Wednesday, October 31, 2007
You've read my many postings over the years. You watched my video interview with Dexter Van Zile. You've read Dexter's op-ed and Jeff Jacoby's op-ed in the Boston Globe. You saw liberal Rabbi Ronne Friedman's letter to UCC Pastor Nancy Taylor. You saw the photos of last Friday's protest against Sabeel and Old South. You read Joel Pollak's excellent report from inside the conference on Friday, and you saw Mahdi Bray speaking form the pulpit. And finally, you saw how the Muslim American Society/Islamic Society of Boston was recruiting kids for a smash Israel event.
And that's the event I'm going to tell you about now, only I'm not just going to tell you about it, I'm going to show it to you with some pictures and video.
Following the Sabeel Conference on Saturday afternoon, a rally was held across the street on Copley Plaza sponsored by Jewish Voice for Peace (JVfP) and the America Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (which calls itself ADC in an attempt to glom on to some of the ADL trademark goodwill): "Protesting Apartheid in Israel/Palestine."
The rally happily started after the conclusion of the Boston Common anti-war march, and as you may have noted in that report, there were several speakers who appeared on the stage at both events. The anti-war march started its march and made it out to Copley in time for many people to join in with the Sabeel event.
I approached the event with Agent Daniel, and as we came toward the stage he asked in surprise, "Is that guy wearing a yarmulke?" Why yes, Daniel, yes he is, for the co-emcee (along with ADC's Merri Najimi) of the event was none other than JVfP's Martin Federman. JVfP is out on the fringe of Jewish opinion, yet they and Marty are regularly given column space in the Jewish Advocate and Boston Globe. It was a lovely Sabbath to be out providing Jewish cover for a demonization of Israel event.
The subtitle of this post should be "Marty's Big Day."
Richard (Rick) Colbath-Hess was one of the organizers. The first thing he does is scream his name and "I'm a Jew!" before launching into the charges against Israel, then using his family's Holocaust experience to inoculate himself, and by extension his listeners. I had just arrived, so I miss the first few seconds and the camera is especially shaky here because I was still moving into position. It's also exceptionally windy. Those are my excuses.
Listen to Marty now. This thing is like an alcoholics' meeting for the Jews on the stage. "I'm Marty Federman, and I'm a Jew, it's been 375 days since I committed Apartheid..."
Co-emcee Merri Najimy admits that in the old days they were all just "Arabs" and then paints a nonsense picture of peace and brotherhood -- Jews and Christians and Muslims living in harmony 100 years ago. This is a common theme amongst those who'd like to see Israel erased. Before Israel existed, all was well with Jews and Christians living as good dhimmi -- so the story goes in not so many words. She's right about one thing -- there was no "Palestinian" nationality until the 1970's, when it came into being and was used as another tool to erase the Jewish State.
Next up is the star of the show, Desmond Tutu. A word here. Even individuals of great stature can be wrong sometimes. Gandhi felt that the Jews of Germany should submit themselves to massacre at the hands of the Nazis in the hope of inspiring a mass-movement and engaging the human horror of both their Nazi tormentors and the world at large. He didn't understand the nature of the Nazis, didn't understand the specifics of the struggle and gave some very bad advice. Tutu, a giant of the anti-Apartheid movement, suffers the same malady.
One more thing. When I was a young idealistic college student, the anti-Apartheid movement was all the rage, and I was a small part of it (in typically silly and mostly useless undergrad fashion), so I figure we're even Rev. Tutu and I. I don't owe him anything and he doesn't owe me anything. We'll just take each other on the merits from here on out. That's all we should ever do, really.
Personally, I wish they'd all take Gandhi's real lesson and refrain from giving support to violent nationalist movements.
Tutu gets up and off the stage pretty quickly after offering a few generic remarks.
Celebrity arrival
They then put a couple of kids up on stage, one Jewish, one Arab, both reading stories written by kids in refugee camps. I'm sure you can imagine the sob-stories and who was portrayed as to blame in the tale. Hint: It wasn't the terrorists.
Here's Episcopal Bishop Thomas Shaw blaming all the wars in the world on the Arab/Israeli conflict:
Time to skip ahead a bit brother. We had short speeches from the Episcopal Church representative, Bud Cedarholm, and Merrie Najimy got up and exhorted the crowd to have their friends over to watch the propaganda film Occupation 101. Here's some Jeff Halper explaining to the crowd how to blame Israel for everything, after telling them it doesn't do any good to cast blame. Marty gives him a big hug at the end.
Here's super-cool founder of Anarchists Against the Wall, a refusenik, and student at Hampshire College...whose name I can't quite make out (maybe you can tell from the tape)...these are the scum bags that film themselves cutting the security fence and then brag about it on the internet.
All the coolest Anarchists have painted fingernails.
They had more letters from refugees, David Rovics sang a song. Now for the final video and really, the pièce de résistance of the rally. Fresh off her appearance on the Boston Common, this time without time limit, Brighton teacher and Palestinian activist, leader of the group called Tawassul, sponsor of the recent Boston Palestine Film Festival...ladies and gentlemen, I give you...Salma Abu Ayyash!
And with that, let's take a look at some of the photos. Thank you again to Daniel for many of these. His full gallery is here. The pics from this rally come in the end after his Boston Common rally pics.
A pro-Israel counter-protester.
Sign of a Sabeel enthusiast.
Marty and Merrie
Signs by ADC look like ADL material at first glance.
Jeff Halper
Fashion
This is Karl Gustafson, Pastor of Clarendon Hill Presbyterian Church in Somerville -- Former chair of Friends of Sabeel New England. There's something about attending a conference where guys in collars quote scripture to chastise the Jews that gives Jews the shpilkes.
Marty commiserates with Mazin Qumsiyeh
They came in from the Common
Salma
Three of the "regulars"
Oh no! Pete Lowney literally lets the mask slip
The main protest was early Friday, but still, a good number of people showed up to protest on Saturday as well (many were Christians):
Pro-Israel activist Mark Nystedt confronts Mazin Qumsiyeh
Further links:
YNet: Sabeel’s ‘Peace’ façade
Boston Globe: Palestinian rights meeting is protested
Boston Globe: Tutu urges Jews to challenge oppression of Palestinians
What the headlines should have said was: "Tutu accuses Jews of ‘fighting against God.’" Because that is exactly what he did, and that was the only newsworthy part of his entire wretched oration. The fact that the media has bent over backwards to spin Tutu’s words is something of a shock to me, though perhaps not to the readers of this blog. And certainly not to the people of Darfur, who are used to such deceit.
Pollak again: Tutu: Blame the Jews. Only the Jews.
The MAS/ISB email list was forwarding email brags about Mahdi Bray: MAS Freedom Executive Director Mahdi Bray Joins Former Archbishop Desmond Tutu in Boston Advocating for Justice in Palestine. The list also contains a message from anti-Semitic nut-bar Karin Friedemann that includes an article submitted to The Muslim Observer (not online yet). I enjoyed the non-sequitur it concludes with:
In Copley Square, American Jews harassed two women in hijab, trying to intimidate them into expressing support for Israel.
And with that, dear friends, I bid you farewell until next time (or until I add updates).
Update: Christians and Jews United for Israel (CJUI) has a gallery of photos here.
The IRD has a report from inside the conference, here.
Listed below are links to blogs that reference this entry: Sabeel at Old South Church: Report with Video and Pics.
TrackBack URL for this entry: http://www.solomonia.com/cgi-bin/mt4/mt-renamedtb.cgi/13628
Robert Spencer at Frontpage: One of the most energetic opponents of Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week was the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), which sent letters to the presidents of all the colleges hosting IFAW events, urging them to ce... Read More
The local Jewish Advocate newspaper has done a front page story on the Boston Globe email scandal that Hillel Stavis broke here a couple of weeks ago. See: Emails Reveal: Boston Globe Reporter Sucks Up to the Cambridge Peace Commission.... Read More
Lovely: Janet Napolitano appointed Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee National Executive Director Kareem Shora to the Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC). The ADC is a sort of anti-ADL. It's ADL with a goatee and the exactly contrary mis... Read More
Shpilkes, indeed. I have nothing nice to say, so I'll hold my tongue...
Thanks for this! Count me in the anti-shpilkes coalition...
Man. Marty Federman is in full Dhimmi Kapo (subservient collaborationist) mode.
Like all self hating Jews, he has swallowed the “progressive mental illness†party line and being a good self hating Jew he slams Israel without once mentioning the racist, fascist, homophobic, misogynistic, Islamofascism that has taken hold in “paleSWINE†and the rest of the Arab/Muslim world.
Where is “Salaam Now� Where are “Muslims For Peace†and against Islamofascism and against the Kassam rocket factories, bombardments, racist, anti-semitic newpapers, celebration of SHITler (sad that he didn’t finish the job), religious fanatics that quote the Koran text that even the rocks and trees will declare that Jews are hiding behind them.
There isn't a "Salaam Now" because they would be threatened with death as Theo Van Gogh, Salman Rushdie, Hirsi Ali and the Mohammed cartoon "infidels" were.
The apartheid smear is cynically placed on Israel but you’ll never hear about current day slavery by Muslims of non-Muslims in Sudan, or the second class position of Coptic Christians in Egypt or the prohibition of Jews in Jordan or Saudi Arabia.
Marty Federman is a Jewish “Uncle Tom†using his family history to validate his racist rant.
Where is Tutu on current day slavery of black Africans by Muslim Sudan? Where was Desmond during the Rwandan genoicde or the African tyrant Mugabe?
Tutu should get a Nobel Hypocrisy Prize.
Ooops.
The guy I thougt was Marty Federman is actually Richard (Rick) Colbath-Hess.
I wonder if he's related to the Spandau Prison Hess?
And why three names? Colbath? What kind of a Jewish name is Colbath?
Anyhow both are Stockholm Syndrome, self-hating "jews".
Pretty sad.
There have always been traitorous Jews that work, collaborate against their fellow Jews. Look at "vanunu". Spit. Let Jesus have "vanunu".
Jews are not required to submit to their enemy. There is NO VIRTUE in being historic victims.
If a strong Israel makes self-hating Jews uncomfortable, so be it. Let those self-hating Jews eat their Dhimmi/Kapo/Uncle Tom hearts out.
Thank you for this in-the-trenches, front-line report! I find it appalling that liberal/leftist Jews will readily use their Jewishness to deliberately deceive the "masses" into buying their line of crap about Israeli "apartheid". These are the same Jews who will utter disingenuous cries of "anti-Semitism" in an attempt to divide pro-Zionist Jews from the pro-Zionist Christian right.
Earth to Jews, Earth to FELLOW Jews! don't always be looking over your shoulders into the past, or you might not see the gaping crater lurking a few steps away from you. In this strange world of ours, our friends might just be those who bear crosses, and our enemies might be those who wear kippot.
We are tied to Eretz Tzion not only by our blood and the blood of a hundred generations who were here before us, but by the promise of this land that binds us to God. To forsake that promise...
If I forget Thee, O Jerusalem, may my right hand lose its cunning. May my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth if I remember Thee not, if I hold not Jerusalem above my chiefest joy.