The Concordia Palestinian Solidarity movement’s favourite Jewish poster boy, Aaron Maté, claims that the anti-Zionists aren’t really antisemites in today’s Gazette:
The attempts to “de-legitimize” Israel’s occupation of Palestine are as anti-Semitic as the attempts to “de-legitimize” apartheid South Africa were “anti-Caucasian.”
The number of times that the Gazette and other publications have given voice to this thug – Jewish or not, he’s a thug – is incredible. This is the same Aaron Maté (VP Campaigns of the extremely anti-Israel CSU) who was arrested back in April for holding an illegal sit-in in the offices of Irwin Cotler, MP and human-rights activist. The same Aaron Maté who was arrested on September 9th at the Netanyahu protests. The same Aaron Maté who, in effort to make it seem like he speaks for a significant proportion of Jews, makes a point of prefacing every anti-Israel remark he makes with “as a Jew”.
His twisted logic would have Israel blamed for all of the Palestinian violence. But either he willfully closes his eyes to the virulent antisemitism within the Palestinian movement at Concordia, or else he simply does not think it important or relevant. Perhaps he wilfully closes his ears to the chanting of “death to the Jews” that can be heard at the riots. How else would he be able to rationalize his participation? Most often, he simply claims that the antisemitism is a fringe element among the minority:
Of course, no serious activist will deny that there are elements of anti-Semitism in the pro-Palestinian movement. But I also know that the vast majority of Palestinians whom I have met in Montreal or on the West Bank have denounced anti-Semitism and taken great efforts to oppose it when displayed by others.
Then, he has the audacity to follow with:
That protest was not anti-Semitic. Sept. 9 was a sign of a growing movement of people across the world in solidarity with Palestinians, a group that includes thousands of conscientious citizens and brave “refusenik” soldiers in Israel itself. And despite some unfortunate and deplorable exceptions, it is a movement that recognizes and supports the legitimate rights of the Jewish people.
The anti-Zionists love Maté because they can hold him up as “evidence” that anti-Zionism is not antisemitism. “After all”, they can claim, “one of our best friends is Jewish”. Why Aaron Maté lets himself be used like that is beyond me. But what people need to realize is that:
a) Jews who share his views are in the extreme fringe minority, and do not reflect the views of most mainstream Jews worldwide (left, right, or center).
b) Despite claiming otherwise, anti-Zionism of Aaron Maté’s brand is antisemitism. Merely criticizing Israeli policy is not, as he correctly points out, but when anyone goes so far as to deny the legitimacy of the mere existence of the state of Israel, it is antisemitism. Why? Because when you really look at what’s being said, the argument comes down to the fact that Israel is a Jewish state. Whether they argue that it is “infringing on Muslim land” or “racist because of its Jewish character”, this is what is really being said. As Adam Spiro explains (in response to an incident where professional shit-disturbers and buddies of Maté, Samer Elatrash and Laith Marouf, showed up at a Sukkot party):
Next time you hear the SPHR say “we’re anti-Israel, not anti-Jewish” think about it for a few minutes. If their sole concern was Israel, they would not have felt the need to protest a Jewish holiday. I have no need, or desire (nor do I know any Jew who does) to go monitor how Ramadan is observed. Furthermore, someone who was not anti-Jewish would not have played the role Marouf and Elatrash did in the riots where Jews were spat at, and Jewish men had their kippot torn from their heads. I still have yet to see anything (from the SPHR or anyone else), formal or informal, condemning those actions, or even expressing any regret whatsoever. And they say that they’re not anti-Jewish.
These are the people with whom Aaron Maté aligns himself. To exempt him from criticism simply because he is Jewish, while criticising his cohorts, would be racist.
You’re an intellectual midget.
You write:
“The anti-Zionists love Maté because they can hold him up as “evidence” that anti-Zionism is not antisemitism.”
Do you really believe that anyone who is anti-zionist is also anti-semitic? This sounds like a bizarre, though conventional, form of reasoning! it seems you are saying that Netanyahu’s administration should be allowed carte blanche to do what they want with Palestinians & their land because if he is repressive then any reaction against his policies is automatically anti-semitic. It’s a false kind of reasoning. Presumably if one is against American policies one is automatically anti-Christian. It may be worth while for you to take a course in logic because your reasoning is contingent on facilitating emotional reactions & not on rational reactions.
Wow, a reply to a 10-year-old blog post! Long tail SEO FTW!