The University of Cambridge – teaching ignorance and hate
Universities and ‘free speech’ arguments are back in the news again. This time at Cambridge, with the Evening Standard running a story about the University of Cambridge being ‘slammed by senior academics over a ‘crackdown on free speech’ at a student Palestine event. Social media is also full of a petition, aimed at criticising Cambridge for forcing a change in the chair for the event. … Continue reading The University of Cambridge – teaching ignorance and hate
November 2nd to November 29, Twenty-eight stepping stones to partition
On 2 November 2017 we celebrated the Balfour Declaration centenary. On the 29th November, we celebrate seventy years since UN resolution 181 – the United Nations ‘partition plan’. Looking at much of the discussion over Balfour, there is still clearly misunderstanding over the process that led to the creation of Israel. The Balfour Declaration was a stepping stone, an important point of recognition. Yet the … Continue reading November 2nd to November 29, Twenty-eight stepping stones to partition
British unions supporting antisemitism and radical Islamic hate
Yesterday, on the 4th November 2017, an ‘anti-Balfour’ event took place in London. Intensively plugged for months by every anti-Israel group across the country, this was going to be a demonstration that filled the streets with anti-Israel protestors. In the end, it wasn’t anything of the sort. The PSC Twitter feed absurdly suggested 15,000 marched, yet only 2300-2600 walked passed Hanover Square. There may have … Continue reading British unions supporting antisemitism and radical Islamic hate
Gilad Atzmon, solidarity in Reading and RISC – the anti-Israel hosts
Last week, Gilad Atzmon gave a talk at the Reading International Solidarity Centre (RISC). This blog isn’t about free speech. You want a racist book? You want to subscribe to a white supremacist magazine that hates Jews, blacks and gays? Then go ahead, nobody is stopping you. But you shouldn’t expect the National Lottery fund to subsidise the product. The public purse can be legitimately … Continue reading Gilad Atzmon, solidarity in Reading and RISC – the anti-Israel hosts
An open ‘response’ for Asa Winstanley at Electronic Intifada
It seems as though Asa Winstanley at ‘Electronic Intifada’ decided he needed to attack me. A point of recognition that indicates the work you are doing is having an effect. When Mondoweiss dedicated an entire piece to me, I considered it a mark of respect. The Algemeiner J100 recognition was another step up. Now Electronic Intifada? One of the central hate-filled mouthpieces of the entire … Continue reading An open ‘response’ for Asa Winstanley at Electronic Intifada
History repeating: Jewish Voice for Labour, today’s Yevsektsiya
How is this for a fun fact: A small group of anti-Zionist Jews set out to oppose Habima theatre, discredit them, have them boycotted, and remove any official support they received. These people wanted Habima, and their ‘Zionism’ sent packing. Does it sound familiar? It shouldn’t, because those responsible were not ‘Jews for Boycotting Jewish Goods’, they were the communist ‘Yevsektsiya’ and these actions were … Continue reading History repeating: Jewish Voice for Labour, today’s Yevsektsiya
Inminds Jew haters gather. Fools, conspiracy theorists and antisemites
On Saturday 14 October, a group of anti-Israel activists went to protest outside of Jason Atherton’s ‘Little Social restaurant’. The group behind the demonstration was ‘Inminds’, a small, highly active, and particularly thuggish group, whose activists clearly have an issue with Jews. This time, they gathered to protest a restaurant participating in ‘Round Tables‘, an international culinary festival in Tel Aviv. As is so often … Continue reading Inminds Jew haters gather. Fools, conspiracy theorists and antisemites
In Edinburgh they are still promoting SPSC antisemitism
The more I engage with antisemitism, the more I realise that when it comes to people who hate Jews, most people really do not care. What happened this week in Edinburgh is a good example. Two months ago, my report into the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign was published by Jewish Human Rights Watch. The research identified incredibly high concentration levels of antisemites within the SPSC. … Continue reading In Edinburgh they are still promoting SPSC antisemitism
My name is Rachel ‘X’
On 2 October 1938, Arab ‘rioters’ infiltrated a Jewish neighbourhood in Tiberias. They first cut the telephone wires to frustrate calls for help. They then set about massacring innocent civilians. According to the British: ‘It was systematically organized and savagely executed. Of the nineteen Jews killed, including women and children, all save four were stabbed to death.’ There were about 70 armed Arabs involved in … Continue reading My name is Rachel ‘X’
Facing raw antisemitism at the Labour Party Conference 2017
I have spent all week in Brighton, at the 2017 Labour Party Conference. This was my first visit to the conference. As someone who dislikes the ideological straitjacket of political affiliation, it will probably be my last. From the suffocating presence of ‘Palestinian solidarity’ to an obvious tolerance for rabid antisemites, this week was deeply unsettling. There were times where the atmosphere was scary. How … Continue reading Facing raw antisemitism at the Labour Party Conference 2017