Oct 28, 2024
Show Notes:
Jack Levy spent
a year before college studying Judaic Studies and Talmudic studies
in the Old City of Jerusalem. During his time in Harvard, he became
particularly interested in Israel, as he had grown up with a strong
Jewish background. He received a Raoul Wallenberg fellowship,
funded by Fred Schwartz, to go to Hebrew University for a year
after college during which he interned for Knesset member Naomi
Hazan and worked for the Association for Civil Rights in
Israel.
From Columbia Law School to
Venture Capital
After Israel,
Jack went to Columbia Law School. He worked one summer as a human
rights lawyer and later worked for Wall Street firm Willkie Farr &
Gallagher to pay off his debt. He chose that law firm based on
their Israeli clients and had a great experience with a mentor
named Peter Jakes. During his time at law school, Jack met his
wife, Dahlia. They settled in New York for a while before moving to
Israel. Jack worked at Willkie before transitioning to
Register.com, an internet company. In 1999, the internet was
booming. Jack spent four years as General Counsel of Register
during the the .com boom. In 2003, they moved to Ra’anana, Israel,
a suburb of Tel Aviv, and have raised their three children there.
Jack practiced law briefly in Israel before becoming a venture
capitalist in 2006. He was the first to raise the banner of
cleantech or climate tech in Israel in 2006 and 2007, thanks to
Harvard classmate Sanjay Wagle.
The Israeli Experience after
October 7
Life changed for all Israelis and Palestinians in the wake of the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023. All of the Jack's children serve in the military, and the community has experienced losses. The country came under attack by Hamas, led by Yahia Sinuar, and immediately followed by Hezbolla in the north. The October 7 attack resulted in horrific violence, crimes, destruction, rape, murder, and burning of people in the Southern Communities. Like many religiously observant Israelis, Jack and his family were in synagogue during the attack, when the rumors started to spread. Jack mentions that in the week prior to the attack he’d been on holiday in Jordan.
Early in the
morning of October 8, their best friends called to tell them that
their 27-year-old son, Major Aryeh Ziering, had been killed by
Hamas command naval commandos who had infiltrated Israel. Arey was
an excellent fighter from the canine unit who had captured
terrorists alongside some of the most elite forces during his
service. He had gone to the United States to help train Navy SEALs
with canine warfare. He was killed by 1pm that day.The next day,
other friends found out that their son Hirsch had been kidnapped
into Gaza, which ended with tragedy about a month ago when he was
killed by Hamas. By the end of the first day, they had one friend
whose son had been killed as a fighter, one friend who had been
captured from the Nova festival and held prisoner by Hamas, and
another business partner who lost his cousin's child fighting that
day as well. As the war continued in the coming months, their
network of friends who experienced loss widened to include – one
who lost their nephew in December fighting in Gaza, one whose
daughter's boyfriend was killed pursuing a terrorist in the West
Bank, and others who lost their lives in the conflict. The story of
the heroism of those who fought for their lives and the lives of
others is one that will be told for generations.
As a 54-year-old Israeli father,
Jack has three children who have been fighting in the war, Jack
explains the extremely high cost to Israeli families who have
children in the army. Jack states that the present generation is
remarkable, and he wrote a piece in the Times of Israel about the
little league team he had coached going to war. He still plays
softball with his boys and realized that by December, every child
he coached was fighting in the war.
How Heroism Drives
Soldiers
Jack shares the lessons he learned
about conflict and military training. He talks about the importance
of respecting American military families. He reflects on the recent
tragic death of a soldier who recorded a video of himself before
going into Lebanon, expressing love for the person behind him. He
believes that Americans of his generation don't understand the
importance of military families and the sacrifices made by
soldiers. He grew up during the reckoning with the Vietnam War
through Oliver Stone movies, and grew up thinking war was primarily
unjust or wrong. Jack explains that the men and women fighting are
often the best, motivated, kind, and loving people. He identifies
with pacifism but lives only because there are people willing to
defend him.
Civilian War Rooms in
Action
The state apparatus of defense along
the Israeli border failed on October 7, allowing hordes to burst
through the borders and kidnap hundreds. However, people jumped
into action. People established civilian war rooms, where they
could be proactive in helping house, shelter, build and support in
multiple ways. After October 7, many communities accepted refugees
from the north and south - similar to the Second Lebanon War – and
many in Jack’s community helped families who had moved into hotels
in the Dead Sea area. A friend of Jack, who lost her nephew, set up
a school in the Dead Sea area within four days. The community
extended to raising money to buy better helmets and equipment for
reservists. This community-building effort was remarkable and
comforting.
Gazan Civilians under
Hamas
Jack, a former human rights
attorney, discusses the situation with civilians in Gaza and the
ethical considerations surrounding the response. He believes that
the destruction to Gaza is horrific and tragic, with 40,000 people
killed, but the problem is that it is not 40,000 civilians. Recent
reports state that 30,000 of those were Hamas fighters or their
family members.
Jack blames Hamas for the
destruction, but also emphasizes the morality and the need not to
damage one's own cause. He shares first-hand testimony from his
son, who describes his experience as a surveillance unit officer in
Khan Yunis. He encourages people from outside Israel to focus on
being “pro peace” rather than being “pro Israel” or “pro
Palestine”.
The Tech Industry in
Israel
Jack, an investor and startup
expert, discusses the impact of travel restrictions on the tech
industry in Israel as the travel restrictions due to missile
attacks from Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran have been problematic
for Israeli companies. Despite the obstacles, he notes that Israeli
companies have been able to function during this period. In
addition, it is common with Israeli technology companies for the
CEOs to relocate to New York, Silicon Valley, Boston, or Austin,
while the tech teams remain in Israel. Jack believes that the war
is not good for the Israeli economy and that it is clearly awful
for the lives of Palestinians, South Lebanon residents, and even
people in Tehran. He believes that the US needs to take a more
muscular reaction to the situation and help the parties find a way
to end the war.
Influential Harvard
Professors and Courses
Jack discusses his experiences at
Harvard, including courses taught by Stanley Hoffman, Michael
Sandel, Louise Richardson, and others. He mentions his appreciation
for Professor Stanley Hoffman's course Ethics and International
Relations. Jack was in touch recently with Professor Emeritus
Michael Walzer of Princeton whose book he studied in that course
and who had defended Israel's war against Hamas and Hezbollah but
was critical of the alleged Israeli involvement in the Pager
attack. Jack also mentions his love for Professor Michael Sandel,
and Dame Louise Richardson, who was his junior faculty seminar
professor when he was 21 and became his thesis advisor. She was a
young professor who wrote a great book called What Terrorists Want,
which became one of the most popular courses at Harvard after
September 11.
Timestamps:
02:52: Transition to Venture Capitalism and Personal Life
08:17: Impact of the 2023 Conflict on Jack's Family
17:27: Community Response and Personal Reflections
25:48: Professional Challenges and the Future of Israeli Tech
26:00: Reflections on Harvard and Influential Professors
Links:
Email: jack@morevc.com
LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/jack-levy-2a8137
Featured Non-profit:
This week’s featured non-profit of this episode is KIPP public schools, recommended by Grace Voorhis who reports:
“I'm Grace Voorhis, class of 1992 the featured nonprofit of this episode of The 92 report is KIPP public schools. Maybe not everyone knows that charter schools are public schools just exempt from many of the rules set by local school districts. KIPP schools are established in underserved districts. A third party study reported in The Wall Street Journal noted that KIPP students were 19 percentage points more likely to graduate from a four year college than non KIPP students. They noted an effect of this size, extrapolated nationwide, would be large enough to nearly close the degree completion gap for Hispanic students, or entirely close the gap for black students. I'm proud to have served on the KIPP Northern California Board for over two decades, most recently as board chair. I keep coming back to KIPP because of the results they achieve. You can learn more about their work @kipp.org k, i, p, p, and KIPP Northern California, at KIPP norcal.org and now here is Will Bachmann with this week's episode.”
To learn more about their work visit: https://www.kipp.org/