Facts Trump Rhetoric at DC Israel Rally Vigil

Facts Trump Rhetoric at DC Israel Rally Vigil by Lori Lowenthal Marcus, May 20, 2009

As Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu entered the White House lion’s den with US President Barack Obama on Monday, more than 100 pro-Israel supporters showed up outside with two messages: (1) No Nuclear Iran; and (2) No Terrorist Palestinian State on Israel’s borders.

For more than three hours sign-clad Israel-supporters sang and chanted and talked about the existential threats posed by both a nuclear Iran and a Palestinian State. The crowd was unabashed in its support, and the vigil continued for several hours.

Based on the current emanations from Washington, many Israel supporters have begun to fear that the present US government no longer shares Israel’s view of what is the best strategy for stabilizing the Middle East. The concern is that the new US compulsion to make friends with the Arab leadership in the region may now trump its previous stalwart allegiance to what has always been its closest ally in the Middle East - Israel.

Although few in the crowd actually believed that their presence was likely to have an impact on the geopolitical wrestling going on in the White House, they still felt compelled to be there.

“About a week before Netanyahu’s visit, committed Zionists began circulating emails asking who was going to be in Washington representing our viewpoint,” said New Yorker Hillary Markowitz of AMCHA, a grassroots organization started by Rabbi Avi Weiss, “and I realized I had to do it because no one else had yet committed.”

Markowitz obtained a permit for a pro-Israel vigil in Lafayette Park across from the White House, organized buses to take New York area supporters to and from Washington, and began an email blitz publicizing the vigil.

In just a few days people rearranged their lives to converge on Washington. In addition to more than two bus loads from New York, others came from up and down the east coast. There were Christian Zionist supporters who made the trip all the way from Orlando in order to inform the two statesmen of the importance of Israel’s safety and sanctity. The largest organizational contingent was from Chabad, which brought large signs and even larger voices.

Elliot Holtz, a Philadelphian who had never before traveled outside of his hometown to attend a political demonstration explained why he made this trip: “The critical importance of President Obama hearing the message of ‘no pressure on Israel for the sake of dialoguing with Iran’ was worth my day.”

While the pro-Israel crowd numbered fewer than a thousand, “those present were actually better than if thousands had arrived because they were so highly motivated,” Laban Seyoum, an Ethiopian Orthodox Christian who was present, later told pro-Israel activist Jerry Gordon of Florida.

Unlike many other demonstrations about the Middle East, the supporters of Israel far outnumbered those who showed up to demonize Israel. Of course, a few Code Pink (gay rights extremists - think the Reverend Jeremiah Wright’s analog to the civil rights movement) members came, hoping to attract attention with their street theater antics.

They were dressed as Israeli police officers — in pink, of course — with cardboard cutout machine guns and large displays representing the Israeli checkpoints. When told that in the Muslim Middle East homosexuality is strictly prohibited, the practice of which is punishable by death, the young woman blowing on her police whistle was incredulous. Her fall back position was to insist that Israelis kill gays.

Confronted with the news that gay Arab Palestinians actually go to Tel Aviv in order to be openly gay without fear of murder, she simply walked away. They don’t let facts interfere with their rhetoric.

But it wasn’t only the ladies in pink who repeatedly demonstrated their ignorance of facts, and who refused to allow that to stand in the way of their gleeful demonization of Israel.

The shirt of one anti-Israel protester (left) read: “Got Human Rights? Palestinians don’t.” He refused to believe that Arab Palestinians have greater freedom of the press in Israel than in the Palestinian Authority-controlled territories. This was surprising, given the man was wearing a press pass, showing him to be a member of the National Press Association.

One of the handful of other anti-Israel protesters proudly held a sign condemning “Israeli Apartheid.” When she was asked to give an example of Israeli apartheid, she shot back, “Palestinians aren’t allowed to vote in Israel.” When told that Arab Israelis serve on the Israeli Supreme Court and in the Israeli government, including the cabinet, she continued to insist that Israel is an apartheid state.

The vigil was a symbolic push for the US superpower to assist Israel in protecting itself from a nuclear Iran and from a terrorist state being carved out from within its own borders. Those who showed up to represent that view were satisfied that, even if Israel no longer has the kind of friend it needs in the White House, they showed that despite the glee on the Arab street, Israel still has its supporters on the American street.

Israel is the U.S.’s best friend and the enemies of Israel know it. The Palestinians have a country. The U.N. itself said it is Jordan and is remains Jordan. A terrorist group should absolutely not be given yet another country. The Jews have only one tiny country. Anyone who wants her to give even more than she has already given in good faith with nothing in return, despite promises and signatures and treaties, clearly wants to destroy her or is profoundly stupid.

Code Pink followers would repeat that Israel is making the world flat and that she was in danger of falling off if their Marxist handlers told them it was so.

Homosexuals are dead meat under the Palestinian Arabs and all Muslim countries. They escape to Israel to save their own lives. This her handlers don’t tell her. Anything that’s bad she assumes must be Israel’s fault. She would have made a fine Hitler youth.

As Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu entered the White House lion's den with US President Barack Obama on Monday, more than 100 pro-Israel supporters showed up outside with two messages: (1) No Nuclear Iran; and (2) No Terrorist Palestinian State on Israel's borders. For more than three hours sign-clad Israel-supporters sang and chanted and talked about the existential threats posed by both a nuclear Iran and a Palestinian State. The crowd was unabashed in its support, and the vigil continued for several hours... Although few in the crowd actually believed that their presence was likely to have an impact on the geopolitical wrestling going on in the White House, they still felt compelled to be there... In just a few days people rearranged their lives to converge on Washington. In addition to more than two bus loads from New York, others came from up and down the east coast. There were Christian Zionist supporters who made the trip all the way from Orlando in order to inform the two statesmen of the importance of Israel's safety and sanctity. The largest organizational contingent was from Chabad, which brought large signs and even larger voices... While the pro-Israel crowd numbered fewer than a thousand, "those present were actually better than if thousands had arrived because they were so highly motivated," Laban Seyoum, an Ethiopian Orthodox Christian who was present, later told pro-Israel activist Jerry Gordon of Florida. Unlike many other demonstrations about the Middle East, the supporters of Israel far outnumbered those who showed up to demonize Israel. Of course, a few Code Pink... members came, hoping to attract attention with their street theater antics... When told that in the Muslim Middle East homosexuality is strictly prohibited, the practice of which is punishable by death, the young woman blowing on her police whistle was incredulous. Her fall back position was to insist that Israelis kill gays. Confronted with the news that gay Arab Palestinians actually go to Tel Aviv in order to be openly gay without fear of murder, she simply walked away... The shirt of one anti-Israel protester (left) read: "Got Human Rights? Palestinians don't." He refused to believe that Arab Palestinians have greater freedom of the press in Israel than in the Palestinian Authority-controlled territories... One of the handful of other anti-Israel protesters proudly held a sign condemning "Israeli Apartheid." When she was asked to give an example of Israeli apartheid, she shot back, "Palestinians aren't allowed to vote in Israel." When told that Arab Israelis serve on the Israeli Supreme Court and in the Israeli government, including the cabinet, she continued to insist that Israel is an apartheid state.

Lost in the blur of slogans
Ishmael Khaldi

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

For those who haven’t heard, the first week in March has been designated as Israel Apartheid Week by activists who are either ill intentioned or misinformed. On American campuses, organizing committees are planning happenings to once again castigate Israel as the lone responsible party for all that maligns the Middle East.

Last year, at UC Berkeley, I had the opportunity to “dialogue” with some of the organizers of these events. My perspective is unique, both as the vice consul for Israel in San Francisco, and as a Bedouin and the highest-ranking Muslim representing the Israel in the United States. I was born into a Bedouin tribe in Northern Israel, one of 11 children, and began life as shepherd living in our family tent. I went on to serve in the Israeli border police, and later earned a master’s degree in political science from Tel Aviv University before joining the Israel Foreign Ministry.

I am a proud Israeli - along with many other non-Jewish Israelis such as Druze, Bahai, Bedouin, Christians and Muslims, who live in one of the most culturally diversified societies and the only true democracy in the Middle East. Like America, Israeli society is far from perfect, but let us deals honestly. By any yardstick you choose - educational opportunity, economic development, women and gay’s rights, freedom of speech and assembly, legislative representation - Israel’s minorities fare far better than any other country in the Middle East

So, I would like to share the following with organizers of Israel Apartheid week, for those of them who are open to dialogue and not blinded by a hateful ideology:

You are part of the problem, not part of the solution: If you are really idealistic and committed to a better world, stop with the false rhetoric. We need moderate people to come together in good faith to help find the path to relieve the human suffering on both sides of the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Vilification and false labeling is a blind alley that is unjust and takes us nowhere.

You deny Israel the fundamental right of every society to defend itself: You condemn Israel for building a security barrier to protect its citizens from suicide bombers and for striking at buildings from which missiles are launched at its cities - but you never offer an alternative. Aren’t you practicing yourself a deep form of racism by denying an entire society the right to defend itself?

Your criticism is willfully hypocritical: Do Israel’s Arab citizens suffer from disadvantage? You better believe it. Do African Americans 10 minutes from the Berkeley campus suffer from disadvantage - you better believe it, too. So should we launch a Berkeley Apartheid Week, or should we seek real ways to better our societies and make opportunity more available.

You are betraying the moderate Muslims and Jews who are working to achieve peace: Your radicalism is undermining the forces for peace in Israel and in the Palestinian territories. We are working hard to move toward a peace agreement that recognizes the legitimate rights of both Israel and the Palestinian people, and you are tearing down by falsely vilifying one side.

To the organizers of Israel Apartheid Week I would like to say:

If Israel were an apartheid state, I would not have been appointed here, nor would I have chosen to take upon myself this duty. There are many Arabs, both within Israel and in the Palestinian territories who have taken great courage to walk the path of peace. You should stand with us, rather than against us.

Ishmael Khaldi is deputy consul general of Israel for the Pacific Northwest.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/03/04/EDRP168GMT.DTL&hw=ishmael&sn=001&sc=1000

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