About ten days ago, 11 students at the University of California, Irvine were arrested after repeatedly interrupting Israeli ambassador to the United States Michael Oren’s speech at their campus. The students face potential disciplinary action from their school for the protest.
Now, the right-wing Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) is calling on potential students and donors to boycott the university by not applying or giving money to UC Irvine. The ZOA’s statement alleges that UC Irvine has “for years enabled bigotry, discrimination and the violation of civil rights by failing to condemn longstanding anti-Semitic and Israel-bashing speech.”
The ZOA statement reads in part:
For years, UC Irvine’s Muslim Student Union has been promoting hateful falsehoods about Jews, Zionism and Israel. As just one among many examples, one Muslim Student Union-sponsored speaker last May compared Jews to Satan, and characterized them as slick, sneaky and conspiratorial.
[…]
UC Irvine has also failed to respond to the Muslim Student Union’s solicitation of funds on campus for a group called Viva Palestina, which may have furnished material support and resources to the terrorist group Hamas. This would be a violation of federal law.
In 2007 the federal Department of Education investigated similar complaints filed by the ZOA on behalf of UC-Irvine students and “found ‘insufficient evidence’ that the university failed to respond appropriately to complaints by Jewish students,” reported the Orange County Register. The federal report also states that speakers on campus “distinguished opposition to Zionism from opposition to Jews.”
Another group, B’nai B’rith International, has sent a letter to the school’s chancellor saying that the demonstration against Oren was the most recent example of “the anti-Semitic animus that has resulted in the intimidation of the school’s Jewish population for many years.”
It’s fair, I think, to debate whether the students interrupting Oren did the right thing or if a better protest tactic would have generated the same amount of attention to Israel’s alleged war crimes without getting bogged down in a debate over free speech.
I also wonder if the students would have had a chance to ask Oren some tough questions about Gaza and the Goldstone report, which makes all the difference to me in determining whether Oren should have been interrupted.
And I can’t comment honestly on allegations of persistent anti-Semitism at the UC Irvine campus because, while I don’t take at face value what the ZOA says, I also haven’t been following events at UC Irvine for a long time. The Anti-Defamation League has a “chronology of anti-Semitism at UC Irvine” page on their website that does cite one disturbing speech.
But what should be clear to anyone who watched the video of the interruptions or read press coverage is that the heckling was not, in any way, anti-Semitic. Yelling out “how many Palestinians did you kill?” and “killer” doesn’t come close to anti-Semitism.
Instead, the ZOA and B’nai B’rith are conflating criticism of Israel with anti-Semitism in an attempt to shut down debate over the Israeli occupation and the Gaza onslaught on campuses.
It won’t work though—people of conscience are too outraged over Gaza to be shut up in the face of the tiresome anti-Semitic card.
The ZOA statement is likely referring to Malik Ali’s talk from last May. The ZOA statement uses the word “Jews” where Ali clearly used “Zionists” or “Zionist Jews,” as is evident from the ADL page (the ADL certainly would be on top of this).
The ADL page itself is a joke. It includes, as part of its “Chronology of Anti-Semitism at UC Irvine,” a blurb on Cynthia McKinney:
May 13, 2009: Cynthia McKinney, a former U.S. Congresswoman from Georgia and the 2008 Green Party presidential candidate, gave two presentations titled: “Investing in Apartheid” and “Sailing to the Shores of Oppression.” The first focused on U.S.-Israeli relations and the second on her involvement with the Free Gaza Movement’s failed attempt to reach Gaza by boat in the midst of Israel’s military operation against Hamas in Gaza in 2008-09.
If that’s “antisemitism,” as defined by the ZOA and the ADL, then Malik Ali was right when he noted that “the Zionist Jewish community wants to stifle freedom of speech as part of an attempt “to destroy your will to resist; not just in Palestine, they are trying to destroy the people’s will to resist everywhere.”
The ZOA and ADL, through their denunciations, prove the veracity of the people they condemn.
Anyone with a conscience ought to be an “antisemite,” as defined by the ADL, ZOA, et al.
‘Anyone with a conscience ought to be an “antisemite,” as defined by the ADL, ZOA, et al.’
What conscience? to condemn against anti-semitic prejudice and promote it otherwise, not lack of conscience? Its either you allow the Jews to exist in Jewish Israel or destroy them. With all these Israel bashing and ferocious anti-Zionism among the campus liberals and militants worldwide , these people have no country to go after Israel! It Israel to live, or die! I might be not taking up the arguments of ADL, ZOA but I do sympathize with their ‘Zionist’ survival cause. In an extremely worst situation, the Palestinians have many Arab countries and wide at that to go. The Jews with their miniscule territory, have no other Jewish country to flee. Thanks to worldwide ‘genetic’ hatred against the Jews …
You sound like the kind of person who walks down the street looking for monsters around every corner, behind every lamppost. If you took care of those delusions, you’d see that this paranoia of yours – much like the fear that has gripped Dick Witty and Clueless Jew ever since the one state solution was made popular – you’d see your fears and claims for what they are, _____. Choose your own adjective to fill in the blank.
When did the “one state” solution become popular? Your only support is the small fraction of radical anti Zionists. In Israel life is very good. Virtually no one desires to be ruled by the Arabs.
“In Israel life is very good. Virtually no one desires to be ruled by the Arabs.”
No Julian, in Israel “life is good” because everything is stolen from the indigenous population, and the Israelis lifestyle is enhanced by the slow genocide of the Palestinians. This is always and will ever be the condition with colonialism, that crushes under foot the weak, and partners in doing so with countries of power.
THE SAME
Plus it is wrong timing and illegal, and this is not just a plea of context, but it is the culmination of the nations judgment after many years of bloodshed with impunity. To deny it does not make you of a “different opinion,” but via the collective will shown in law and conventions a criminal that needs to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
The denizens of Imperial Rome probably thought their life was pretty good, too, with dozens of slaves for every Roman.
And they probably thought their empire would never fall.
RE: “When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.” – Sinclair Lewis
MY COMMENT: Well, at least he was half right. He didn’t actually specify which flag, so he got the flag part right.
RE: “ZOA calls for a (much) different kind of academic boycott” – Kane
ALSO SEE: The Trial of Israel’s Campus Critics, by David Theo Goldberg and Saree Makdisi, Tikkun Magazine, September/October 2009
(EXCERPT)…It is an extraordinary fact that no fewer than thirty-three distinct organizations-including AIPAC, the Zionist Organization of America, the American Jewish Congress, and the Jewish National Fund-are gathered together today as members or affiliates of the Israel on Campus Coalition. The coalition is an overwhelmingly powerful presence on American college campuses for which there is simply no equivalent on the Palestinian or Arab side. Its self-proclaimed mission is not merely to monitor our colleges and universities. That, after all, is the commitment of Campus Watch, which was started by pro-Israel activists in 2002. It is, rather (and in its own words), to generate “a pro-active, pro-Israel agenda on campus.” There is, accordingly, disproportionate and unbalanced intervention on campuses across the country by a coalition of well-funded organizations, who have no time for — and even less interest in — the niceties of intellectual exchange and academic process. Insinuation, accusation, and defamation have become the weapons of first resort to respond to argument and criticism directed at Israeli policies. As far as these outside pressure groups (and their campus representatives) are concerned, the intellectual and academic price that the scholarly community pays as a result of this kind of intervention amounts to little more than collateral damage…
ENTIRETY – link to tikkun.org
The “pro-Israeli” agencies operating in American academia could not get more anti-American in terms of free speech. There is no place in the USA to go to if one has a problem with USA enabling of Israel right or wrong dictate, except the ivory towers and the internet.
First off, there is no “history of anti-semitism” at UC Irvine. Secondly, it’s naive to think the students could have asked “tough questions”. If a person gets an hour to present a case, and then you get one or two questions with no possibility of follow-up, that isn’t debate. refusing to take part in such a farce is exactly the right thing to do.
That is correct christian h, it is a farce to think that there is any debate going on in a setting like this. They want to bring this ass Oren to pontificate the position of Israel, like the occupation has some form of legitimacy.
All you get with this type of “meeting” is someone trying to mix the “war on terror” with a colonial exercise. Than again, the US activities acting like there is some sort of war on terror taking place is no less a farce either (colonial exercises in the name of the so-called “war on terror” – see Iraq). However, when it comes to Israel they think there is a free ride on the rhetoric on some war on terror, rather than what is truly occurring in this conflict. When this happens resistance and self-defense against illegal colonial activity is turned into “terror.”
The idea that there is a “history of antisemitism” is just a plain lie, even the students in the past who were supposed to be getting defended by the ZOA said that this rabid organization did not know what they were talking about –
Jewish students say UC Irvine is safe
“Michelle Eshaghian, co-president of Hillel at UCI, said the press release came about after this week’s national Hillel meeting in Washington, D.C., at which UCI Chancellor Michael Drake was a featured speaker.
Eshaghian said she and other UCI attendees spent too much time defending their campus and Drake against what she characterized as misinformation from off-campus groups.
“They call me a liar, these people from these outside organizations,” Eshaghian said. “But I am a hard core Israel political activist, I am very Jewish, I would give up my life for Israel. I don’t know if they think I don’t care, but I do.” ”
Instead, these groups like the ZOA should be banned from trying to influence the campus from the outside, foaming nonsense about antisemitism. Trying to confound antisemitism with criticism of the official, and atrocious activity of Israel. They just need to shut up and go away.
Safe for now while the world watches, and there are still true western minds existing. With these anti-Jewish fervor in the campus, you remove the ‘West’, and all the Jew – carrying blood person will be dead within few days!
Yep, that’s right, zamaaz! The mobs will go down the streets of America, and kill every person who is circumcised! That’s how they will tell who is Jewish, of course!
Cause, as you well know, nobody except Jews is marked like that.
Gosh zamaaz, where do “progressives” stand on this? I notice the other zio-trolls have been slagging “progressives” as Jew-haters. Where do you stand on this?
They have drugs for your condition now.
Standwiththeeleven.wordpress.com
The blog is set up for these students. Please give them your moral support by writing to their dean.
Citizen, I think you’ve hit on something to be explored, expanded….”Pro Israeli” agencies….American agencies whose allegiance should be to the US….all sound “UN-American”. If they are called on that….questioned before..they start screaming anit-semitism. the public…average citizen of these United States…is reluctant to be labled anti-semitic ” I don’t want to be labled that or anything!However, the average citizen goes bonkers with anti american comments…allegiance of American citizens to another country is an even larger sin. These two things need to be brought up and hammered home to them…This may not be a nice tactic but look at the pro Isreal tactics.
If you add in the information of US tax dollars flowing across the Atlantic faster than a speeding bullet; the public will also not be pleased. They can become very angry and I truly believe if they knew what Israel’s doing and getting….especially $wise ….Israel cozy relationship with the US would change.
If it’s bigoted and discriminatory to criticize Israel, why is it not bigoted and discriminatory to support the slaughter of Gaza?
How many temples and synagogues had signs during the attack on Gaza, signs in which they expressed their full support of Israel’s actions?
Why is it that so many schmucks out there think they are better than others?
Perhaps Dick could chime in and tell us about his childhood and upbringing so that we might identity the key factors. There’s a large enough sample of trolls on this site to allow for a good statistical study.
There two distinct issues here; (first) the slaughter of Gaza, and (second) the existence of Israel as a Jewish nation. The first issue is a matter of choice among Palestinians, the second issue bring no other choice for the Jews (after all these orchestrated anti-Jewish hatred even in campuses) but wage war to survive.
A trend is emerging between you and others who blindly support Israel on various blogs and news sites.
1. You lack the ability to make a coherent substantive argument, one based on reality.
2. You are mentally delusional, living in a bubble of your own making.
3. You seem to lack basic university education.
Mind you, the above is not meant as an insult. It’s merely an observation.
“It’s merely an observation”
Sorry, but my ziocaine theory fits the facts much better. He may very well have all those things you mention, and many, many other zionist0supporters do have all those things until the ziocaine starts flowing in their veins.
However, the gratifying effects of ziocaine make a person oblivious to how they appear.
The best illustration is someone who is a chronic alchohol-and-cocaine abuser.
My observation is that this person and several others posting here are not competent in the English language, over and above the contemptibility of their opinions.
So, zamaaa, you are saying the Palestininians of Gaza chose to bring down OP Cast Lead on their own heads. You mean like the Jews chose to live in the Warsaw Ghetto, or Auschwitz?
And that anti-Jewish hatred gives Jews no choice but to wage war to survive as Jews?
Didn’t Hitler write and speak that anti-German hatred gave Germany no choice but
to wage war so Germans could live as Germans?
“And that anti-Jewish hatred gives Jews no choice but to wage war to survive as Jews?”
And the most effective weapon in that war is a high-birth-rate! Call me, preitzkhs!
When a poster claims that the Palestinians in Gaza have chosen to be slaughtered, that poster has chosen to be an object of contempt.
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