over 1000 staff and Students of Emory University signed a petition labelling Mary Robinson, former United Nations Comissioner for Human Rights, the first woman president of Ireland, as an anti-Semite.
Are these blatantly untrue and unfair allegations damaging the fight against ignorance?
Do you have a link to a news story or the text of the petition? It’s pretty hard to judge without knowing what we’re talking about.
Link.
Only a fool believes that fostering hostility towards Israeli policy is anti-Semitism.
I knew I forgot something. apologies.
Well that certainly depends on what the root cause is for wishing to “foster hostility towards Israeli policy”. If it is genuine concern with the lot of the Palestinians; sure nothing wrong with that, though “fostering hostility” doesn’t seem to be a very constructive way to go about achieving anything. On the other hand if Mary is fostering hostility because she, to put it bluntly, thinks Jews are little money grubbing guys with big noses that killed Jesus – I think that would count as anti-Semitism. I do believe an obsession with the faults of Jews points to aspects of anti-Semitism, but not knowing the details of Mary Donaldson, perhaps someone could provide the straight dope on whether she gives as much attention to other comparable (as per people directly involved) conflict around the globe as she apparently does to Israel and whether she anywhere near gives fair blame to all parties in the conflict or she unfairly singles out Israel – e.g. what is her record on criticising the Palestinians?
Can I ask you a question here? Why do you snip to an issue about Israel which is clearly ancillary, when the article and quote by Mrs. Robinson herself clearly identify the main issue as Durban?
Anyway, your statement is not necessarily applicable either. Obviously to equate any and all criticism of Israel with anti-Semitism is foolish. But it is also true that such criticism could be motivated by anti-Semitism. It is a judgment call as to whether it is true in an individual case. In the case of the guy you quoted, his position is likely that the position advocated by Robinson (as he represented it) is so distorted that it is likely motivated by anti-Semitism, especially when viewed in conjunction with her performance at Durban.
Turning to the OP, while I would not agree with the formulation of the final sentence, I do think it would be better to reserve public accusations of anti-Semitism for more clear-cut instances, whereas the Robinson case seems more ambiguous. So I think it is a mistake. (Same goes for the campaign against the Passion movie - more so, in fact).
Rune- she has criticised suicide bombings on many occasions.
Izzy- Care to give your reasons as to what was wrong with her performance at Durban?
Mary Donaldson is of course the little known alter ego of Mary Robinson :smack:
Well, the Durban Conference was pretty anti-Semitic. And Ms. Robinson’s appointment of Mona Rishmawi as special advisor also raises some eyebrows. So does the fact that the Commission for Human Rights often does tend to make Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza its prime focus. The Commission isn’t Israel’s friend, and with her being the head of the Commission, some might conclude she isn’t Israel’s friend either.
Now, criticism of Israel isn’t neccesarily anti-Semitism, but there is a relationship between the two, and the fact that Israel is the UN’s perpetual punching bag does tend to make you wonder.
From Mary Robinsons report to the UN about the Durban conference:
“We understand that the NGO Declaration and Plan of Action was adopted by caucuses which met in a plenary session on 1 September, but not without substantial controversy over both the process and the content. As well, this office has received many reports of the distribution of antisemitic literature and the intimidation of participants — behaviours unacceptable anywhere but especially unconscionable in the context of a World Conference Against Racism.”
So, she is being blamed for actions at a meeting in which she wasn’t involved and which she completely condemns?
tough break.
As for Mona Rishmawi, I’m having trouble finding anything about her that would raise eyebrows other than allegations on the Zionists Organisation of America’s website. care to enlighten me?
Isn’t the question why the person at issue is fostering hostility towards Israeli policy?
I fully agree that anyone who automatically makes the assumption that the one is motivated by the other is indeed a fool.
Malthus, you seem to have jumped to the conclusion Mary Robinson DOES foster hostility to Israel. any proof?
Huh? I repeated what the article said about the Emory spokesperson.
That’s rather too many 'likely’s for my taste. Please provide a quote which expresses clear anti-Jewish (since not all Semites are Jews) sentiment.
I foster hostility towards Israeli policy (and unreservedly condemn suicide bombings etc. etc. etc.). Am I anti-Jewish?
As I said earlier, I think her case is ambiguous, and I don’t think this campaign is a good idea. So I am not going to back up the assertion that she is an anti-Semite - only that there might be reason to think so. I’ve not followed the inner workings of the Conference (or her positions on Israel) well enough to know for sure. FWIW, here’s the perspective of Jewish activists on the subject, as expressed in contemporaneous Jewish Week articles. From 8/17/2001:
And from 8/31/01:
SentientMeat, you did not answer my question.
Huh? I gave a link to the entire article, and snipped what I though were the most pertinent points to provide an easily accessible summary:
Better?
I don’t think she was equating them, rather try to encourage understandingh that there had been suffering on both sides. If you were sufficiently motivated to find fault with the words, you could see it trying to eqate them though.
Her previous position as the head of al-Haq, along with her beliefs that the Israelis are attempting genocide in the Occupied Territories, cast some doubt on her objectivity in the Israeli-Palestinian situation.
Are you sure you want to go down that road? If so, how is this any different:
Now, criticism of Affirmative Action isn’t necessarily racism, but there is a relationship between the two, and the fact that Affirmative Action is the Republican parties perpetual punching bag does tend to make you wonder.
LOTS of people, like myself, find Israel’s methods of dealing with the Palestinian’s horrid. That alone doesn’t make us anti-semitic, nor should it “make one wonder.” I also don’t have to balance that with criticism of suicide bombers to prove that I’m not anti-semitic, which seems to be the yardstick some are using to measure by. If the lefties (my side) do something that pisses me off, I’m not required to spend half of my rant about it talking about the bad things the righties do, just to prove I’m not anti-lefty.