion feels especially heavy.

As we gather around our Seder tables, 59 Israeli hostages are still held captive in Gaza.

For eighteen months they are tortured, abused, and denied basic freedoms.

Their absence is an open wound in every Israeli family, and a painful reminder that true liberation is still far from reach.

Countless families in Israel will gather around a Seder table with an empty chair - not for the prophet Elijah, but for their loved ones who were murdered on October 7 or died in the aftermath of the war.

Too many families will have the Seder outside of their homes, as they can’t return because it is still not safe to live in the destroyed Gaza Periphery or in the Galilee.

At the same time, countless Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank face their own crushing realities, stripped of security and dignity.

This is not the vision of freedom we long for - on either side of the border.

Or on either side of the political map.

At LIBRAEL, our work was born from a fear that Israel would become a wedge issue.

A political football rather than a source of shared values.

We knew there was another Zionist story to tell, other than “Support Israel and Shut Up.”

A story that’s liberal, committed to justice and peace, and Zionist - fulfilling the Jewish people’s right to live free and secure.

Crossing the Red Sea. We draw strength from the Exodus story because it insists that freedom is possible - even when it feels distant.

Passover reminds us of the power of storytelling - not just to remember, but to renew.

We draw strength from the Exodus story because it insists that freedom is possible - even when it feels distant.

That’s the spirit we carry in our work.

If you’re looking for deeper reflection this holiday, we invite you to explore our content page.

Two recent pieces, written by two of LIBRAEL’s volunteers, speak to this moment with particular clarity:

Omer shares personal testimonies from the war in Lebanon, capturing the heartbreaking realities and cost of war;

And Oz dives into the liberal protest movement in Israel - an inclusive movement that is still pushing, relentlessly, for a democratic, Jewish, and equal society.

We wish you a meaningful Passover. May this holiday bring healing, and may our shared longing for liberation lead us all toward a more just and peaceful future.

Am Israel Chai. Slava Ukraini. God Bless America.

With respect,

Rotem Oreg-Kalisky

Founder and Director