Israeli Apartheid Week

Many Americans reading this blog might be unfamiliar with "Israeli Apartheid Week," so let me give you a little background on it before explaining why it is so toxic. Beginning in Toronto, this college-campus based movement has spread to over 40 cities in the world. The "mission" of Israeli Apartheid Week is "to educate people about the nature of Israel as an apartheid system and to build Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) campaigns as part of the growing BDS movement." In the full mission statement (written in July 2005) the mission includes "full equality of Arab-Palestinian citizens of Israel, and to end the colonization of all Arab lands--including the Golan Heights, the Occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip." That is what the mission statement says. What they really want is to spew anti-semitic rhetoric, and bully people into agreeing with them.

This is a group of college students who have been so brainwashed by their liberal professors that they don't know which end is up. It's criminal the way these elitist professors use their students in their own political wars, but that's life. It happens in the States just as much as it does in Canada (sadly). These students are impressionable and growing up in socialist cities in liberal universities. Really, they have barely any chance to hear common sensical arguments. It almost makes me feel bad for them. Almost. But the hateful speeches and protests they organize against the Jews and Israelis make it impossible for me to feel anything but contempt for these hopeless neophytes.

If you question my assertion of anti-Israeli sentiment on campus, think about this. York University in Toronto (where IAW started), the union leader for the faculty called on the President to ban pro-Israeli professors. What's more disturbing is that this was only reported as a "big deal" by Jewish news papers. At the University of Toronto, students have been known to, frequently, protest Israel and Judaism all over the campus without so much as a second look by administrators. These are not random events. In fact, being anti-Israeli at a Toronto University is damn near the most popular position there is.

Now, back to the ridiculous Israeli Apartheid Week. I'm all for free speech, so if these people want to get together and remove any doubt of their stupidity, have at it. However, journalists and scholars treat this even as legitimate, and that is the real problem. A bunch of clueless students protesting something they don't even understand is normal at college campuses around the world. And liberal media siding with these idiot students isn't that unheard of either. But in this case, it is particularly egregious for the following reasons:

1. The Term Apartheid: First, and foremost, this week-long whine-fest is poorly titled. According to dictionary.com, apartheid means "any system of practice that separates people according to race or caste." If one knows anything about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, you could drive many holes through the "apartheid" argument. Here are just a couple.

1) The Palestinian territories are at the request of the Palestinians themselves (remember Land for Peace).

2) It is the Palestinian rhetoric that denounces Jews as inferior, not the other way around.

3) Israelis have shown a history of working together with the Palestinians, and only proceeded to put up walls when terrorism caused them to fear for the security of their people. That is not apartheid, that is national defense.

2. The Lack of Discussion: This might seem a laughable notion in a time when college campuses are brainwashing grounds instead of learning centers, but the fact is that universities are supposed to encourage open discussion. These IAW demonstrations encourage just the opposite. If you so much as like an Israeli person, you are not allowed to speak, and might well be stoned. I'm not suggesting that these people would be open to discussion. They are obviously unhinged. But legitimizing and event that doesn't even allow the opposition to be heard is a bit dictatorial, don't you think.

3. The Argument that IAW is not "Anti-Semitic": Anyone who buys this is a total moron. But there are plenty of journalists making that claim. They say, its one-sided, but its not anti-semitic, it's just anti-Israeli. Example, Thomas Walkom, Toronto columnist, writes, "it's also hard to accuse Israeli Apartheid Week of being anti-Semitic when small Jewish organizations, like Independent Jewish Voices, are sponsors." Ummmm, first of all, i'm surprised he could make it out of college with that kind of logic. Is that to say that because some black people hate other black people that if YOU hate black people it's not racists? Come on! There are Jewish people who stand against Israel (though very few), that does not mean the activities at IAW are not Anti-Semitic. The Palestinian people are not "freedom fighters," they are jihadist taking back land for Allah.

It is a well known principle in Islam that land conquored for Allah must not be lost to "infidels," which is what the Israelis are. Moreover, demonstrators at IAW are often seen wearing traditional Hamas scarves. I'm sure that Mr. Walkom would not find Hamas to be "anti-semitic" either. They just "want their land back," right? This goes back to a long standing principle. Only conservatives can be racists or anti-semitic, and IAW people are liberal. Therefore, anti-Israeli protestors cannot be racist or anti-Semitic. Of course, it's completely illogical, but when did you last hear a coherent argument by a leftist radical? Forget the fact that the Nazis were a leftist political group (an argument better saved for another day).

Of course there are more reasons why this gets under my skin, but these are the big reasons why anyone should be concerned if Israeli Apartheid Week comes to a town near you. Just remember this; It wasn't the Israelis that decided to blow themselves up. It wasn't the Israelis that elected terrorists as government. Only in the West could people be so out of touch with reality that they could support Hamas and it's supporters over a country that is just trying to survive.

Forget for a moment that Israeli was the land of the Jews until they were forced off of it. Forget that they were re-sanctioned the land of Israel after the Holocaust, to ensure that the Jewish people would always have a safe haven if ever such a vile plan was plotted against them again. Forget that the Muslims would have the Holocaust done 20 times over to rid themselves of the infidels. Just think about it legally. The Jews were given Israel by the British and the UN. It is theirs. You might not like it, but thems the facts. Get over it. And while you're at it, why not sit down with the Palestinians and ask them to stop being petulant children, put on their big-boy pants and deal with Israel in a diplomatic and grown-up fashion. I'm pretty sure history proves the Israelis are more than willing to work together.