Sunday, June 19, 2005
Another year, another Boston for Israel rally. No big report this year--check out last year's multi-part entry here, complete with photos of Bus 19 and transcripts of some of the speakers. That was a much more political event, this year was just fun.
I actually took my wife and daughter, and we did the full day, starting at the big gathering at Copley Square, and then marching with the parade the one and a half miles to City Hall Plaza. As I mentioned no speeches this year, just fallafel sandwiches and music, provided by...uh, some Israeli group "Mashina," of whom, of course I had never heard. They were quite good, though. A couple guys played an accoustic guitar (well, one played, one just sang) as the warm-up act. Also very good, although they were on for a long while--long enough so that after we arrived at City Hall, we went down to Faneuil Hall for something more to eat and when we came back they were still on, but whatever.
I'd say turn-out was excellent, as these photos of the march (looking in front of us and behind us) and then the crowd watching the music attest.
Yes, there was the usual collection of moonbats, haters and freaks. Same crew, same signs as last year ("We support the resistance," etc...) They were allowed very close to where the marchers were entering the plaza (there was a security check), and were screaming at people as they filed in. They were lead by someone with a megaphone and, unlike last-year, the cops let them keep it. Also unlike last-year, however, the set-up was much better, with the concert around the corner of City Hall from where the "protesters" were, so the entire afternoon wasn't a shouting match between the entertainment and moonbaticus odiferous. Also, it appears that, as this picture shows, the cops actually pushed them much farther back later and they were completely surrounded by riot cops by the time we left (we didn't stay for the whole show). Sorry (or not), but you have to be completely fucked in the head to still be screaming slogans three hours after you start, and not only that, but screaming into the faces of whole families (it was a family activity with face-painting, balloon animals and all that, so there were many children present) as well. Way to show the Jews and whatever other part of the world that takes notice of these things that we still need to be vigilant. BTW, the six clear sort of "towers" in the picture above are part of Boston's Holocaust Memorial.
[Edit: I wanted to add one more thing here. Every time I've been to one of these things where there were protesters present, the same pattern emerges. On the Israel side there is a multiplicity of voices present. There were people carrying signs against the disengagement, and people who were "Pro-Israel, Against the Occupation"--hell, there was even a contingent of Jews for Jesus. There was one main theme aside from the celebration of Israel, and that was "peace"--uneqivocally. The contrast with the so-called "pro-Palestinian" side could not be more pronounced. The protesters were a single-message group, and there was no message of peace among them. There were no signs of reconciliation, two-state solutions, hands open to others...the only signs of peace I see are signs like "No Peace Without Justice," and that "Justice," as I noted in this earlier post, is purely the retributive type that has nothing to do with real peace. Not to mention that their favorite chant is "Shut it down!" referring to Israel.
Another side-note: The only side that carries the American flag at these things (I exclude the Nazis here) is the pro-Israel side, and they were distributed along with Israeli flags to the marchers.]
And, of course, the usual half-dozen White Supremacist/Nazi/whatever they are guys were there. Barely worth a mention, but always worth a look:
Anyway, we had a nice time, and the march was nice exercise. My daughter had a good time riding my shoulders and waving her little Israel and American flags and being part of a "parade." She also enjoyed the police horses and the police escort. Here's a shot of a few of the horses:
See you next year. Am Yisrael Chai.
Update: Jewish Russian Telegraph has a report along with a transcript of one of the kick-off speeches.
Boston Globe report here.
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Sol,
I was there too. Nice party.
so, my question is, what event did Boston Herald reporter Brian Ballou attend.
According to today's Herald: "Nearly 2,000 people celebrating the 57th anniversary of Israel's independence were met with protests by groups from New York and Michigan, creating a tense confrontation that was diffused by riot police yesterday."
"Diffused by riot police"????
"Tense confrontation" ????
I walked from Copley to City Hall Plaza. Families with strollers carring balloons and chatting. Very friendlly and festive.
At City Hall Plaza, there were about 40 hate-Israel protestors. The Boston Police had them standing on one side of the plaza. On the other side, separated by a wide swath of the plaza, there was a party. People were munching falafel, kids were getting balloon animals, there was music.
True, the protestors were shouting through bullhorns, but I couldn't tell what they were shouting at that distance. Everyone I was with - and there were hundreds of families in the plaza - simply ignored them. In the entire time I was there, I didn't even see anyone so much as get into a shouting match with the protestors. A few people did walk their way to read the placards. That was it. Nothing happened.
There was no "tense confrontation"
There was nothing for the riot police to "diffuse."
It was a nice party.
So, my question is, what event did reporter Brian Ballou attend? Because nothing like the things he writes about took place at Boston Celebrates Israel.
http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=90107
Okay. I now understand that there was a moment, apparently just as the Celebrate Israel marchers approached but had not yet reached city Hall Plaza, when the bosotn Police decided that there would not be enough space between the Israel haters and the party. A photographer form Boston Metro snapped a photo, showing angry Israel-hating protestors shoving back against the police.
Still. Hundreds of families attended that event. None of us experienced even a moment of "tense confrontation," nor did any of the attendees witness any behavior on the part of the protestors taht required riot police to "difuse" since the only - very brief - confrontation happened before Israel supporters reached the Plaza. For the forty or so extremiss who came for the purpose of shouting their hatred of Israel, there was apparetly a tense moment when the police, I presume, requested that they move across the plaza, and they pushed back.
The larger truth, however, is that the Heral reporter utterly mischaracterized a peaceful, family celebration, describing it as a tense confrontation that it was not.
It reminds me of reading aobut events in Israel. If you draw your impression of Israel form the paperd, it is all angry confrontations and murdering terrorists.
But when you are there, it is a place where children go to school, lovers stroll through gardens, and people work, play and enjoy normal lives.
Maybe editors and reporters should take more responsibility for conveying reality in their stories, instead of making the world seem like an exaggeratedly threatening and violent place.
That's alway's the press's paradigm. They frame everything involving Israel as a matter of controversy and thus give the haters cheap publicity and more value than they're worth.
For my part it's an opportunity to show the agenda of the protesters--to let them speak for themselves (if the press can even be honest about that). They're not for peace, their concept of justice is nothing like what you or I would define the word as and they're so insulated in their own deluded world that they'll scream in the faces of children as they walk by.