I don't have a lot to add to the many bloggers who've covered this story such as Judy Rebick, pogge, Dawg's Blawg, Murray Dobbin, and Creekside, but I do think it's important to add my voice to those supporting Libby Davies, who spoke the truth and was viciously attacked, not only by the Harpercons, but by Liberals and even members of her own party.
What did she say that caused such a chorus demanding her resignation? Merely this, that Israel has occupied Palestine since 1948, the year it was formed. This is a matter of historical record, but it's a historical record that some would like to bury, along with free speech.
I have my doubts about the effectiveness of the Israel lobby. Oh yes, it's very effective with politicians and the media, however among the people I know it's actually acheiving the opposite of what it intends. The paranoia level is so off the charts that it strains belief. True, there are those, such as Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who do actually want the destruction of Israel, but such voices have no traction and no credibility in the minds of Canadians.
What does have growing credibility is that the treatment of the Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank is a human rights issue, and that Israel is becoming everything its citizens once fled.
Surely we who live in a western democracy have a right to criticize a state's policies without being accused of propagating hate. The attempt by the Israel lobby and its followers such as Stephen Harper to equate criticism of Israel with Nazi-like anti-semitism is, I fear, simply making "anti-semites" out of people who are nothing of the sort, and in so doing is cheapening the meaning of the word. And for someone like Harper to actually compare those who object to Israel's apartheid policies and continued occupation of Palestinian land to the Nazi's is Kafka-esque in the extreme.
Libby Davies dared to speak the truth. Those of us who still care about that kind of thing support her.
Vote for this post at Progressive Bloggers
"Vicious attack" by members of her own party? By whom and what vicious things did they say? Let's see some quotes!
ReplyDeleteAnd by the way, since when does a well-seasoned, deputy party leader need to be reminded to watch her words when speaking at a public event, on a very sensitive subject, outside of her critic area in front of a rolling camera?
You must either believe that Libby is mentally challenged or assume that she was hoping to make a spectacle of herself.
I'm not an NDP supporter, but I think this whole thing is a lynch mob. Harper was comparing her to terrorists today. Get a grip, people. I'm not saying that what she said was right, but when I read her words, they didn't sound THAT terrible. It's definitely nothing that she should lose her career over, especially since she apologized. What about that con MP who said "B's are homosexual faggots with dirt under their fingernails that transmit diseases"? He wasn't forced to resign over that, and that's practically HATE SPEECH. The lesson? You say ANYTHING against Israel in this country and you're fucked.
ReplyDeleteTo the first commenter - Thomas Mulcair said Davies should also apologize for supporting a boycott campaign against Israel, explaining that such a mistake by a senior party member was “egregious.”
ReplyDeleteTo the second commenter - You are so right. That is why it's so important to speak up and speak out. This is still a democracy - barely.
It doesn't surprise me that Harper would call her a terrorist. After all that's why he kept George Gallowy out - because he delivered aid to Gaza.
ReplyDelete"however among the people I know it's actually acheiving the opposite of what it intends."
ReplyDeleteNo one I know voted for him.
lance, your example is of hindsight. I'm referring to an ongoing situation, and one in which the views of the MSM are completely at odds with those friends and acqaintances I actually talk to about the issue. The point is, Israel at this point seems to be doing itself more harm than good, which is what usually happens when there's a hard right leader. Think about how the enormous worldwide sympathy for the US following 9/11 turned to criticism by Bush's response, or what Stephen Harper is doing to Canada's reputation now.
ReplyDeleteI am not opposed to Israel's existence, and neither is Libby Davies. What I am opposed to, and what a growing number of people are becoming aware of, is the abuse of human rights perpetrated by a former victim, which has turned into an oppressor.