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Anti-Israel protesters choose a Saturday to protest Israel in Brookline

By adamg on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 7:28am

Gosh, why would they do that? Martin Solomon posts some e-mail from one of the organizers:

The effect of a silent march through the (mostly but not entirely) liberal Jewish neighborhood on the Sabbath with a banner saying Freedom and Equality for Palestine! should be strikng indeed...

And yes, there will be pro-Israel counter march, with people standing outside the temples along the route.

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Middle East


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Comments

By Lets B. Honest on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 8:08am.

Ah, so disagreeing with Israeli government policy is being anti-Israeli, anti-Semitic, or whatever. Should we really put one "special" country on a pedestal and okay anything it does ? I think not.

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By adamg on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 8:30am.

Come on: Making a point of marching down Beacon Street on the Jewish sabbath? And then crowing about it? I call anti-Semitism.

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By Lecil on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 8:51am.

Beat me to the punch, Adam. Let's call a spade a spade here. They want to have a legitimate secular discussion, aim your protests at the government in question. This march is clearly more about anti-Semitism than concern for the Palestine people.

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By Sock_Puppet on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 9:37am.

Is throwing a rotten tomato considered "work?" It might make juice when it hits...

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By rsybuchanan on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 1:49pm.

IIRC, there's an exception that comes into play here for not doing things "the normal way." A tradesman whose business was making tomato juice wouldn't normally juice the fruit by throwing it at a person, so one isn't liable for the juicing as melacha (work), but only for throwing something on Shabbes if the something is muktzeh (an object that has no legitimate use on Shabbes, and thus shouldn't be handled at all). The problem would be that, while food that can be eaten is never muktzeh (hence the old joke about staunching a severed artery with challah), I think rotten food could be, so one might still be liable there.

However, again working from memory, if one is in a private domain (see tractate Eruvin) and one throws the tomato at someone who is also standing in another private domain, as long as the two domains aren't separated by more than 2000 amot (which was the minimum halachic distance between "cities," iirc), then one probably isn't liable then, either because the rotten tomato isn't muktzeh mamish.

And if Artscroll or Steinsaltz ever put out Talmud for Kindle, I'd buy it. Forget those dinky little "daf yomi size" masechtas with the 2pt fonts.

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By Kaz on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 11:32am.

What kind of statement and impact would they have if they held this march on a Tuesday in Southie? It is a protest: of course it's going to want to be in your face. However, it's not like they're going to be carrying signs saying "Jews go home" or "Israel is full of demons" or anything like that. As someone with no dog in the fight, there's absolutely nothing I see from the AAPER that suggests they're interested in anti-Semitism, only that they want a peaceful solution that doesn't include wiping Palestine off the face of the planet.

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By Matt on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 12:55pm.

How would it fly if there was a protest against Ireland's policy on abortion in Southie? Although some of the residents of that neighborhood are Irish and some may support Ireland's policy, not all are either - and many are one or the other, but not both.

Why then single out Brookline (and Jews in Brookline) for a protest against policies that they may or may not support?

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By Quantum Mechanic on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 9:16am.

I might take some of these allegedly pro-Palestinian protesters more seriously if they ever criticized the behavior of any country other than Israel.

To use your words, you guys put one "special" country on a pedestal and say everything it does is wrong, and then also turn completely blind eyes to other countries (in the same region, even) who do far, far worse things.

And also -- what Adam said!

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By Ron Newman on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 9:31am.

Is this really a protest against an entire country, or is it a protest against policies of the country's current governing party? I think Avigdor Lieberman is worth protesting against at any time of the week.

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By MSolomon on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 9:37am.

...of the characters involved. Of course it's a protest against the existence of the "Zionist project."

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By Lanny Budd on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 12:23pm.

I haven't been following the news lately. When did the Israelis and the Palestinians have a falling out?

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By Anonymous on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 12:26pm.

Sticking It To The Jews in Brookline: March and Counter-March This Saturday

The participants are the usual collection of radical leftists, more radical leftists, extra radical leftists, a few Jihadis using the radical leftists, and outright anti-Semites. It has been endorsed by...wait for it...Code Pink Boston!

The title is an indication of how the author and his readers feel.

That said, it looks like American Association for Palestinian Equal Rights (AAPER) has been effective at organizing anti-Semitic anti-Zionists as well as pro-Zionist pro-Palestinian advocates. AAPER is hostile to Israelis, their government, Jews in Brookline and beyond.

I would not lend my name or presence to this group while I do support a two-state solution. What the state of Israel is doing by building new settlements on Palestinian land is an obstacle to a negotiated peace.

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By Laura on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 3:08pm.

I don't think criticism of Israel is anti-Semitic, but many of the anti-Israeli groups seem to be.

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By Lecil on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 4:06pm.

Agreed. It is the behavior of the group which is generally a tip-off.

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By Anonymous on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 9:05pm.

"I don't think criticism of Israel is anti-Semitic..."

I don't either Laura.

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By eeka on Thu, 10/08/2009 - 10:22pm.

I mean, I'm Jewish, and I find fault with the Israeli government. While still supporting the country and its people and wishing it well. Much like how I often disagree with much of the American government, but I'm proud to be American and want this country to do well.

So people can definitely criticize the government of Israel while holding views that aren't anti-Jewish. But when people criticize the entire nation, its culture, its people, etc., and/or express a view that anyone who supports Israel is bad, then yes, that's anti-Semitic. Nations are much more complicated than that, and it's bigoted to outright hate everything about one.

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