Sunday, February 12, 2006
Major league props to the Washington Post for printing this extraordinarily clear-eyed op-ed on the upcoming Palestine Solidarity Movement conference to be hosted at Georgetown University. This one gets right to the point and really hits the spot. Must read.
Why Is Georgetown Providing a Platform for This Dangerous Group?
The purported aim of the PSM is to encourage divestment from Israel. To this end, its conferences boast a cavalcade of anti-Israel speakers whose speeches often degenerate into anti-Semitism. At the 2004 conference at Duke University in North Carolina, for example, keynote speaker Mazin Qumsiyeh referred to Zionism as a "disease." Workshop leader Bob Brown deemed the Six-Day War "the Jew War of '67." Not to be outdone, Nasser Abufarha praised the terrorist activities of Hamas and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine...
(H/T: commenter shoshan)
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Like the hypocrisy by the mainstream media for not publishing the Danish cartoons, Georgetown University is being equally hypocritical here by sponsoring a "terrorism rally" while earlier refusing to sponsor an "anti-terrorism symposium.
"In agreeing to host the PSM from Feb. 17 to Feb. 19, Georgetown can't even claim that its regard for free speech and expression trumps all. In 2005 the university's conference center refused to host an anti-terrorism conference sponsored by America's Truth Forum on the grounds that it was "too controversial." So why is free speech and expression of cardinal importance now?"
"In agreeing to host the PSM from Feb. 17 to Feb. 19, Georgetown can't even claim that its regard for free speech and expression trumps all. In 2005 the university's conference center refused to host an anti-terrorism conference sponsored by America's Truth Forum on the grounds that it was "too controversial." So why is free speech and expression of cardinal importance now?"
Larry--those simply aren't the facts. Georgetown University did not cancel the event. The event was canceled by Marriott International, Inc., which independently operates the Georgetown University Conference Center on the campus of Georgetown. Mr. Adler and Mr. Langer failed to mention that point in their opinion piece.
Please see the following article:
Marriott Rejects Terror Summit
The Hoya, December 6, 2005
"We reserve the right to not accept business if we feel it puts our guests, our employees, our hotels and our surrounding communities at any kind of risk," said Roger Conner, vice president of communications for Marriott International, Inc. "In this case, based on those concerns, we decided to not accept the business."