Gilad Atzmon’s Third Rail
Two members of Jewish Witnesses for Peace and Friends traveled to Geneva, New York to hear Gilad Atzmon and Rich Siegel showcase their musical and political talents at the Cracker Factory on Tuesday evening (3/13). Gilad just might be the only true philosopher our generation has ever created and it was a pleasure to hear him discuss some of the topics contained in his new book, The Wandering Who: A Study of Jewish Identity Politics. We were also privileged to enjoy some “down time” with him, Rich and Dan McGowan, executive director of Deir Yassin Remembered. We are pictured at breakfast below, just prior to Gilad’s flight to Washington, DC.
Rich Siegel, Dan McGown, Vigil Member L, the writer, Gilad Atzmon
http://www-personal.umich.edu/~hersko/Photos/Gilad1.jpg
Many Jews like Alan Dershowitz are completely upset with Gilad’s work, which should come as no surprise, but what is revealing is how many peace activist Jews have signed onto a document calling for his expulsion from the Palestine solidarity community. Their unstated reason: Gilad has the temerity to examine the cultural and ideological roots of Jewish behavior, and that is a colossal no-no. He forgets that it’s only acceptable the other way around: Jews may examine other groups’ behaviors, but NONE SHALL EXAMINE JEWISH COMMUNAL BEHAVIOR AND IDEOLOGY (except perhaps to praise its superiority), especially when it relates to crimes against humanity committed by the Jewish state. Got it?
Raising the hackles of Jews like Stan Heller, David Finkel, Lenni Brenner, Joel Beinen, and too many to list here, a statement was crafted – “Not Quite ‘Ordinary Human Beings’ÂAnti-imperialism and the anti-humanist rhetoric of Gilad Atzmon”. What’s particularly discouraging, however is the appearance of Asad AbuKhalil’s (aka the Angry Arab) signature on this document. And Ali Abunimah (The Electronic Intifada) wasn’t content merely to sign, and crafted an Arab/Muslim version of the same criticism, calling for a “disavowal” of Atzmon, but gathering few signatures in the process. Gilad, in his response, quips that his book “has managed to unite Alan Dershowitz and Abe Foxman with Ali Abunimah and Max Blumenthal. That is pretty encouraging: it means that peace may prevail after all.”
This is sad commentary indeed, but one our armchair psychologists have latched onto. It appears that being beaten down so long by his Zionist (and “anti-Zionist”) Jewish opponents, Mr. Abunimah has adopted Malcolm X’s “house slave” mentality, and now asks “We sick, Massa?”, as he cares more for his oppressors than he does his own people.
Nahida Izaat – the Uprooted Palestinian – speaks to this internalized oppression in an earlier work, and now offers sharp criticism for Mr. Abunimah’s attempt to censor debate on a needed issue. She asks, for example, “What is it that makes them so desperate to conceal from our eyes, and to stop us from discussing the disturbing reality and to ignore the ugly fact that 70% of “Israeli” Jews believe that they are the “chosen”?
She goes on: “Furthermore, why is it that Ali Abunimah and his mentors want to prevent us from looking at, analysing and understanding the level of influence exerted by the Jewish-Zionist lobby, how it is organized and how does it function to acquires such high levels of control and malignant influence?”
Correction
Last week we wrote about a presentation in front of Ann Arbor City Council, where we claimed that the Jewish community has been banging the war drums for an invasion of Iran since their AIPAC meeting in 2004. Ms. Alison Weir has presented us with an article from CNI which documents this threat against the country of Iran originating in 1948.
Billboard Changes Locations
We will be changing the location of the billboards ($18 Million/Day to Israel?) every week; currently, it is located on Interstate 75, near the Outer Drive exit in Lincoln Park, facing north-bound traffic. Please consider making donations to www.IfAmericansKnew.org and www.deiryassin.org to keep this billboard project ongoing.
On the ADL’s Radar
A blog maintained by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) – “News and views from the Anti-Defamation League’s Center on Extremism and Research Center” issues the bulletin, “Anti-Israel Billboards Surface in Denver and Detroit”. They write, “Last week, three anti-Israel organizations – If American Knew, Deir Yassin Remembered and Jewish Witnesses for Peace and Friends – responded to a pro-Israel billboard in Detroit by securing billboard space of their own with the message, “$8 million/ Day to Israel? Our money is needed in America!â€
Seven Vigilers
We Remember Rachel Corrie – Killed by the Jewish State nine years ago
Henry Herskovitz
The views expressed in this report are those of the writer and may not reflect the beliefs of the entire membership of JWPF
March 18th, 2012 - 11:21 pm
Wonderful article by Henry Herskovitz. I agree with him that Gilad Atzmon is probably the most important philosopher in the twenty-first century.
It’s very said to see such people as Mr. Abunimah and others attack this wonderful man as being anti-semetic when the real enemy of the Palestinian people is the Zionist state of Israel.
I had the pleasure of hearing Gilad talk in Houston recently with his Palestinian counterpart, a doctor from Dalles, Texas. Their talk inspired me so much that I immediately joined the local Houston branch of the ODS (One Democratic State).