Eretz Israel is our unforgettable historic homeland...The Jews who will it shall achieve their State...And whatever we attempt there for our own benefit will redound mightily and beneficially to the good of all mankind.(Theodor Herzl, DerJudenstaat, 1896)
We offer peace and amity to all the neighbouring states and their peoples, and invite them to cooperate with the independent Jewish nation for the common good of all. The State of Israel is ready to contribute its full share to the peaceful progress and development of the Middle East.(From Proclamation of the State of Israel, 5 Iyar 5708; 14 May 1948) With a liberal democratic political system operating under the rule of law, a flourishing market economy producing technological innovation to the benefit of the wider world, and a population as educated and cultured as anywhere in Europe or North America, Israel is a normal Western country with a right to be treated as such in the community of nations.... For the global jihad, Israel may be the first objective. But it will not be the last.(Friends of Israel Initiative)
Showing posts with label Campus Hate Speech (UK). Show all posts
Showing posts with label Campus Hate Speech (UK). Show all posts
A disturbing look at the intimidation of Jewish students on campus in the UK:
To quote the uploader:
Dr Alan Mendoza engages with a panel to discuss the rise of antisemitism on campus, often disguised as anti-Zionism. Alan is joined by Jonathan Neumann from Jewish Human Rights Watch, Ben Hayton from University College London and Devorah Khafi from Queen Mary University. Current Affairs | J-TV
And from Douglas Murray and the Gatestone Institute, a succinct explanation of why it's not surprisng if youngsters in the UK think "it's open season on Israel":
To quote the uploader:
Antisemitism isn’t new to the UK Labour Party, and its recent
antisemitic outbursts shouldn’t surprise anyone. Labour Party leader
Jeremy Corbyn has ordered an “independent inquiry” into the party’s
antisemitism. Gatestone Institute Senior Fellow Douglas Murray
explains how Labour’s antisemitism problem starts at top of the party,
and why this inquiry won’t solve anything.
This is the first of the Gatestone Institute's video series, produced with the aid of The Rebel.media
StandWithUs, the organisation whose representative was bitten on the cheek, requiring hospitalisation (see my previous post), has issued the following press release:
SOAS should uphold free speech and bar incitement to violence and antisemitism.
A small number of pro-Israel protestors, including supporters of StandWithUs, participated in a peaceful protest against the “Celebrate Palestine Festival” event held at the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies [SOAS] on March 20th. The event included calls for boycotting Israel and libeling it as an “Apartheid” country.
The pro-Israel protesters were standing at the university, with signs behind them pointing out that Israel is the opposite of an 'apartheid' country and calling for a peaceful two-state solution between Israelis and Palestinians. They peacefully discussed these issues with attendees, only once approached by people. The police had given them permission to be there.
Anti-Israel activists then engaged them in conversation. One man verbally assaulted them with anti-Semitic slurs, saying, “the best thing that Jews have ever done was to go into the gas chambers. It was the best thing to happen to Germany to have been cleaned of Jews. The same thing needs to happen in the Middle East.” Another anti-Israel activist then punched and bit a Jewish member of the group, who was hospitalized. This was an unprovoked attack. His attacker was later arrested by police.
StandWithUs unequivocally condemns the disgusting act of violence against peaceful Israel supporters on the SOAS campus. The attacker evidently was spurred on by the hate-filled, one-sided event taking place at SOAS.
“I am totally shaken and distressed by what happened. One of the most disturbing things is that the people involved, fearing negative publicity…started accusing us shouting, "how dare you come here? It's a Celebrate Palestine event, you knew what would happen. You asked for it.’ I didn't think I would ever get to a stage in which I would feel like a Jew in Nazi Germany, and I don't say it lightly," reported StandWithUs-UK Coordinator Gili Brenner who was one of the pro-Israel demonstrators.
"It is unacceptable that violent rhetoric by Palestinian supporters spills over into violent actions. We expect the university to condemn this attack and those who incited it. Universities must have a policy of zero tolerance policy for hate speech and anti-Semitism. They should carefully monitor incendiary events like ‘Celebrate Palestine' to ensure that hate speech, violence, and suppression of free speech do not occur,” said Michael Dickson, StandWithUs-Israel Director who was in London during the incident.
“Unfortunately, the kind of blatant anti-Semitism, bigotry, and incitement to hatred that occurred at SOAS lurk at the bottom of far too many anti-Israel events on campuses. They frequently become a toxic brew that can lead to physical violence as they did in this case. They also prevent any serious discussion of the issues, and often lead to intimidation and the suppression of free speech, as they did in London,” said Roz Rothstein, CEO of StandWithUs.
"It is unthinkable that in the UK people can be prevented from peacefully demonstrating and expressing their opposition to incitement, hatred and blatant anti-semitism which, given the outrageous comments about Jews this undoubtedly was. It is important that the right to challenge anti-Israel events be protected, and Israel’s supporters must not be intimidated or silenced by the mindless violence that occurred on Sunday,” commented Joy Wolfe, UK Chairman of StandWithUs.
A short video made following the attack (the man featured is not the attacker):
I suppose it was only a matter of time, given the hate-ridden antisemitic atmosphere that prevails on some of Britain’s campuses, especially in London, and the lily-livered attitude of the university authorities.
The Jewish Chronicle reports that a pro-Israel activist was physically attacked and hospitalised during Israel Apartheid Week. He was one of a foursome from the organisation Stand With Us who went along to the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) at London University to observe a “Celebrate Palestine” event there.
One man reportedly told the group that “the best thing the Jews had done was to go to the gas chambers” and then another man, described as “of Middle East appearance”, bit one of the foursome on the cheek, causing the victim to be taken to the nearby University College Hospital.
To add insult to injury, the university authorities seem to be blaming the Stand With Us group for the assault on the grounds that their presence was provocative.
Islamic extremists spewing out hatred on UK campuses have become a grim feature of life on many British campuses, especially in London. In addition to the implications for public safety generally, this situation has created an atmosphere of intimidation and fear for Jewish and pro-Israel students.
For such Islamists, it’s effectively a case of “Carry On Hate Speaking,” courtesy of the authorities who, despite expectations, have in a newly published report announced by Professor Malcolm Grant, Provost and President of University College London (UCL) ,signally failed to grapple meaningfully with this issue.
Professor Grant chaired the working group of the umbrella body of university chiefs, Universities UK, and can be seen in the video below. “Views expressed within universities ... may sometimes appear to be extreme or even offensive, “ he explains. “However, unless views can be expressed they cannot also be challenged.” Thus the report gives the go-ahead to universities to continue inviting extremists onto campuses in order to “engage” with them.
Not surprisingly, the Union of Jewish Students maintains that Universities UK has accordingly “failed to provide any clear, practical guidance to the sector on the issue of hate speech and extremism on campus. The report provides no answers whatsoever.”
After it was revealed that Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab – who tried to blow up a plane on Christmas Day 2009 – had been President of Islamic Society at UCL, Universities UK – under pressure from the government – set up an Inquiry into Extremism on Campus. It was clear from the start that it was going to be a whitewash: http://www.thejc.com/blogpost/campus-extremism-university-heads-are-taki...
And so it ha proved. The members of the Inquiry – headed by Professor Malcolm Grant of UCL – very quickly changed its focus from "extremism" to "guaranteeing free speech” – a laughable inversion of what the Inquiry was supposed to be about.
There is no list of hate speakers and events which have caused offence. And the recommendations are a fudge. For example there is no mention of compulsory filming by university authorities of hate speech meetings.http://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/29079/hate-war-campus-be-stamped-out
The universities have proved themselves abjectly incapable of setting their own house in order. The time is long overdue for David Willetts – the Universities Minister – to step in.
And as wise commenters on the Guardian's notorious Comment is Free website observe, in response to a typical "weaselly"Al Grauniad article on the subject:
'Hamza Andreas Tzortzis will address the University College London Islamic Society ...
Mr Tzortzis, ... was a trustee of Green Crescent, a British charity placed under investigation ... for links with Islamist terrorism.
Mr Tzortzis ... is a former researcher for the hardline Hittin Institute and chaired the launch event of iERA, an umbrella organisation hosting many well-known British Muslim extremists who preach opposition to democracy and hatred against homosexuals and Jews. He also has links to the extremist and separatist group Hizb ut Tahrir ....
At UCL's Islamic society's Islamic Awareness Week in February 2008 invited speakers included Abu Mujahid, who has incited Muslims to condemn homosexuals because Allah "hates" them.
Murtaza Khan, who was filmed in a television documentary delivering a diatribe against Jews, Christians and "filthy non-Muslim doctors", was invited to speak at the another event ... in December 2007.'
and
'Universities have a duty to protect students who come to study in them. If speakers speaking at the invitation of certain societies engage in hate speech or speech verging on hate speech - eg against Jews or non-Muslims, gays etc, then no University could justify inviting the speaker.
The same would go for extreme right-wingers who might aid in creating an atmosphere which was intimidating to ethnic students.
But somehow when extreme anti-liberal, racist, sexist, homophobic views are expressed by extreme Islamists, Universities - if this article is anything to go by - tend to excuse them in the name of "openness" in a way which would probably not apply to extreme right-wing speakers.
The idea that those views contribute to "openness" when they relate to closed-mindedness is very strange.'
Mike Prysner, an American war veteran, is becoming something of a celebrity on the anti-Iraq War and Israel-bashing lecture circuit. Recently, on the eve of Holocaust Memorial Day, he was at Birmingham University in the UK – where he told his hosts, the Friends of Palestine, that Gaza is “quite literally [sic!] one massive concentration camp”, where Palestinians are “killed with impunity” just like Jews under Nazism:
If you’d care for something sweet, after that repulsive taste of hyperbolic hate, "Almonds and Wine" might delight your tastebuds (hat tip: reader Shirlee):
