From lagatta at cam.org Sun Nov 7 17:45:02 2010 From: lagatta at cam.org (lagatta) Date: Sun, 7 Nov 2010 11:45:02 -0500 Subject: [Palsem09] Ottawa conference to stifle crticism of Zionism Message-ID: <56FFA16C-52BE-45CD-A440-99D58595CFB6@cam.org> Dear friends and comrades, Thanks to Peter for the conference address, hoping it works! There is a major event convened at the Canadian Parliament buildings in Ottawa this weekend, with significant public funding, but closed to the public and the media. As you probably know, the current far- right Tory government here has outdone itself to be even more slavishly pro-Zionist than the German, Dutch or US governments. Some members of this government are fundamentalist Christians who have made egregious antisemitic comments in the past, or sought to "convert" Jews. Article on a progressive Canadian news and discussion site (founded by Judy Rebick, a prominent feminist, "self-hating Jew" and former leading comrade...) There is more about the conference and opposition to it at the rabble.ca site Marie, à Montréal -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: dreamyrabble_logo.jpg Type: image/jpeg Size: 4649 bytes Desc: not available URL: -------------- next part -------------- Published on rabble.ca (http://rabble.ca) Anti-Semitism and free speech: In Parliament this weekend By rabble staff Created Nov 3 2010 - 11:54pm Story Publish Date: November 4, 2010 Coming Nov. 7 to 9: An international conference hosted in the Canadian Parliament Buildings, closed to the public and the media, financed by $451,280 of public funds, provided by Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Jason Kenney. The guest: Inter-Parliamentary Committee to Combat Anti-Semitism (ICCA), chaired by Irwin Cotler, former Liberal Minister of Justice. The hosts: Canadian Parliamentary Coalition to Combat Anti-Semitism (CPCCA), Minister Kenney and Irwin Cotler, key ex officio members. Participants: Self-selected supporters of Israel who are members of Parliaments in various countries. The goal: to produce a declaration and "protocol," to be adopted by all Canadian political parties, greatly expanding the definition of "anti-Semitism" to include criticism of Israel, declaring such criticism "hate speech," putting free speech seriously at risk. There are two fronts in the Palestine/Israel conflict. The first takes place on the ground in the historic land of Palestine and directly impacts the people there. The second front is the struggle to win the hearts, minds, and support of people internationally. While leftists and progressives are aware of the general historical contours of the conflict in Palestine, they may be less aware of one important dimension of the second front. This is where the struggle to expose the full story, including its moral and political dimensions, is pitted against attempts to censor and suppress free speech. The CPCCA (Canadian Parliamentary Coalition to Combat Antisemitism) and the ICCA (Inter-Parliamentary Coalition to Combat Antisemitism) are important beachheads in Israel's attempts to create a political environment and legal system that suppresses a full story of events on the ground. As the very names of the CPCCA and ICCA indicate, the campaign of suppression centres on anti-Semitism -- both real and imagined. So let's think about anti-Semitism. In 1937, this notice was posted at the entrance to the St. Andrews Golf Club in Toronto: "After Sunday, June 20, this course will be restricted to Gentiles only. Please do not question this policy." In May 1939, the government of Canada refused landing rights to the M.V. St. Louis, a ship carrying over 900 Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi Germany. Undeniably, bigotry against Jews, as well as others, is a part of Canada's history. Two prominent Jews, who may not agree on other things, agree on the current situation: "By any conceivable standard, we Canadian Jews are surely among the most privileged, most secure, most successful, most influential minorities in Canada and indeed in the entire world." - Gerald Caplan, academic and NDP organizer "We have come to a point in the 21st century where at least in the halls of government, and I think very much in the mainstream of Canadian life, we are viewed as part and parcel of Canadian polity." - Bernie Farber, CEO of the Canadian Jewish Congress So why, then, is anti-Jewish bigotry (anti-Semitism) the only concern of Irwin Cotler, Jason Kenney and other members of parliament who in 2009 formed the Canadian Parliamentary Coalition to Combat Antisemitism (CPCCA)? No coalition of parliamentarians is pursuing remedies for any other group that is a target of bigotry in Canada today. So much noise on one side -- so much silence about others. Indeed the CPCCA claims that anti-Semitism is "at its worst level since the end of the Second World War," despite several witnesses they themselves carefully selected giving contrary evidence at hearings held in Ottawa. Among them, Mr. Robert Steiner, assistant vice-president, University of Toronto, testified that: "There is no evidence of generalized anti- Semitism on the University of Toronto's campuses. There is no evidence of Jewish students being systematically harassed and intimidated on our campuses. There is no evidence that it is dangerous to be a pro-Israeli student, faculty member, or staff member on our campuses -- in fact, quite the opposite." And Dr. Fred Lowy, president emeritus of Concordia University but speaking as an individual, said that "Canadian campuses are safe. They are not hotbeds of anti-Semitism or racism of any kind although, of course, these conditions do occur." Anti-Semitism is marginal in Canadian society. Why then do politicians and community leaders fall over each other to prove they are the most politically correct in opposing it? Why is this so when other forms of racism are not taken as seriously? Dominant Canadian culture has been white, and European-centred for many generations. People's sense of identity -- including their feelings of self-respect and human decency -- derives from their understanding of events in western European history. Revulsion is appropriately profound at the Nazi slaughter of Jews, yet inappropriately absent relative to British, Belgian and other massive colonial slaughters of Africans and Asians. The first, not the second, has become the litmus test of decency in Canadian culture. And the corollary of this single litmus test of decency is insecurity and moral panic when a Jewish person launches an accusation of anti- Semitism. Were we to become universal in our outrage at injustices, we would perhaps not be so easily made to feel guilty by false accusations of anti-Semitism. And it is this accusation of false anti-Semitism that is the key to what Irwin Cotler, Jason Kenney, and the CPCCA are up to. Denunciation of a Jew, just because s/he is a Jew, and not because of what that person does, is authentic anti-Semitic bigotry and is reprehensible. Irwin Cotler, Jason Kenney, and members of the CPCCA know such authentic anti-Semitism is today a marginal phenomenon in Canada. Hence the CPCCA uses the concept of a "new" anti-Semitism. What is "new" anti-Semitism and why is it a hoax? Irwin Colter has answered this question for us. Speaking to the Canadian Jewish News, he asserted that whereas old anti-Semitism "wished to eliminate individual Jewish people, the new anti-Semitism aims at getting rid of the Jewish state." A desire and an effort to eliminate any people is hatred and bigotry, and anti-Semitism is one form. But a "Jewish state" is a very different phenomenon. The "Jewish state" is a political idea; a political structure flows from that idea; and a set of actions flows from that structure. It is not a people. Those who had the political idea to establish a "Jewish state" called themselves Zionists. For decades only a minority of Jews supported this political idea. From the earliest days of the Zionist movement, individuals as well as organized groups of Jews have held varied and intensely different views about this political movement. Just one illustration, far from exceptional, was a public letter sent in 1919 to U.S. President Woodrow Wilson at the Versailles negotiations at the end of the first world war by more than 300 prominent Jews in the U.S. (members of Congress, diplomats, judges, officers of major Jewish organizations included). They wrote: "As a future form of government for Palestine will undoubtedly be considered by the approaching Peace Conference, we, the undersigned citizens of the United States, unite in this statement, setting forth our objections to the organization of a Jewish State in Palestine as proposed by the Zionist Societies in this country and Europe and to the segregation of the Jews as a nationalistic unit in any country." Signatories of such a statement today would be denounced as "self- hating Jews." The CPCCA might well call it "hate speech." The hoax, attempted by the proponents of the "new anti-Semitism," pretends that the "new anti-Semitism" is the same as the "old anti- Semitism." Apply the same logic to Canada. Who would label as "hate" and "bigotry" -- as "new anti-Canadianism" -- those who seriously question the colonial origins of our political structures and government practices, or the bigoted attitudes held by Canadians at different times? If we went down this path we would have to denounce the expression, and demand the suppression, of those who wished to publicly discuss the government of Canada's oppression of aboriginal people, the imprisonment of Canadians of Japanese origin during the second world war, and the exclusion of Jewish refugees before the war. The rhetorical trick of this hoax is to force anyone who raises a specific, factual criticism of Israel -- let's say the bombing of Gaza and the killing of several hundred children -- to answer the charge of anti-Semitism. Instead of arguing that "the facts are wrong" or the "interpretation of international law making this a war crime is ill-founded," supporters of Israel shift the ground entirely. They allege that the initial factual criticism is -- really -- the medieval European anti-Semitic accusation known as "blood libel." (The "blood libel" accused Jews as a people with sacrificing Christian children, to use their blood for ritual purposes.) Now, instead of answering your fact-based criticism, they move the terrain from fact to metaphor, making you defend yourself against the false charge of anti-Semitism. Dr. Jack Lightstone, President and Vice-Chancellor of Brock University, bluntly told the CPCCA in his testimony: "We can't look into the soul of someone and say, ?Your criticism of Israel is really based on your anti-Semitic sentiments.' We can't do that as a people, as a government, or as a society, nor should we." "Lawfare" is another weapon in Cotler's arsenal for avoiding real debate. He says "lawfare is the waging of war under the cover of law" -- "legalized anti-Semitism." His target is those he calls "sophisticated" people who present fact-based argument that Israel has violated international or human rights law or committed war crimes. These are dismissed as hateful efforts to "single out" and "delegitimize" Israel. But in fact it is Irwin Cotler who "singles out" Israel by decreeing it to be above such criticism. He can't imagine that Israel's actions may be what discredits it. Here again, accusations of anti-Semitism replace fact-based argument. What is equally astounding is the insincerity of this professed intense concern to rid the world of anti-Semitism. Those who shout loudest about "new anti-Semitism" too often make close allies with the proponents of the old anti-Semitism. The Anti-Defamation League honoured Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi days after he praised Mussolini, a fascist dictator and ally of Nazi Germany, as a benign leader of Italy. The Canadian B'nai Brith maintains close relations with the televangelist John Hagee even after it was revealed he had praised Hitler for doing god's work driving Jews to seek refuge in Palestine, facilitating the "rapture" and "salvation" of Christians. Finally, doesn't Irwin Cotler's formulation of Israel as the "collective Jew" hold all Jews responsible for the acts of a state, a state where most Jews do not live, and where there is a range of opinion among those who do? What then is different between the "collective Jew" and the old anti-Semitic mantra of "world Jewry?" The counter to such stereotypes -- whether of "world Jewry" or the "collective Jew" -- is the reality that Jews, like every social group, have a variety of opinions and engage in a variety of actions. Effort to silence discussion and to eliminate the opportunities for public conversation about differences of understanding is exactly intended, among other things, to hide from public view the reality of that diversity among Jews. Thereby it fertilizes the soil of bigotry which the propagandists of "new anti-Semitism" fervently claim to oppose. Where reason and discussion are given no space, all forms of bigotry flourish. This promotion of a "tea party" culture of anger and denunciation weakens the opportunity for Canadians to formulate their own understanding of the source of the Israel-Palestine conflict and how to promote its just and peaceful resolution. Rights are weakened or strengthened around concrete problems, not in the abstract and the metaphorical. The conflict in the Middle East is the concrete situation around which we must strengthen our democratic right to express publicly differences of opinion. Was the creation of Israel a colonial project or not? Was there not, some, significant "ethnic cleansing"? Are the ideas of a "Jewish and democratic" state compatible or contradictory? Have war crimes been committed and by whom? Does the Israeli state impose apartheid structures? Is the very concept racist? Is a non-violent campaign of boycott, divestment and sanctions to resolve the conflict morally respectable and politically practical? Neither, one, both? If the Cotlers and Kenneys and all the parties involved in the CPCCA and ICCA are successful, suppression will intensify in Canada and the chill will extend to public discussion on other issues as well. Right now in France people are being brought to court and charged with "hate" for sticking a boycott label on an Israeli product. Do we want that here? Brian Campbell is co-chair of the Seriously Free Speech Committee, and Mordecai Briemberg is a member of the Seriously Free Speech Committee. This is for identification purposes only. For more information about the committee click here [1]. summary: MP Irwin Cotler and Minister Jason Kenney host a meeting to produce a declaration and 'protocol,' expanding the definition of 'anti- Semitism' to include criticism of Israel. From lagatta at cam.org Mon Nov 8 15:36:06 2010 From: lagatta at cam.org (lagatta) Date: Mon, 8 Nov 2010 09:36:06 -0500 Subject: [Palsem09] =?windows-1252?q?Jason_Kenney=92s_=93anti_free_speech?= =?windows-1252?q?=94_conference_sponsorship_to_be_exposed_on_Monday/_Le_p?= =?windows-1252?q?arrainage_de_la_conf=E9rence_=AB_anti_libert=E9_d=92expr?= =?windows-1252?q?ession_=BB_de_Jason_Kenney_sera_r=E9v=E9l=E9_lundi?= Message-ID: <98489F54-E917-422E-A880-B5386E7D0F88@cam.org> Dear comrades and friends, No surprise that the "Interparliamentary Coalition to Combat Anti- Semitism" centres not on real acts or expressions of hatred against Jews, but on conflating criticism of Israel with such heinous racism. Here is a communiqué from Independent Jewish Voices/Voix juives indépendantes, in English and in French, speaking out against this attempt to attack Palestine solidarity and free speech: http://ijvcanada.org/uncategorized/jason-kenney’s-“anti-free-speech”- conference-sponsorship-to-be-exposed-on-monday/ Jason Kenney’s “anti free speech” conference sponsorship to be exposed on Monday MEDIA ADVISORY Nov. 5, 2010 Ottawa – Independent Jewish Voices (IJV) will hold press conference on Monday in Ottawa, releasing a video to the media and Members of Parliament which challenges the Harper government’s mounting attacks on free speech. Immigration Minister Jason Kenney and the Harper government are sponsoring an international conference in Ottawa on November 8 and 9 of the ‘Inter-Parliamentary Coalition to Combat Anti- Semitism’ (ICCA), following hearings earlier this year of the ICCA’s local counterpart – the ‘Canadian Parliamentary Coalition to Combat Antisemitism’ (CPCCA). The press conference speakers and video evidence will reveal startling details of how the CPCCA and ICCA have an agenda to attack free speech and to silence legitimate criticism of Israel by falsely conflating this with anti-Semitism. WHAT: Press Conference WHEN: Monday, Nov. 8, at 9:30 A M WHERE: Charles Lynch Room (130-S, Centre Block), Parliament Hill, Ottawa WHO: Speaking at the press conference will be: Michael Keefer, Author of Antisemitism Real and Imagined: Responses to the Canadian Parliamentary Coalition to Combat Antisemitism, as well as Diana Ralph, Steering Committee, IJV. IJV member, Linda Belanger will take questions in French At the press conference, the short video produced by IJV on the theme “The Threat is the New McCarthyism, not the ‘New Antisemitism’ ” will be showed. The video features: Prominent human rights lawyers, professors and experts: Michael Keefer, Barbara Jackman, Trevor Purvis, Joanne Naiman, and Alan Sear exposing the biases, fallacies, and dangers of the CPCCA and the new McCarthyism. Groups and individuals already victimized by the Canadian government’s assault on free speech: George Galloway (British MP), Kevin Neish (Canadian survivor of the Israeli assault on the Gaza flotilla) and Khaled Mouammar (President of the Canadian Arab Federation) Human rights spokespeople, including Alex Neve (Amnesty International), Sid Shniad (IJV), Brian Campbell (Seriously Free Speech Committee), and Warren Allmand (former MP, board member CJPME) -30- http://ijvcanada.org/uncategorized/le-parrainage-de-la-conference-«- anti-liberte-dexpression-»-de-jason-kenney-sera-revele-lundi/ Le parrainage de la conférence « anti liberté d’expression » de Jason Kenney sera révélé lundi AVIS AUX MÉDIAS 5 novembre 2010 Ottawa – Voix Juives Indépendantes (VJI) tiendra une conférence de presse lundi à Ottawa et remettra une vidéo aux médias et aux députés, laquelle met en évidence le nombre croissant d’attaques du gouvernement Harper contre la liberté d’expression. Le ministre de l’Immigration, Jason Kenney, et le gouvernement Harper parrainent une conférence internationale qui aura lieu à Ottawa les 8 et 9 novembre, organisée par la Coalition interparlementaire de lutte contre l’antisémitisme (CILA). Celle-ci fait suite aux audiences de l’équivalent local de la CILA, la Coalition parlementaire canadienne de lutte contre l’antisémitisme (CPCCA), qui se sont tenues plus tôt cette année. Les intervenants de la conférence de presse et les preuves vidéo révéleront des détails surprenants sur l’intention de la CPCCA et de la CILA d’attaquer la liberté d’expression et de faire taire les critiques légitimes d’Israël en les assimilant à de l’antisémitisme. QUOI : conférence de presse QUAND : lundi 8 novembre à 9 h 30 OÙ : salle Charles Lynch (130-S, Édifice du Centre), Colline du Parlement à Ottawa QUI : Les intervenants de la conférence de presse seront : Michael Keefer, auteur de Antisemitism Real and Imagined: Responses to the Canadian Parliamentary Coalition to Combat Antisemitism, ainsi que Diana Ralph du comité de direction de VJI. Linda Belanger, membre de VJI, répondra aux questions en français À la conférence de presse, la courte vidéo produite par VJI sur le thème « La menace est le “nouveau maccarthisme”, pas le “nouvel antisémitisme” » sera diffusée. La vidéo présente : Les éminents avocats des droits de la personne, les professeurs et les experts suivants : Michael Keefer, Barbara Jackman, Trevor Purvis, Joanne Naiman et Alan Sear qui révèlent la partialité, les arguments fallacieux et les dangers de la CPCCA et du nouveau maccarthisme. Les groupes et les individus déjà victimes de l’attaque du gouvernement canadien contre la liberté d’expression : George Galloway (député britannique), Kevin Neish (survivant canadien de l’attaque israélienne contre la flottille pour Gaza) et Khaled Mouammar (président de la Fédération Canado-Arabe) Des porte-parole des droits de la personne, dont Alex Neve (Amnistie internationale), Sid Shniad (VJI), Brian Campbell (comité Seriously Free Speech) et Warren Allmand (ancien député, membre de la Commission CJPMO) -30- From lagatta at cam.org Mon Nov 8 20:42:36 2010 From: lagatta at cam.org (lagatta) Date: Mon, 8 Nov 2010 14:42:36 -0500 Subject: [Palsem09] Fwd: PFEX releases new critical report "The CPCCA's Hidden Message: Silencing Criticism of Israeli Apartheid" References: Message-ID: <1D386818-83A1-4629-9AB4-34A187CE828F@cam.org> Alan Sears, a comrade with the New Socialist Group sent me this and wants it forwarded widely. Marie (Montréal) > > > > another great initiative to combat the CPCCA... > > > * Please circulate widely* > > > > Monday, November 8, 2010 > > Dear friends and allies, > > As you may know, the Canadian Government is hosting a meeting of > the Inter-parliamentary Coalition to Combat Anti-Semitism in Ottawa > this week from November 7th-9th. It is widely expected that the > Canadian Parliamentary Coalition to Combat Anti-Semitism (CPCCA) > will use this opportunity to present the findings of their recent > inquiry into anti-Semitism in Canada. > > To coincide with these meetings, the Toronto-based Palestine > Freedom of Expression Campaign has released our own report – > > “The CPCCA’s Hidden Message: Silencing Criticism of Israeli > Apartheid - A Critical Report on the Canadian Parliamentary > Coalition to Combat Antisemitism”. > > The full report is available online http://tinyurl.com/PFEXreport > > > As our report shows, this critical analysis of the CPCCA is widely > shared. See, for example, two statements below: > > > > KHALED MOUAMMAR - Toronto > Mouammar is the President of the Canadian Arab Federation (CAF). > “The Canadian Arab Federation supports any initiative genuinely > aimed at ending anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and all forms of > racism. It has become clear that the CPCCA’s goals have far more to > do with creating a political climate in which criticism of Israeli > policies that violate Palestinian rights and international law will > be treated as anti-Semitic hate speech. CAF expressed these > concerns in a submission to the CPCCA, but we were not even invited > to testify.” > > > > ALAN SEARS - Toronto > Sears is a Jewish Canadian who is a professor at Ryerson University > and a member of Faculty for Palestine. “I am deeply concerned that > the CPCCA is aiming to redefine anti-semitism, shifting the focus > from protecting the human rights of Jewish people to suppressing > debate about Israeli policies and Palestinian rights. CPCCA’s > mandate was biased from the beginning and it invited very little > testimony from those who did not agree with their perspective. > Faculty for Palestine is deeply disturbed by the CPCCA’s threat to > academic freedom and freedom of dissent in this country.” > > > > To ensure our critical analysis is available to parliamentarians, > PFEX mailed a copy of the report to all Members of Parliament last > week. > > > > In that mailing we included two other important documents (also > available on our website and attached here): > > * "Palestinian civil society condemns repression in Canada against > Palestine solidarity campaigns and humanitarian efforts" (May 26, > 2010) - a statement by the Palestinian Boycott Divestment and > Sanctions National Committee (BNC) > > > * "Le message caché du CPCCA: Faire taire la critique de > l'apartheid Israélien" - French translation of the report's > Executive Summary > > > TAKE ACTION TODAY! > > > > i. Read the report and attached statement from the Palestinian > BNC, and share widely. > > > > ii. Write to your MP. Remind them to read the report and ask them > to support it. Encourage others to contact their MPs. > > > > For more information on Palestine Freedom of Expression campaign: > http://www.freeexpressionpalestine.org/ > To contact us, send an e-mail to: > > pfex at freeexpressionpalestine.or > > > > __._,_.___ > > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: