The week I got home, I got my energy back, and I was giddy with the joy of being alive. I walked my dog and bellowed out this song in the woods. I'm no musician, but the soul of the moment carried my voice. When I came home I got out my computer and recorded this in a message for my good friend Nick… but what the heck, I want to give it to the world!
Also, if someone could remix this or re-sing this with piano, that would be brilliant.
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Here is my "Of Gold," playlist because Yerushalaim Shel Zahav kept popping up in my head.
1) You're Gonna Miss Me When I'm Gone - Flatt & Scruggs
2) Spain - The Legendary Jim Ruiz Group
3) Seeing Other People - Belle & Sebastian
4) The Rollercoaster Ride - Belle & Sebastian
5) Hearts and Bones - Paul Simon
6) Police and Thieves - The Clash
7) Box of Rain - The Grateful Dead
8) Fish to Fry - The Ditty Bops
9) Georgia on my Mind - Ray Charles
10) Born at the Right Time - Paul Simon*
11) Back on my Feet Again - Randy Newman
12) Don't Think Twice, It's Alright - Bob Dylan
* My magical hospital song.
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Welcome back from your trip! Love those glasses in previous post.
ReplyDeletePalestine will always be in my heart, and yours as well. I love this post, I love your blog all together!
ReplyDeleteWonderful to hear your voice and to watch your creativity overflowing. Thank you for thinking to share your song with us, for believing in yourself and especially for believing THINGS (and PEOPLE) CAN CHANGE.
ReplyDeleteLove to you and yours, here, there and everywhere...
Thanks for sharing this with the world.
ReplyDeleteYour soul is a beautiful beautiful thing.
*hugs*
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ReplyDeleteThe people from Mondoweiss.net are thrilled to have you back.
ReplyDeleteOn your song list, items 5-12 are some of my favorites, too!
ReplyDeleteJust when I thought I was too world-weary and jaundiced about Palestine after 25 years of activism, your song reduced me to tears, cleansing tears. Thank you so much!
Don't quit your day job.
ReplyDeleteI know you must be feeling tremendously angry right now, and I often feel it too, but I hope you know that some of your lyrics would be tremendously offensive to many people, regardless of their politics (and mine are way to the left).
ReplyDeleteI guess I'm thinking specifically of this:
"If they don’t want people to be anti-Semitic, then they better act like good Jews!"
I don't think that anyone needs to act like a "good" anything in order to avoid racism and prejudice. If our ability to avoid prejudice depends on our goodness, then we're all pretty much screwed (though some of us more than others, maybe).
What if I said: "if they don't want people to be racist, they better act like good blacks."
Do you see how that would make every person a "representative" black, having to be "good" in order that their individual behaviors didn't evoke racism?
I think we should affirm that every person, even the most terrible, deserves to be treated with dignity, and that that is not conditional on their being "good." Isn't that something we could agree on?
We, the Jewish people, need to stop wearing the threat of antisemitism as a shield. It shuts up critical discourse. It avoids the reality of apartheid.
ReplyDeleteOkay. But I don't totally see what that has to do with what I wrote. Can you explain more fully? (Or, maybe you weren't responding to me. If not, sorry!)]
ReplyDeleteDo you maybe mean, we, the Jewish people (not a monolith by any means, but whatever), should attempt to take criticisms of Israel seriously and really debate them instead of simply analyzing every criticism for its antisemitic content? If so, I certainly agree.
But! I hope that that can be done without threatening to hate ALL Jews (or all whomevers) if our interlocutors don't immediately get on board with us in our "critical discourse." That, for what it's worth, is what I heard in your lyric.
ReplyDeleteI meant what I said, although I did make up the lyrics as I was going along...
ReplyDeleteIsrael does awful things in the name of Jewdaism and then complains that people hate them. Sure no one should be antisemitic, but rasism (or religionism?) exists. If Israel were a Buddhist state doing the same things, I'm sure there would be a whole lot more anti-Buddhists out there.
In Sheikh Jarrah, the settlers would sometimes use Jewish prayers, prayers I know, to taunt people. Part of my presence in Palestine was to remind people that not all Jews are evil settlers and the IOF - I'm a Jew too and I'm on your side. But it's hard to imagine growing up in Gaza, only hearing Hebrew yelled at you from soldiers, and not being antisemitic.
Right, well, actually, I think that many, if not most, of the awful things Israel-the-state does are in the name of "Israelism," not Judaism, though I certainly take your point. And if I had grown up in Gaza, only hearing Hebrew yelled at me by soldiers, I might be antisemitic too.
ReplyDeleteBut I didn't, and neither did you (I don't think), so I'm not sure we get a pass in this one. And I'm still not sure how to get past the way it sounds when I take out "Jews" and insert some other group. I mean, it sounds obviously wrong to me when I say, "if they don't want people to be racist, they better be good blacks/Hispanics/Arabs/etc."
All of which are massive, complex groups filled with innumerable subgroups, some of whom do bad things. So how is it acceptable when it comes to Jews? Particularly when the majority of the Jewish world does not live in Israel.
ETA: An obvious difference between you and I, of course, is that I didn't get an eye shot out by the IDF. I didn't want you to think that I wasn't aware of what you've lost, and how that might affect your perspective in ways that I can't access.
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to separate Israel from Judaism as Israel is a Jewish state; you have to get married in an orthodox synagogue for FSM's sake!
ReplyDeleteAntisemitism is in no way acceptable. Prevalent? Yes. I'm sorry if I offended you with my tuneful rambling.
Oh - I think I'll live :) But I do think we have to be really careful. Even apart from the moral things, we're not doing the Palestinians any favors by perpetuating, even inadvertantly, stereotypes etc about Jews.
ReplyDeleteAlso: Jewish Israelis who want to get married in Israel do not actually have to get married in an orthodox synagogue (and, in fact, almost no one in Israel gets married in a synagogue). I think what you're thinking of is that Jewish marriages in Israel have to have an Orthodox rabbi. Which, in my opinion, is actually worse.
Oh, well, Kol tuv.
Emily 1901 - Your critique of Emily H.'s spontaneous outpouring of poetic feeling ignores the central point. "Blacks" and "Hispanics" and other racial, regional or national groupings do not have and do not claim as their very reason for being, a locus of moral, ethical, spiritual and religious tenets. Judaism does. One can be of any ethnic lineage and still embrace Judaism.
ReplyDeleteEmily Henochowicz merely appeals to this big-hearted, ethical and spiritual core of Judaism - its finest values - which are (sadly) routinely betrayed by violence against Palestinans, Americans and many other nationalities and ethnicities...
Shalom - Salam - Shanti...
Well, Judaism certainly does have many spiritual and ethical teachings, though whether they're all good ones or not is up to the individual. But in any case, it seems that we could say that Israel betrays the best of human values in its actions against Palestinians etc.
ReplyDeleteBut I don't see what that has to do with "if they don't want people to be anti-Semitic, they better act like good Jews," which is what I was objecting to. Even if Israel didn't act well, racism isn't acceptable to me (though, as EH pointed out, in some contexts, it's entirely understandable).
Beautiful and heartfelt! -Z.
ReplyDeleteEmily Henochowicz you are amazing! I hope things are made easy for you and you get everything you seek in life. The world needs more people like you that can recognise injustice and protest against it.
ReplyDelete!شكرا يا حبيبتي
ReplyDeleteps. http://justworldnews.org/archives/004074.html
ReplyDeleteYou come to Israel and probably had the State pay for your college education (since you are an Israeli citizen) and then use that time to protest the state the whole time. Why were you studying at Bezalel if you hated the state so much? According to you isn't it in the occupied land?
ReplyDeleteSorry to read that you lost an eye, but why were you at a violent protest? If you call the army the IOF then you should expect violence at any protest against the army. And, why are you complaining that Israel won't pay your medical bills? Didn't you have insurance? Or do they not cover injuries during violent protests? I hope that your story will become an example to other foreigners.
Emily,
ReplyDeleteI am a 52 year old man, and I realize you may wince at what I'm about to write. You may think it is patronizing, however it is not intended to be. The world can seem so clear when you're a college student. Everyone's an idealist, just as I once embraced democratic socialism in my own college years. I see Israel, as country that has many thousands of Arabs living peacefully within its borders, having representation in the knesset. A country that gave up all of its claims on the Gaza, handing it over to Hamas, a group sworn to Israel's destruction, as a peace gesture - only to have Hamas use the Gaza as a launching pad for missiles. By contrast, Israel has worked jointly, in a low-key fashion, with Jordan and with Egypt for years, since peace was made with those two countries. Israel would have tripped over its feet to help the Palestinians, had Yasser Arafat accepted the 95% of the West Bank offered to the Palestinians years ago. By contrast, I see the Palestinian world embrace a culture of suicide bombers killing innocent pedestrians. And you would embrace the philosophy of Rachel Corrie? My goodness, Emily, Rachel Corrie was so misguided! She was repeatedly warned not to interfere with the IDF, and repeatedly ignored them. The truth is, your own misplaced idealism is a poor substitute for what you are truly missing, and that is a knowledge of what your own religion has to offer you, not as a culture, but as a religion. The beauty of Shabbos, of the keeping the mitzvos. No doubt, this is something laughable to you, it is probably so foreign. You write, "The older I get, the more ridiculous life seems." I have a answer for you, that will undo that. Go here: http://www.nevey.org/ If you would try this for 1 month, with an open mind, I am confident that it will undo the confusion and sense of ridiculousness.
"if they don't want people to be racist, they better act like good blacks."
ReplyDeleteIndeed!
Paul Birchard you say "...do not claim as their very reason for being, a locus of moral, ethical, spiritual and religious tenets."
many Jews do not claim this as well, yet they are still Jews, the hypocritical racism comes because a higher standard is expected and demanded from Jews by people like you and the blog owner.
The occupied territories as bad as the Holocaust?
No.
Don't take this personally but you were half blind long before you went to that demonstration.
Dear Emily,
ReplyDeleteI´m very sorry about what happened to you and the people of Mavi Marmara. Today I read in the Haaretz, Israel won`t pay for your healthcare and there are many bad comments under the article. Keep strong, keep your humanity. Be strong and don`t let them harm you again. My english is worse, but I think you will understand what I try to tell...There must be more people like you, for a better world
There is little beauty in the world, including its Shabbos and mitzvos, when a state that declares itself Jewish (at the expense of a globalized, multi-ethnic, multi-religious reality) is committing the slow-motion ethnic cleansing of another people. The Israeli state is an anachronistic colonial settler outpost. Its ugly apartheids, ghettos, sieges and walls will one day crumble, like all corrupt regimes built on the backs of the dispossessed. The right of the Palestinian people to their ancestral homeland will be restored. A state that predicates its national character, legal and political systems on hostile exclusions has no great purpose, its future is bleak.
ReplyDeleteNo one is asking Israel to disappear, it's simply a matter of inclusion, the world is asking Israel to make an addition to its vision of humanity: it must recognize Palestinians as humans and stop depriving them of the political, social and economic power to determine their own lives and future. One state or two, Palestine will return to itself.
And most importantly, ad hominen jabs exploiting the author's wound is as ugly as it gets. Two thumbs way down.
You see more clearly into the heart of us all, as humans, as beings made of light and star dust...
ReplyDeleteAs in any blog, article, or forum critiquing Israel, there will ever be comments that range from patronizing to hateful. Someone once said to me, "Don't let others make you doubt your clarity or yourself".
We will see Peace in Palestine in our lifetime Emily. *hugs*
akkadia said "No one is asking Israel to disappear"
ReplyDeleteAnd the numerous Arab/Israeli wars started by the Arabs had what aim exactly? peace with Israel and the creation of a Palestinian state? or the destruction of Israel and a slightly bigger Egypt, a slightly bigger Jordan and a slightly bigger Syria? Tricky question I don't think.
The Palestinian's have suffered, only the blinkered and the blind put the blame entirely on Israel. You and the blog owner are 2 such people, its a fact, not an attack.
No personal offence intended.
~van said... "Don't let others make you doubt your clarity or yourself".
ReplyDeleteThat doesn't give you licence to completely ignore the other side of the issue though like Emily H is doing.
"Jewdaism"? The way you spelled that pretty much resembles how a "white supremacist" would spell it. Are you sure your grandparents were Jews in Poland or were they actually the same Poles that rounded up Jews in the middle of towns and beat them to death? There are accounts of Jew haters using Jewish identities to escape the law after WW2...maybe there is some reasoning behind your BS. Or are you just one of those born into a Jewish family with no hint of a Jewish soul in your body? Either way it explains much.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't be surprised if you deleted this post but it wouldn't be the first time and won't be the last.
Emily,
ReplyDeleteWhat a waste...............
Your Eye.............
Your Family.............
Misguided, thinking you will find love and acceptance embracing those that would use you as a Human Shield/Shahed
Your Father left Israel and filled you with Self Hate.................................
Now you suffer for those that fed you sweet Tea and then set you up.
Tea..........................
One Day you will finally see.............They used you as a throw-away.
You will not find Love huging hate
You will not find Love cursing the JEWS..................
Heal yourself................
Heal your sight...............
Heal your self Hate....................
Heal your Hate towards God, Israel & those that Love Israel.............................
May you recover and mend - Both Body & Soul...................................................................................Amen
Looks like the Hasbarist trolls have found your blog Emily - that's the downside to this sudden burst of recognition on the web - just be aware, these goons will do anything, they'll smear you and do it pretending to be all full of concern - they'll do worse, hell ask Richard Silverstein, these modern-day Nazis took his forum and his blog down, more than once!
ReplyDeleteEmily, I saw your interview on Democracy Now this morning and just looked at your blog and heard this song. Everything made me cry. You and your work are so beautiful and you are so courageous and yet so humble.
ReplyDeleteIn solidarity for peace, justice, and equality everywhere, for everyone...
saw your interview. i live in israel and i want to post it on my facebook site. noone seems to get it here, as you probably already know. your optimism and courage are inspiring.
ReplyDeleteAaron Catz
I like the song!
ReplyDeleteNot every line is ever as perfect as it can be in that form. I believe challenges on the one line have some merit but are missing the point.
Rather than race, religion or ethnic background I felt there was a play on the extremes contained in the word Jew, Zionist vs Humanist. Or fascist vs normal? Victim vs oppressor? Auschwitz vs apartheid? Perceived in the media vs experienced on the ground? The word I'd compare Jew with (as a sensitive listener)is neighbor.
For me, taking all things into context (who you are, what happened to you, what is happening in Palestine, spontaneous verse etc.) I think the word Jew, and how it's used, while abrasive and thuggish, has layers of meaning that give the moment some of it's power.
Keep up the directness in your art! The best art is always a true expression from the artist - not of a need to keep everyone happy.
Emily:
ReplyDeleteI just saw you on Democracy Now! and I am so proud to be a human being! Thanks for being a great role model to kids like mine.
First time poster...the truth is never easy to hear. We live in such a complex world, you've been physically injured and have taken a brave journey that few dare to embark on. I think your art is provocative, and I hope you never lose the courage to express your thoughts, experiences and beliefs.
ReplyDeleteThank you and all the best!
Hahahahaha. You're so fricken cute! I just watched your Democracy Now interview. They were much to serious about things for you, I could tell. Your song is playing as I type this. .. lots of laughs. Good luck with the freedom fighting!
ReplyDeleteBest, Will from Oregon.
Emily, you're an angel from heaven. Well, no, not the made up heaven in the sky, but the bit of sanity and love that does make heaven on earth. Some 52 year old wrote to you and tried to belittle what you have to say, figuring you were too young to know the truth. Well, I'm 77 years old, Jewish, went to Israel and Palestine right after the bombing of Gaza last year. I saw what you saw; the pain and ugliness of the Israeli Occupation of Palestine. I am so proud of you and your bravery, your sensitivity, your caring about justice and peace and recognizing the insanity carried out by the Israeli government WITH the comlisity of our own U.S. government. You give me hope. Sing, sing, sing so we can all see. Blessings on you. P.S. I also saw you on Democracy Now this morning. You're the greatest!
ReplyDeleteHi Emily,
ReplyDeleteYour courage and humble words are uplifting and relieving to come across.
I saw your interview and wanted to let you know that your spirit shines bright and we are blessed to have you sharing your art work and thoughts.
Take great care!
Kelsey from Ottawa, Canada
Emily, you are the greatest. At 77, you have given me hope, which I don't always have. And with just your one beautiful eye, you help us to see the truth as it is. May peace and justice come to the Palestinians and all who are deprived of it. You have made me a very proud Jew.
ReplyDeleteShalom, sallie
emily-
ReplyDeletei would give up my home in oregon for a plastic chair with the palestinians of shiekh jarrah and the ism crew any day.
thanks for the lyrical reminder of how special that place is to myself and the people struggling to stay there.
im sorry that your blog has attracted so many trolls. if i knew all the comments had been from these types i would have made positive comments sooner. this song was really amazing.
love and rage, sydney
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ReplyDeletei think you're great! keep up the good work! words and ideas can be manipulated in hundreds of ways and make people feel falsely enlightened. but the truth remains the same.
ReplyDeleterespect.
A.K.
"i would give up my home in oregon for a plastic chair with the palestinians of shiekh jarrah and the ism crew any day."
ReplyDeleteNot true
Emily.
ReplyDeleteI just saw your Democracy Now interview. Similarly, I went over to Israel on a right-wing zionist program, and met Israelis and Palestinians who showed me what was happening in the West Bank and Gaza. From reading some of the comments above- written by fellow Jews no less, I am ashamed. I am also a grand-daughter of survivors from the Shoa, and think that what you said rang true: that our generation has the ability to step outside of the gut wrenching fear of needing a solid secure place to turn to (which by the circumstances, were real for them). We can see that the Israeli state is destroying itself in its fear by continuing its brutality against an entire people. I also want to say that in all the pictures and videos, the Palestinian woman who supported you seems like an incredible person, and I cried when DN mentioned that her house may be demolished.
Thank you so much for speaking out and continuing to call the Israeli state out on its policies! Solidarity forever!!!
also, your glasses are amazing.
Nomi.
Thanks for this. I know exactly how you feel. So does everyone who's been to Palestine. If only we could find a way to transmit that feeling to the people who haven't been there. I know no one could have explained Palestine to me before I saw it for myself. I never would have believed them. But there it was.
ReplyDeleteAnd I miss it every day.
Dear Emily,
ReplyDeleteAll my work and all my days are about Palestine. Every day when I open my computer I have tons of messages, videos to watch and things to read. This morning somehow the first thing I watched was the video of you singing and then the interview on Democracy now. It brought tears to my eyes and in the same time joy to my heart to see how wonderful and brave you are and I can feel your love for Palestine and your love for justice and peace.
I will share this with all my many Palestinian friends and the friends who support justice in Palestine. You are a great example for all people who fight for justice. We will NOT remain in silence! We will stand and defend our right to fight against violence.
And you are so pretty!!
Kristel
Emily-
ReplyDeletei came across your blog recently as i try to track fellow palestinian supporters to continue to grow this network of people who seek justice for the oppressed. the truth is that the movement is growing and the occupation will not last. i am disgusted by what people have commented on here, yet not surprised. i just returned from palestine, i am 22, and i dont think it takes more years of life to know what truth is as some commenters have suggested. if demanding human rights for all groups of people is being an IDEALIST, then i am proud to be just that. i guarantee not one of them has even been to the west bank in a capacity to sit down with everyday palestinian people like we have and seen them as humans. if the palestinians were "using" people like us, then they are the greatest actors in the world because i experienced consistency with most, if not all, palestinians i encountered, which was so many. it is easy for the zionists to generalize from the outside and judge, but dont let them tell you that you dont know TRUTH. truth is seeing injustice and calling it for what it is. this has nothing to do with israel, per se, but for injustice and occupation as a whole, it does not matter what religion or state : it is simply seeing these violations of human rights and human dignity ANYWHERE in the world and questioning those who are responsible. it just so happens to be israel in this case. people will always try to silence you and make you doubt what you're doing, but these are the people who are fearful- fearful that their precious racist regime will one day fall, because it will.
"it is simply seeing these violations of human rights and human dignity ANYWHERE in the world and questioning those who are responsible"
ReplyDeleteDid you question the racist Hamas regime in Gaza too or just Isreal?
of course lib319, i question all acts of violence. in this case, however, occupation, colonization, and dehumanization of a group of people naturally spark resistance.
ReplyDeleteno act of violence is justified but we must look at the root causes of WHY people are doing these things and the answer is the colonization, annexation, and occupation of palestine.
:)
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ReplyDeleteI see the root cause as being the 1948 war started by the Arabs. Do you question that violence and the subsequent wars started by the Arabs whose aim was to exterminate Israel and the Jews?
ReplyDeleteAnd where exactly is your questioning of Hamas? Perhaps you could post a list of wrongs with them on this blog too, if the sentiments you espouse are genuine.
why did that war start though? because the jews immigrated to israel to colonize and take the peoples land who were already living there.
ReplyDeletei do question hamas, i do not agree with their acts of violence, or anyones acts of violence. i do believe that their acts of violence are a product of the slow genocide of the gazans who are being punished collectively, and yes hamas is only making it worse.
anyways, i hope u can see both sides as well. Dialogue between people of different opinions is essential so that we can see the humanity of both sides and start working toward a solution. i would rather start seeking solutions than to keep arguing about whose side is more at fault.
"why did that war start though? because the jews immigrated to israel to colonize and take the peoples land who were already living there. "
ReplyDeleteWrong! Israel was founded on legal immigration and guaranteed under international law. That war started because the Arabs didn't like that situation or Jews as a people.
"i would rather start seeking solutions than to keep arguing about whose side is more at fault."
Correct! Lets not focus on the root causes as you put it because if we do we will be going back to the time of the Romans and beyond.
Emily,
ReplyDeleteYou are a much stronger artist than you are a singer. Despite that, I love this song and I love your singing.
Seeing Other People-- GREAT song. Gonna see them in October! AWESOME!!!
I'm not an expert on Judaism, so this is wholly ignorant commentary just aching to be torn apart: Is there not a gaping rift between zionism and actual judaism? Did the British and the Americans not use their clout in the international arena to ensure that a Jewish state be created? As far as I can tell from the snippets I've heard, Israel's status as a state is the result of the UN's disregard for Palestinian sovereignty.
"Is there not a gaping rift between zionism and actual judaism?"
ReplyDeleteThats like saying there is a gaping rift between the Palestinians and the Palestinians who want a Palestinian state.
Before Israel Jews were persecuted throughout Europe. Do you think these Jews wanted their own country? Zionism is the formal organised expression of this requirement.
"Next year in Jerusalem" isn't a Zionist saying, its a Jewish one.
"Israel's status as a state is the result of the UN's disregard for Palestinian sovereignty. "
The notion of Palestinian sovereignty came about a number of years after Israel's existence. Nobody living in Palestine before 1948 was looking for Palestinian sovereignty, nobody living in Palestine even regarded themselves as Palestinian, nationalist Arab yes, Palestinian, no. There should be a Palestinian state, but don't be misled into thinking that there has been any type of specific historical precident for it other than the general movement of Arab nationalism.
"Israel does awful things in the name of Jewdaism and then complains that people hate them. Sure no one should be antisemitic, but rasism (or religionism?) exists. If Israel were a Buddhist state doing the same things, I'm sure there would be a whole lot more anti-Buddhists out there. "
ReplyDeleteAnd what explains the 2000 years of continual persecution of Jews before modern Israel?
The millions of Jews murdered during this period means there has to be a state of Israel, the first Zionists knew this.
The fact that the sovereign state of the Jews is now hated like the Jewish people have been hated is no surprise. Just like the Jews were the scapegoats of European and Russian society, Israel is now blamed by people like you Emily, for the evils of the world.
Now, do you think that Israel would be ostracized in the same manner they are today (all antisemitism aside) had they set up shop in Greenland as opposed to being wedged between some of the greatest enemies of Judaism? I understand that present-day Israel and Jerusalem are sacred locations, but one does not always get what one wants (unless one is "unwaveringly" backed by the allied powers); is this not a foreseeable outcome of foreign intervention?
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete"Now, do you think that Israel would be ostracized in the same manner they are today (all antisemitism aside) had they set up shop in Greenland as opposed to being wedged between some of the greatest enemies of Judaism?"
ReplyDeleteNo, as long as Denmark (Greenland is a Danish dependency) didn't use religion and nationalism to bring on board all the other Scandanavian countries (and of course all the millions of "useful idiots" of this world) in an attempt to exterminte a Greenland Israel. And remember, Europe has been one of the greatest enemies of Judaism and Denmark is a part of Europe.
Foreign intervention created a number of the Arab nation states of the Middle East as well as Israel. Does your negative notion of foreign intervention include the Arabs states as well or is it alright for countries like Jordan and Iraq to exist, but not Israel?
And bear in mind that foreign intervention included the plan for an Arab "Palestinian" state. The Arabs chose to disregard this plan in favour of war with Israel. The least they could do now is put the refugees of the war they started into their societies and not in camps. (NB Jordan does actually do this)
Odd how nobody who claims to care about Palestinians sees fit to criticise Lebanon or Syria for this. Only Israel, for having the audacity to exist in its ancient and historical and cultural homeland which has had a continuous Jewish presence for centuries.
From Ellen Stark's blog
ReplyDelete"Israeli military say that passengers initiated the violence, although footage clearly shows soldiers opening fire immediately upon hitting the deck. The passengers are all unarmed civilians."
Can anyone tell me where I can see this?
No?
ReplyDeleteThen perhaps if that didn't happen then all the other 'truths' prevalent on blogs like this need looking at a bit closer?
Israel isn't always in the right, its bad thinking to conclude that Israel is ALWAYS in the wrong however.
"But it's hard to imagine growing up in Gaza, only hearing Hebrew yelled at you from soldiers, and not being antisemitic."
ReplyDeleteAnd also if you had grown up brainwashed with the ideology of anti-semitism from the government. How is the anti-semitism broadcast throughout the media from newspapers to television by the Palestinians (and universally throughout the Arab world) distinguishable from the anti-semitism of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion or Der Sturmer?
You can't blame anti-semitism on Israel's action just like the Nazis justified anti-semitism by the actions of German Jews.
"We, the Jewish people, need to stop wearing the threat of antisemitism as a shield. It shuts up critical discourse."
ReplyDeleteThat's true, but it shouldn't be dismissed as playing the anti-semitism card when it is so prevalent at an ideological level as it is in Palestine. Are the people of Israel brainwashed into racism by TV shows as a result of Palestinian terror and 60 years of Arab beligerance? No is the answer.
Video footage shows they were chanting this
ReplyDelete“Khaybar, Khaybar, oh Jews, the army of Muhammad will return!”
on the Mavvi. The people you were supporting on the demonstration you went on.