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Person

Nomi Colton-Max

Nationality:

Canadian
Occupation:

Pro-Israel activist

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Nomi Colton-Max is a left-of-center pro-Israel activist who has spent her career in Zionist activism and nonprofit leadership. 1 She was involved with several protests and demonstrations in response to proposed 2023 Israeli judicial nomination process changes which she claimed were a threat to democracy. 2 3 4

Colton-Max has held several positions within Zionist organizations, including board member and vice president of programming at the American Zionist Movement (AZM), chair of the executive board and vice president of Ameinu, and co-chairwoman of the board at New Jewish Narrative. 5

Colton-Max has been an outspoken defender of what she considers to be a “pro-Israel progressive” stance. She regularly criticizes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, denounces his government and its policies as far-right extremism, but supports a strong State of Israel. 6 3

Education and Career

Nomi Colton-Max grew up in the Habonim-Dror youth movement in Canada, an international socialist-Zionist youth organization operating in more than 20 countries that advocates for Progressive Labor Zionism. 1 Colton-Max began her studies in international relations at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She went on to receive a bachelor’s degree in anthropology and Middle East studies from McGill University, at which she was member of the McGill University Progressive Zionist Caucus. Colton-Max continued her education at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. She graduated with an master’s degree in international relations, economics, and Middle East studies. 7

Colton-Max began her career as a program associate at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). After spending time as a research associate at an energy company, she became the president of Congregation Beth El, a synagogue in New Jersey. 5

In 2017, Colton-Max became a board member at the American Zionist Movement (AZM), a position she held until 2024. In 2021, she was promoted to vice president of programming at AZM, a position she still holds. In 2018, Colton-Max became the chair of the executive board and vice president of Ameinu. She held this position until 2024, when Ameinu merged with Americans for Peace Now (APN) to create New Jewish Narrative, where Colton-Max is the co-chairwoman of the board. 5 1

Since January 2023, Colton-Max has been a member of the executive at the World Zionist Organization. 5

Affiliated Organizations

Ameinu and New Jewish Narrative

Nomi Colton-Max was the chair of the executive board and vice president at Ameinu until it merged with Americans for Peace Now in December 2024, becoming New Jewish Narrative. During her time at Ameinu, Colton-Max was heavily involved in protest organization and demonstration planning, particularly related to Israeli government policies. 8 9

Throughout 2023, Nomi Colton-Max led several protests and demonstrations in opposition to Israeli government proposals that sought to limit the Israeli Supreme Court’s checks on government actions. In April 2023, Colton-Max organized a demonstration at the World Zionist Congress with the help of Brothers-in-Arms and UnXeptable, Israeli groups that were active in the country’s months-long protests against the Israeli judicial proposals and the Netanyahu government. The protesters marched to the Israeli Supreme Court building. 2 In June 2023, Colton-Max helped lead a protest down Fifth Avenue in the Celebrate Israel Parade in New York City. 3 Again in September 2023, Nomi Colton-Max helped lead and spoke at a rally in Times Square in New York City. 4

American Zionist Movement (AZM)

Nomi Colton-Max is the vice president of programming at the American Zionist Movement (AZM), the United States Zionist Congress that represents American Jews at the World Zionist Congress. AZM conducts a public vote among the American Jewish community to elect U.S. delegates to the World Zionist Congress. 10 11 When Colton-Max assumed her role with AZM in 2021, she published a letter to the AZM community through her then-position with Ameinu during which she criticized the Trump administration and the leadership at AZM. She said the four years before her tenure were “fraught with ugliness” and that AZM had stopped representing the sentiments of most American and Israeli Jews. She promised to return the organization to a pro-democracy, pro-Israel, anti-right-wing stance that she claimed always characterized diasporic Jews. 12 6

In May 2024, a Jewish Telegraphic Agency article described her stances and leadership as “normie,” meaning middle-of-the-road and not intended to create real change. 6

Criticism of Israeli Government

In a 2023 op-ed, Nomi Colton-Max criticized the Israeli government’s judicial policies under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that stripped the Israeli Supreme Court of its power to cancel government decisions deemed “extremely unreasonable.” Those who oppose the bill, including Colton-Max, argue that this action is a threat to Israel’s democracy as it weakens the checks and balances between branches of Israel’s government. In the article, Colton-Max claimed that an unintended consequence of Netanyahu’s policy changes was that it solidified the relationship between left-wing Israelis and American Jews. 3

References

  1. “Nomi Colton-Max, Vice President.” American Zionist Movement. Accessed March 2, 2025. https://azm.org/leadership/nomi-colton-max/
  2. Goldberg, Elisheva. “Liberal Zionists Test the Efficacy of the World Zionist Congress.” Jewish Currents. May 3, 2023. Accessed March 2, 2025. https://jewishcurrents.org/liberal-zionists-test-the-efficacy-of-the-world-zionist-congress
  3. Colton-Max, Nomi and Granot-Lubaton, Shani. “In New York, Israel’s Far-right Government Hands a Big Win to Its U.S. Jewish Opponents.” Ameinu. June 5, 2023. Accessed March 2, 2025.  https://ameinu.net/news-and-opinion/ny_israel_parade/
  4. “Ameinu’s Post.” Facebook. September 19, 2023. Accessed March 2, 2025. https://www.facebook.com/ameinufan/posts/ameinus-vice-president-nomi-colton-max-was-one-of-the-speakers-in-todays-rally-i/712901567544110/
  5. “Nomi Colton-Max – Experience.” LinkedIn. Accessed March 2, 2025. https://www.linkedin.com/in/nomi-colton-max-b7120917/details/experience/
  6. Silow-Carroll, Andrew. “At a Manhattan synagogue, ‘normie’ pro-Israel liberals stage a last stand.” Jewish Telegraphic Agency. May 5, 2024. Accessed March 2, 2025. https://www.jta.org/2024/05/05/ideas/at-a-manhattan-synagogue-normie-pro-israel-liberals-stage-a-last-stand
  7.  “Nomi Colton-Max – Education.” LinkedIn. Accessed March 2, 2025. https://www.linkedin.com/in/nomi-colton-max-b7120917/details/education/
  8. “Welcome to New Jewish Narrative.” New Jewish Narrative. Accessed March 2, 2025. https://www.newjewishnarrative.org/statements/welcome-to-new-jewish-narrative.
  9. Ingber, Esther Allweiss. “Progressive Zionist Groups Merge to Strengthen Fight for Israeli-Palestinian Peace.” The Detroit Jewish News. February 3, 2025. Accessed March 2, 2025. https://www.thejewishnews.com/news/progressive-zionist-groups-merge-to-strengthen-fight-for-israeli-palestinian-peace/article_bfb12cf8-e245-11ef-898b-efab1cd81019.html
  10. “About.” American Zionist Movement. Accessed March 2, 2025. https://azm.org/about/
  11. “American Zionist Movement (AZM) – Profile.” LinkedIn. Accessed March 2, 2025. https://www.linkedin.com/company/azm4israel/
  12. Colton-Max, Nomi. “A Message from Nomi Colton-Max – New Vice-President of Programming, AZM.” Ameinu. July 19, 2021. Accessed March 2, 2025. https://ameinu.net/news-and-opinion/a-message-from-nomi-colton-max-new-vice-president-of-programming-azm/
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