Five Protesters Greet the “Israeli” Philharmonic

http://www-personal.umich.edu/~hersko/Photos/Israel%20Fiddles.jpg

If you relied on local mainstream media to cover our protest of the Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra on the University of Michigan campus, you’d be disappointed. “No coverage” seems to be the order of the day from the (((powers))) that be, as exhibited by newspapers refusing to run paid adverts of our vigils (Ann Arbor News and Ann Arbor Observer), and billboard companies, like Lind Media, Lamar Advertising and Adams Outdoor breaching their contracts with Deir Yassin Remembered, so that the public is denied our simple message, “America First, Not Israel”.

To learn who controls you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize.

This media, however, informs our readers that five of us took to the entranceway of Hill Auditorium on Saturday, February 9 to greet concert goers and remind them of Israel’s atrocities and the harm its influence produces on our foreign policies.

http://www-personal.umich.edu/~hersko/Photos/Israeli%20Phil%202019-02-09.jpg

A few individuals expressed interest in our messages as they entered the building, some even staying for extended conversation. Campus police were open and friendly; they knew what to expect from us and were not surprised by our presence, having alerted them in advance.

Of course, some Israel partisans initiated cat-calls and other name-calling slurs: one woman said we should “be ashamed” to be there. We told her that it wasn’t us who was shooting unarmed protesters in Gaza, and she entered Hill in silence. Another man repeatedly shouted “Never Again!”, reminding us just how necessary a de-construction of the Holocaust is to Palestinian Liberation. The road to a free Palestine runs right through Auschwitz/Oswiecim.

One More Thing

The use of “anti-Semitism” is a clever ruse to indicate (falsely) that Jews are Semites, i.e. indigenous to the Levant. But what music is played by the Jewish State’s Philharmonic Orchestra? European music!! Yes, concert-goers heard Schubert and Tchaikovsky on February 9, not [Palestinian composers] Habib Hasan Touma nor Wisam Gibran.

Billboard Update

Some readers reminded us that the link to our letter to Lind Media Company was not functioning. We apologize, and (hopefully) that letter can be reviewed here, and text of letter follows signature. We received our two billboard vinyl prints from Lind Media, and they have not billed us for any storage fees. We await response to the final request: that the outstanding balance be waived.

While this appears a small victory, we would much rather have had Lind honor their contract, and run our message on their billboard as originally agreed upon.

Comments?
Four vigilers Feb. 9 and 16, Three vigilers Feb. 23
Anti-Semitism: A logical reaction to bad Jewish-group behavior
Witness for Peace
Henry Herskovitz

Letter to Lind Media …

January 28, 2019

Lind Media Company
Attn: John L. Siegenthaler
409-411 North Main Street
Mansfield, OH 44902

Dear Mr. Siegenthaler:

Thank you for taking the time to speak with me Friday, January 11. We are disappointed that the contract we signed on September 25, 2018, was terminated early by Lind Media. Our understanding was that the contract would be fully honored by both parties through its stated completion date of January 6, 2019.

The contract provides that Lind Media has the right to refuse to publish advertisements that are “obscene”, “unnecessarily offensive”, and/or contrary to “the best interests of the community at large.” We still have no idea why our ad, bearing the simple text “America First Not Israel,” was published and then removed.

Our position is that when Lind Media reviewed our ad and subsequently posted it Lind Media constructively agreed that our ad complied fully with its content standards. Further, we believe Lind Media, having waived its right to refuse our ad on the basis of content, has no authority to later refuse the same ad on the basis of content. Thus, your unexplained decision to remove our ad was a breach of contract.

Had we known in advance that Lind Media would breach a contract we signed in good faith, we would not have agreed to work with Lind Media in the first place. Consequently, we request that Lind Media waive the $675.00 balance (and any storage fees) it claims is due on our account. We further request that our two vinyl “skins” in possession of Lind Media be returned to us. We are willing to pick them up at your Mansfield offices or have them delivered to 250 Highlake Ave., Ann Arbor, MI 48103-2004, at Lind Media’s expense.

We have been advised by the Small Claims Court offices of Mansfield, Ohio, that it is customary to send a courtesy letter explaining our claims and we’re hopeful this letter complies. A 30-day waiting period was also suggested before the initiation of court proceedings.

Sincerely