Marc Abear: Support for Palestine at odds with denial of antisemitism

To The Daily Sun,

In a recent editorial, The Harvard Crimson announced its support for the BDS movement. It wrote: “Israel remains America’s favorite first amendment blind spot”. Going on it praises the Palestine Solidarity Committee for its “spirited activism." This is the end of 20 years of opposition to boycotting Israel.

The Crimson editorial board wrote in its article, “In the past, our board was skeptical of the movement (if not, generally speaking, of its goals), arguing that BDS as a whole did not ‘get at the nuances and particularities of the Israel-Palestine conflict.’ We regret and reject that view...”

“... in the wake of accusations suggesting otherwise, we feel the need to assert that support for Palestinian liberation is not anti-Semitic... We unambiguously oppose and condemn anti-Semitism in every and all forms, including those times when it shows up on the fringes of otherwise worthwhile movements... Jewish people — like every people, including Palestinians —deserve nothing but life, peace and security.”

“'… Israel remains America’s favorite first amendment blind spot',” praised the school’s Palestine Solidarity Committee for its 'spirited activism,' noting that it has proven successful: It has forced our campus — and our editorial board — to once again wrestle with what both Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have called Israel’s ‘crimes against humanity’ in the region.”

David Harris, chief executive officer of the American Jewish Committee, posted on Twitter, “Harvard U.’s student newspaper endorses the Boycott/Divestment/Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel while claiming opposition to anti-Semitism. Who’s kidding whom? BDS is anti-Semitic. German and Austrian parliaments said exactly that. Who knows the history of anti-Semitism better?”

Marc Abear

Meredith