This is a copy of the e-mail that Aaron Maté, VP Campaigns of the CSU, has been sending out in response to all the letters that they’ve been receiving. Thanks to Steven for sending me a copy. Words in bold parenthesis are my comments:
Dear Sir/Madam,
My name is Aaron Maté, Vice-President (campaigns) of the Concordia Student Union. (For more on the CSU’s favourite “see, look, we’re not antisemitic, some of our best friends are Jewish” poster boy, Aaron Maté, see this past post) This message is going out to you in response to your concerns raised about the Concordia Student Union Council of Representatives decision of Monday, December 2nd to suspend Concordia Hillel for passing out flyers for Mahal, the IDF-volunteer program that Council representatives alleged to have been in violation of the Foreign Enlistment Act (R.S. 1985, c. F-28).
Due to the high volume of e-mails that I have received on this issue, I am writing this general message in which I will attempt to address the many arguments, questions, and concerns that have been raised to me about Councils decision. (Way to go on the “high volume of e-mails”, guys! Keep up the good work!)
The motion was passed after Hillel’s co-president, also a member of the CSU Council, refused to provide an apology for passing out the flyer, explaining that he needed to consult with the rest of his executive. (He makes it sound as though Noah Joseph should have apologized, which, of course, is the first problem with his argument.) The motion stipulates that it will be rescinded if Hillel either makes an apology or if the Concordia University administration conducts an investigation of this matter and recommends that both the funds and privileges of Hillel are restored. (Side note here: it’s apparently the CSU’s intention to force the admin to overturn its decision. This will give the CSU more “ammo” in their war of words against the admin. To them, this is nothing but a chess game.)
I’d first like to make a distinction: as a member of the CSU executive, I have no authority or voting status on the Council of Representatives. Under CSU-bylaws, the CSU executive, headed by President Sabine Friesinger, and five VPs including myself, are mandated to follow Councils orders. The Council is a separate elected body of 30 students who serve as the CSU’s board of governors. They meet once a month to decide on a variety of resolutions and motions that are put before them. (While technically true, that doesn’t mean the exec has no power. Far from it. Aaron Mate is trying to pass this one off like the hot potato it is, even though he knows full well that the exec shares responsibility here.)
The motion in question accused Hillel of passing out flyers that recruited students for the Israel Defense Forces. The flyer, entitled “Mahal 2000, Volunteer for the IDF”, advertises the Mahal program, which provides “international volunteers the opportunity to serve within elite programs combats or as part of the Paratroop brigade.” It lists the qualifications of this program as being “non-Israeli Jewish males/females aged 18-30. Willing to serve in the IDF for 18 months. Reasonable health profile as required by the IDF.” It then goes on to describe the Chain of Events of the program, which includes: “4. Join the IDF for 18 months.” (So what?)
In presenting the motion on Monday, CSU Councilor Adam Slater alleged that the Mahal flyer violates section 11 of the Foreign Enlistment Act which states that “Any person who within Canada, recruits or otherwise induces any person or body persons to enlist or to accept any commission or engagement in the armed forces of any foreign state or other armed forces operating in that state is guilty of an offence.” [the full text of the act is available at http://www.canlii.org/ca/sta/f-28/whole.html] (Neglecting to specify, of course, that it’s only illegal to recruit for an enemy of Canada or a hostile state against Canada. There’s nothing illegal about the Mahal program, which, from what I understand, is a multi-step program for Jews in Galut to make Aliyah, which includes some time in the army.)
Personally, I don’t agree that the Mahal flyer violates this act. But this is my personal opinion — I have friends who have done the program and doubt that whoever recruited them to are in violation of Canadian law. On the other hand, lawyers that have spoken to me today have given me conflicting opinions, with most informing me that they think the flyer does violate the act, while a few have said that the flyer is completely legal.(Explain how “conflicting opinions” justifies shutting down Hillel.)
Regardless, I think it was a mistake of the Council to impose these sanctions on Hillel without giving their members the proper time to respond to the allegations against them. And in fact, I think this regardless of whether the flyer was illegal or not: I think there’s a heavy burden of proof to be met in order to suspend any student group, particularly over objections to the content of their material. And in this case, legal or not, I don’t think that this burden of proof is met. (Oh you do, do you? Where were you on September 9th, huh?)
But I also would hope that anyone who agrees with me would support the right of Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights, hypothetically, to recruit for the Palestinian resistance. What, I think we should consider, would have been the reaction had students tried to recruit for Palestinians defending their towns from Israeli incursions? Or for the Iraqi army, or the American army, or any for that matter? If we cannot apply the same standards to others as we apply to ourselves, then we are hypocrites. (Here’s where this really begins to unravel. . . I think this is self-explainatory, but for anyone who’s a little slow, Mr. Mate just said that the IDF is equivalent to the “Palestinian resistance” (aka suicide bombings and terrorist attacks).
To be clear, I also do see some logic to the rationale of the councilors in favour of the motion: should the flyer in fact be illegal, then as it was handed out by a CSU club, then that could implicate the entire Concordia Student Union in a criminal offence. (The CSU should be no stranger to criminal offences by now, though, right Mr. Maté? How many arrests does the executive have cumulatively, exactly?) Furthermore, its important to remember that the motion leaves plenty of room for it to be completely rescinded: If Hillel can either provide an apology, or prove that legally the flyer was not illegal; or furthermore, even if it refuses to fulfill either of those demands, then the motion also says that the Concordia University administration can declare at any time whether it views the flyer as illegal or not, and Council will respect whatever decision the administration makes. (So I didn’t steal the sweater, and even if I did, they can make me give it back anytime so it’s not really wrong.)
This whole affair could thus be ended pretty easily: if the flyer is illegal, then Hillel can apologize, or, if it does not want to apologize, then the Concordia administration can decide that irrespective of the law, all of Hillels privileges can be restored nonetheless. Or, if the flyer was completely legal, then the CSU Council should rescind the motion that they passed. (No, you morally corrupt fool, the motion should have never been passed in the first place! That’s the whole friggin point!)
In many of the messages that I have received, this motion has been accused of being fueled by anti-Semitism, in accordance with what many feel is a policy of systematic anti-Jewish, and specifically, anti-Zionist discrimination by the Concordia Student Union. (No, there’s no antisemitism at Concordia. Silly me. I must have been making the whole thing up. Maybe it’s part of the international Zionist conspiracy! I think I saw an Asper at today’s rally . . . )
While again I do not agree with the way Council handled this affair, I think that these charges are completely unfounded. From the position of those that view the Mahal flyer as illegal, I can understand their concern of implicating the Concordia Student Union in illegal activity. And given that the flyers aim is to get people to volunteer and enlist in the Israel Defense Forces, I do think they have reasonable argument for due cause.
And as a Jewish member of the Concordia Student Union executive, it pains me to hear that my union and my school is being painted as an anti-Semitic bunch that wants to destroy Israel. (That’s because you ARE an antisemitic bunch who want to destroy Israel. And I find it amazing how the only time that Mr. Maté claims to be Jewish is when he’s criticizing Israel.) Granted, I do hold personal political views on Israels policies that I doubt many of you would agree with, but I simply cannot tolerate the attempts to equate a student body known for its opposition to the Israeli occupation with one that is anti-Jewish. (True colours at last.) This is a fallacy that I think provides not just an unfair and completely unwarranted damage to the international reputation of Concordia University (since when has the CSU been concerned about the international reputation of Concordia University?), but grossly demeans the crucial efforts to fight the very real and very terrible forms of anti-Semitism that threaten our people around the world. (Here we go with the “anti-Zionism isn’t antisemitism” stuff again. Excuse me while my stomach turns.)
Please accept my apologies if this letter has not answered any specific questions that you posed in your initial query. Please feel free to send them again and I will respond personally as soon as I can find the time.
Chug Sameach to all,
Aaron Maté
Vice-President, Concordia Student UnionAaron Maté
VP – Campaigns
Concordia Student Union
(514) 848-7970
Well, the invite is on the table. Mr. Maté wants responses. I suggest we comply with his wishes. What do you say?
The letter is entirely nonsensical. If the CSU council believes Hillel broke the law in distributing the flyers, how would an apology address a law that has already been contravened? Furthermore, how does the CSU claim jurisdiction to interpret and enforce a federal law? That’s up to the RCMP and the courts. By combining claims of illegal behavior with demands for a simple apology, Mate betrays the CSU’s true purpose.
The weasel words, the moral bankruptcy, the absurd protestations of innocence – those I’ve come to expect from CSU. But the illogical, inconsistent and irresponsible accusation of illegal behavior takes them to a whole new plane.
That’s a worthless letter. It starts out “semi-sincere”, but then when he throws in his own political agenda—he blew it.
And from your brief profile of him, his letter is beyond worthless. I don’t think Hillel would’ve distributed material that was illegal in your country…that just doesn’t make sense……
Dear Mr. Mate:
I am quite pleased to hear about your activities in supprt of our cause. I have consulted O. Bin Laden and Y. Arafat, and we are pleased to announce that you have been appointed and honorary member of the new nazism ™. Of course, you may continue calling yourself Jewish, though we know that you are about as Jewish as Michael Jackson is ghetto.
Guys, come on, keep it civil. That’s not fair. Aaron Mate is as Jewish as anyone – he’s entitled to his views. But there’s plenty to attack in his views themselves without resorting to low personal attacks. Please, I don’t want to have to start censoring comments.
Actually Segacs, your attitude – I don’t blame you, you’re name is on this blog – is politically correct. Mate and his ilk represent the worst of both judaism and Humanity. Here’s my case:
Judaism: Mate is not a practicing jew. In fact, his only connection to judaism is to use it as a shield for those who are broadly perceived as anti-semetic. Hence, he is only a jew insofar as it hurts other jews.
Humanity: Mate supports the vile islamist terrorists, who would kill you, your family, everyone. He supports those who beat up holocaust survivors on the streets of montreal, and has been arrested for this. Mate has chosen to associate with the vilest people in society, and has therefore become vile himself.
I saw an article about this incident in the Globe and Mail online today. I just found the last 3 line of the article to be disturbings…
Adam Slater, who wrote the motion against Hillel and is himself Jewish, said the settlements violate the Geneva Convention.
“It’s morally outrageous to recruit people into an occupying army,” Mr. Slater said.
To think that a Jewish student would try to shut down a respected Jewish organization is very disheartening.
My attitude has nothing to do with being “politically correct” but with simply being right. I’m not a “practicing” Jew either, in the sense that I’m not religious. But when someone does or says something idiotic, I attack their actions or their speech, not their religion. I’m no fan of Aaron Mate or Adam Slater, but I have no right to make up definitions of who exactly is a Jew and who isn’t.
I respect your comments segacs, and I am not much of a practicing jew myself. But I also don’t use my level of (weak) judaism to attack other jews. Once Mate broadcasts that he is allowed to appeal for the death of israel because he is jewish, he sure as hell expect people to question how he defines judiasm.
If I may repeat my earlier point: Mate is only a jew insofar as he uses that term to hurt other jews.
Mate is playing the “New Historian”/”anti-zionist” game. “I’m not anti-Semitic just anti-zionist”. And so goes the refrain of most anti-Jew/anti-Semitic mouthpieces. Leaving aside the Israel Shahaks and Norman Finklesteins of the world – the vast majority who those who engage in this sort of disengenuous parsing are indeed anti-Semitic. Unfortunately Mate is either a witting or unwitting dupe of this new clan of anti-Semites, the vast majority Arab Islamics and those who have been conscripted in the West – the new Left and neo-nazis – to do their bidding.
I call them “House Jews.” In honor of the Jewish protesters at the UMich hatefest earlier this fall that got yelled at by Adam Shapiro for enacting a terrorist attack (they played the victims, of course). Shapiro got mad and came out of the conference to divest in Israel and yelled at the protesters. They started a chant, “Go back inside, House Jew!” until he left.
A Jew who sides with those who would kill us is as good as dead to us. And the irony, of course, is that they’ll kill their House Jews, too, given half the chance. Adam Shapiro and Aaron Mate are no more immune to bombs on buses than are you and I. Or to being lined up against the wall and shot, regardless of how much they believe in the Palestinian cause.
I can’t hold back my contempt for these Jews, Segacs, not even on your comments thread. If you don’t want me to post here, I’ll stop. But I say these people need to be ripped.
And I’ll try to keep it rated PG.
Did he really write “ChUg Sameach,” or is that a typo?
House jew. I like that one. Its much better than the one I typically use, which is Kappo Kike. House jew is a bit classier.
The things you learn on the web…
If you really want to get their goat, the term to use is Hof Juden. “Court Jews” were granted special privileges (actuall they were more like normal freedoms than privileges)by the aristocracy because of their utility to the court.
Shapiro and his ilk think that come the revolution they’ll be considered “good Jews”. As soon as their utility disappears so will they.
Weren’t the “House Jews” in Poland/Germany during WW2 called “JudenRat”?
Judenrat means Jewish Council in German.
It is the councils the Germans set
up in ghettos.
Wow, I didn’t actually think you guys/gals would weigh the words of a person based on whether or nor their Jewish. Sad. I also was not prepared to see the antisemitism levelled at Aaron on Thursday during the Hanukkah political pep rally. “Traitor” and “self-hating Jew.” Nice, tells me a lot on who the antisemites are at Concordia. By the way, Kahanists, we’ve Hanukkahed enough!
Hanthala–
Three things–
First most of the people who’ve likely posted as contrubtors/commentors on this thread are NOT Kahanists. Kahanism is something else totally.
Second, many of us hate anti-semitism no matter what. At the same time, we find it more troubling when Jews are the ones leveling the anti-semitism (we are distubred by that trend). We just find it harder to see people suffering from a “Self-hate” syndrome. (I hope that’s an ample explanation; perhaps you can find a better analogy).
As for singing HaTikvah on Hannukah; like someone else said, usually this is sung at many Jewish events. A historical asside–from the early days of the modern-Zionist movement, Hannukah was exalted as a model holiday–regarding the reclamation of the Temple, and the miracles which also occured.
For the record, I don’t think the term “self-hating” is fair. I sincerely doubt Aaron Mate hates himself, or Judaism for that matter. And I’m not about to tell anyone how to define their religious beliefs, or their political ones for that matter. But it does seem that he lets himself be used as a “poster boy” for the Palestinian cause, and I’m not sure if he realizes just how much he’s being used.
Hanthala, so sweet of you to drop by. Based on your posts, I assume you got your education at Concordia – your rhetorical skills are limited to insults, and more insults. Once in a blue moon, try to debate the issue. It won’t hurt anyone, now could it? Don’t worry, if you actually change your mind (assuming too much?) I promise not to tell your friends at the C-Not the SS, no never-U.
Hey Sneeky Slinky, I’d kick your ass in a debate on this issue anytime simply because, other than racist fallback on “the Arabs” you and the rest of your crew don’t have any arguments (other than God gave us this land-we’re the chosen people). The problem is, you’re too chicken to debate, you instead want to shove your opinions on the rest of us by holding segregated events for Jews only on campus and not allow any challenge to the speaker (Netanyahu).
Okay Hanthala. Whatever you say. You feel free to lie any which way you want. I fully respect your cultural right to do so.
hanathala, you said that they “did not
allow any challenge to the speaker
Netanyahu.” I’m sure, that if you asked,
the university would have allowed the
pro-palestinian students a chance to
make speeches or have a speaker to give
an address that could have challenged
the views of Mr. Netanyahu. This is
what happened at Colorado University
when Hannah Ashrawi spoke there. The
pro-Israel supporters got Daniel Pipes
to make a rebuttal. But there was no
violence in Colorado.
Unlike Colorado, what you did at Concordia
was to challenge Netanyahu with violence.
You wouldn’t let him speak. I don’t know
where you come from, but this is not
an acceptible form of challenge in
liberal democracies. You must at least
recognize this.
Hanthala does not want to debate; only to hurl slogans and epithets. Nor is s/he interested in our responses. Reaction is what Hanthala is looking for.
Yeah, whatever.
Segacs, SPHR events are open to all students and always include the possibility of challenging the speaker. Not so for Netanyahu. Hillel invited a man who is directly responsible for the suffering of many Concordia students’ relatives, a man whose speeches are laced with anti-Arab racism and hate-mongering, and ban the very people who are the direct targets of this man’s hatred from attending the event and challenging the speaker. I don’t speak only for Arabs and Muslims at Concordia when I say that this is unnaceptable. The double standard in the admin’s stance was also quite apparent to all members of the Cocnordia community. They ban SPHR from having an event a year before on “security” grounds, but then accept to invite the riot squad on campus, to close fire alarms and water hoses in the Hall building, and to risk the whole community’s safety so that this one bigot, who has no trouble having his voice heard, can speak to a segregated audience. Sorry, this is not Apartheid South Africa or Israel. As for the “violence” you speak of, blame the cops. Don’t whine to me about what you read in the papers, half of it isn’t true and the other half is no worse than what happened to Arabs and Muslims that day at the hands of Zionist counter-protesters. Of course, that doesn’t sell papers nearly as much.
I’m gonna toe the line for former PM (and current FM) Natanyahu. I’m just gonna point out a few little aspects to the arguments presented.
Hanthala stated:
” Hillel invited a man who is directly responsible for the suffering of many Concordia students’ relatives,”
Just to let you know, this argument doesn’t hold much weight. Right off the bat, Natanyahu is not directly responsible for what you speak of. Secondarilly, Natanyahu himself can spin that argment right back at you, as his brother was killed by PLO terrorists in Entebee.
“a man whose speeches are laced with anti-Arab racism and hate-mongering,”
No, not all of his speeches are like this. Maybe the sound bites they play on the news are, but that’s not a complete picture to base one’s judgments on.
“and ban the very people who are the direct targets of this man’s hatred from attending the event and challenging the speaker. ”
Not sure about this, butI’ve heard it was an open event……
Bigot, bigot, bigot…so goes the tired refrain from Hanthala. He doesn’t like Netanyahu so instead lie about the source of Palestinian problems. The real blame lies with themselves, their own leadership and the Arab Islamic regimes which use the Palestinians as pawns in the insidious game of Arab Islamic nationalism (i.e., fascism). Netanyahu is as bigoted as Jean Chretien is. But your standards of bigotry is that anyone who opposes terrorists and the terrorist leadership of the Palestinians should be branded in the typical bland fashion you guys engage in. It’s the leadership of the Arab Islamics, particularly in the Palestinians which brought forth nazis like the Grand Mufti Hajj Amin al Husayni, leader of the Palestinians for 30 years, wanted for war crimes by Yugoslavia, which has given the people you support its legacy. A legacy continued on by the quintessential terrorist himself Yasser Arafat. Oh you must be proud!
Thank you Jaws.
Right Hanthala. Those fun loving multicultural SPHR people.
Today’s SPHR event: punching holocaust survivors…open to anyone!!
Tomorrow, Hanthala and Pap-Sameer in a contest: most lies per minute. Winner gets to martyr some babies…for the CAUSE….
That’s all right Slinky, your posts speak for themselves.
Actually, there have been plenty of speakers brought in by the SPHR in the past few years, and none of their speeches were met with any violence whatsoever.
They sure do, Hanthala. Checkmate.
since you are all students at concordia, don’t you believe these issues should be left at home, and your studies should be your main priority. and segac i believe your sidenotes are uncalled for as i can read for myself, without your opinion choking me before i can swallow the statement. it seems that no matter what aaron would have said sarcasm would have follow, although some points of yours are strong this weakens them. i have no stance in the matter, but honestly i feel with this kind of hostility neither of the groups should have the right to battle this out in our school. and please if you have nothing nice to say don’t say it at all.
That’s right…I feel so much tension and hate from all that I have been reading. It really is unpleasant. Rp is right, if none of you have nothing nice to say, then don’t say it at all.
Hmmm…I wish I could leave this at home, but unfortunately, it does not let me leave this at home. I imagine its the same for the Zionists. So, if you don’t mind, why don’t you stay home and let us sort it out. After all, no one “forced” you onto this site.