Peter Beinart is an American journalist, political commentator, and Professor of Journalism and Political Science at the Newmark School of Journalism at the City University of New York (CUNY). An observant Jew, he served as the editor of The New Republic from 1999 to 2006 and has been a frequent contributor to The Atlantic, The Forward, and The New York Times, establishing himself as a prominent voice among American liberal Jewish intellectuals.
Beinart’s 2012 book, The Crisis of Zionism, examined the growing political divide between younger American Jews and mainstream Israeli policies regarding the occupied territories. His columns frequently focus on foreign policy, American Jewish political identity, and Middle Eastern affairs.
Beinart’s support for Palestine reflects a significant intellectual transformation from “liberal Zionism” toward advocating for “equal rights.” In his landmark 2020 essay, “I Believe in the Jewish State. I Now Support a One-State Solution,” he publicly advocated for a single democratic state where Jews and Palestinians enjoy full, equal rights. He not only frequently calls for an end to the occupation through columns and lectures but also actively supports the Palestinian “Right of Return” and argues that U.S. aid to Israel should be conditioned on human rights. He maintains that Jewish safety should not be built upon the oppression of another people and encourages the Jewish community to confront the truth of the Nakba.