Ads reading “Islamic Jew Hatred: It’s in the Quran” appeared on SEPTA buses in Philadelphia on April Fool’s Day. No joke.
The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority lost a legal battle to keep the hate speech off its public transportation. The federal court judge ruled that buses are public forums and SEPTA cannot censor political speech.
Within twenty-four hours of the Islamophobic ads from Pamela Geller and the American Freedom Defense Initiative appearing on the buses of Philadelphia, anonymous Philadelphia residents responded creatively by slapping stickers on the ads, calling out “Hate speech”.
Philly residents may notice the resemblance between the sticker image and an ongoing SEPTA passenger etiquette campaign, “Dude, It’s Rude,” encouraging courtesy and etiquette among SEPTA passengers on issues ranging from cell phones, blocking the aisle, and riders not to take up two seats on the subway.
Surely Pamela Geller’s uncivilized hate speech disparaging Muslims is well beyond any measure of rudeness. Her incendiary ads, factually inaccurate, attempt to incite religious, racial, and ethnic resentment, prejudice, discrimination, and violence.
Philly rejects these messages.
The Interfaith Center of Philadelphia launched a Dare to Understand public messaging campaign, which includes a billboard planned for a public space in the city and the use of social media, to counter the noxious messaging of the Geller ads.
A few days before the bus ads appeared, Mayor Michael Nutter pre-emptively organized a rally in Love Park. Muslim, Christian, and Jewish clergy came together to promote a message of understanding and cooperation among diverse communities. The interfaith crowd of about 100 included political and religious individuals and groups that don’t usually stand on the same street corner when they demonstrate.
Philly may have found an antidote to the toxic bus ads. Taking a stand against hate seems to bring people together. The final joke may be on Pamela Geller.
Geller is the real joke. Nothing says “racist” like a poster attacking one particular religion and the people who follow it, that spews lies and angry words against them. Who in their sane mind can look at this ugly display of racism and Islamaphobia, and agree with what is said? Who in their right mind will not dismiss this and the persons behind this as a bunch of hypocritical morons, who accuses Islam of hatred, while displaying it so starkly on their pathetic posters?
Only like minded bigots, who happened to be the minority in this country.
Geller must be intellectually very challenged, if she and her zionists pals think their hate posters have changed one single mind.
Maybe someone can help me here.Did not another municipality take the opposite stance against the Pro Palestinian ads just last week??. I cannot recall where but I am sure I read it on MW. Boston , maybe?.
RE: “Calling out Pamela Geller’s hate speech in Philadelphia”
MY COMMENT: Pamela Geller is a real piece of work! Her parents must be so proud.
I assume they made her the way she is.
I’m pretty sure this Geller person (whoever she is) thinks that the words “Jew Hatred” will make everyone gasp, throw up their hands in horror, lose their monocles, have attacks of the vapours, and generally act like a Bateman cartoon.
But I suspect the very narrowness of her concern may well provoke other reactions. For example, I can easily imagine people thinking “We gotta get worked up about the Jews again? What makes them so important?”
Does anyone think the city’s response and that of the interfaith center were adequate?
I don’t know what more one could expect. I suppose they could include discussion and criticisms of Geller’s ads, but actually they did to some degree.
To do more they could have called out “pro-Israelis” and how they have been pushing us to war and conflict with Muslims, but that’s a lot to expect.