WATCH: How a Children's Storybook is Educating Columbia Students About Israel's Right to Exist

On a crisp spring morning at Columbia University, representatives of pioneering Israel Advocacy group Stand With Us read a book to different groups of students on the lawn.

The book, The Shelf They Lost, presented as a simple children’s tale about juice boxes displaced from their shelf in a store, captivated the audience with its vibrant imagery and heartfelt message. But beneath its colorful narrative lay a deeper allegory, one that invited reflection on Jewish history, displacement, and the quest for a homeland.

The book tells the story of juice boxes, grape, orange, apple, and tropical, living happily on a central shelf in a bustling store. Their peace is shattered when romaine lettuce, milk cartons, bread loaves, and sausages reject them, pushing them out with harsh words: “You don’t belong,” “Your colors are strange,” “You’re dirty and beneath us.”

The juice boxes face exile, loss, and even destruction, with a poignant reference to “6 million juice boxes” whose “straws were bent and boxes burned”, a clear reference to the Holocaust. Yet, the surviving juice boxes find hope, uniting to rebuild their shelf in “the only place where safe,” a metaphor for the Zionist dream of returning to and establishing Israel. The story ends with a question: “Do the juice boxes deserve a shelf of their own?”

The reading was deliberately subtle, avoiding explicit mentions of Jewish history or Zionism to ensure accessibility in Columbia’s tense climate. Students listened intently, some nodding as the juice boxes faced rejection, others visibly moved by their resilience. When asked, “Do the juice boxes deserve a shelf of their own?” most responded affirmatively, with responses like “Yeah, of course” and “If everyone else has a shelf, they deserve one too.” Only one student offered “no comment.”

Columbia University has been a tinderbox for Israel-Gaza tensions, with incidents like the BDS-organized “First Intifada and Mass Organizing” event in February 2025 and ongoing debates over antisemitism. The advocacy group chose this setting strategically, aiming to engage students through storytelling rather than confrontation.

The book’s allegory is unmistakable for those familiar with Jewish history. The juice boxes’ displacement mirrors the Jewish Diaspora, expulsions, and pogroms, culminating in the Holocaust’s devastation. Their return to a “shelf of their own” reflects Zionism’s core tenet: the Jewish people’s right to self-determination in their ancestral homeland.

Yet, the story also acknowledges critics, with “whispers of anger” claiming the shelf was “taken from others,” referring to Palestinian perspectives without delving into the conflict’s complexities. This balance made the book a powerful tool for advocacy, accessible to young audiences yet provocative for those who recognized its subtext.

The video’s closing moments, where students affirm the juice boxes’ right to their shelf, suggest the event achieved its goal: fostering empathy without triggering immediate backlash. “I’d buy this book for my kid,” one student said, appreciating its universal message. Another noted, “It’s sad how they were treated, but I’m glad they found their place.

Whether The Shelf They Lost will become a staple in Israel advocacy remains to be seen, but its debut at Columbia suggests a new approach: using storytelling to bridge divides. In a world of competing narratives, that question lingers, inviting us all to reflect on belonging, justice, and the courage to claim a place called home.