Friday, March 18, 2016
Fighting Jew Hatred Isn’t Optional
In response to this, some on the left urge us to speak softly and, above all, not seek to engage with the BDS haters and their economic war on Israel and to label what they do as anti-Semitism. Rocking the boat in that manner will, they say, hurt more than help. As that anonymous Hillel director seemed to think, it will also turn off Jewish students and cause them to abandon the Jewish community rather than allow themselves to be recruited in a fight they want no part of.David Collier: Lies and more lies. Raw hate on campus
But standing up to this movement isn’t optional. It is nothing less than of the key moral issues of our time, and it demands that we demonstrate the moral courage to respond it. If support for Israel is not fashionable, then Jews and non-Jews of conscience must fight fashion.
It is true that Jews who are raised without a strong sense of their own identity are ill equipped to fight this battle. But that does not excuse us, or them from having to engage in this struggle.
It might be more pleasant to opt out of this battle and to ignore the “Israel Apartheid” smears or accept BDS advocates as misguided but well-intentioned activists. But the ultimate cost of such acquiescence will be far higher than the inconvenience associated with fighting back. When Israel is delegitimized, so, too, will be Judaism eventually. American exceptionalism means that the rising tide of global anti-Semitism hasn’t taken hold on these shores the way it has in Europe or elsewhere. Yet if BDS movements are not labeled for what they are — expressions of anti-Semitic hate — then Americans will be taking a fearful step towards acceptance of the European disease that is making Jewish life increasingly untenable in Europe.
At what point does a university assist in inciting and supporting violence? How about charities and NGOs that are supposed to be on a mission of peace? These are questions I was left asking myself after recent events at both the University of Kent and UCL.VICE News: Flight to the Holy Land: Europe's Jewish Exodus (Part 1)
The latest event in Kent, involved a speaker from the charity ‘War on Want’, Ryvka Bernard. Ryvka is listed as the ‘Senior Campaigner on Militarism and Security’. Forming part of the university based ‘Israeli Apartheid Week’, Ryvka’s talk was titled “Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions: Responding to the ‘Palestinian Call for Justice”.
Ryvka’s presentation was devoid of historical fact and context. I was accompanied to this event by an ex-student from Kent, Natacha Woodcock, and together we raised several issues about BDS that exposed much of the hypocrisy. When questioned, Ryvka only appeared comfortable sticking to the script prepared by the slick PR of the BDS campaign. At one point I brought up the 1947 partition, only to find out that Ryvka wasn’t even aware the Arabs rejected it. Worse still, when someone in the crowd displayed their own ignorance by suggesting the rejection was a ‘mutual affair’, Ryvka pushed the point that ‘yes, this is the way it happened’.
A personal note to Ryvka: you do not know what you are talking about. Whether you did it through ignorance or not is irrelevant. You spread disinformation amongst impressionable students about one of the defining moments in the conflict. Your ignorance not only helps to create and spread irrational hatred, it tears up your own argument that your cause is one of ‘justice’. How can you deliver justice without knowing the facts?
When discussing ‘Palestine’, Ryvka Bernard, like ‘War on Want’, uses the word ‘justice’ a lot. It is entirely misplaced. A movement that uses a false narrative to inflict a punishment on another side without stopping to check the accuracy of the events is not a movement of justice. A force that only pushes one side’s argument whilst deliberately ignoring justified grievances from the other party has nothing to do with fairness. BDS isn’t about justice at all. BDS is a movement of hate and revenge.
In the wake of recent terror attacks in Europe — several of which targeted Jewish institutions — some politicians and religious leaders have predicted an exodus of Jewish people from the continent. In some ways, the numbers stack up. Last year, a record 8,000 Jews arrived in Israel from France — with another 15,000 coming from Eastern Europe.Europe's Jewish Exodus (Full Length)
But some critics argue that reports of Jewish flight are overblown; they accuse Israel of taking advantage of fears in Europe to attract new immigrants and serve the interests of the Israeli state. "We are preparing and calling for the absorption of mass immigration from Europe," said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in February 2015. "I would like to tell all European Jews and all Jews wherever they are: Israel is the home of every Jew."
VICE News investigates these predictions of a mass Jewish migration — and the forces behind them.
In the first of a three-part series, VICE News heads to Paris to accompany 200 French people on a one-way flight to Tel Aviv. Once in Israel, we meet up with the chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel, an organization with a $400 million annual budget, which coordinates immigration programs with the Israeli government. We learn about what is pushing Jewish people out of France, and what is pulling them to the Middle East.
Anti-Israel BDS movement dealt series of setbacks in state legislatures
It’s been a BDS year for the anti-Israel BDS movement — bad, difficult and substandard.‘Apartheid Week’ really does threaten Israel, some experts warn
The once-potent Boycott, Divest and Sanctions campaign has suffered a series of setbacks in state legislatures, where bills to penalize companies that target Israel are garnering bipartisan support.
Anti-Israel groups condemn these bills, which they see as violations of free speech.
“We have witnessed some major boycott defeats this year,” said Peggy Shapiro, Midwest director of the pro-Israel group Stand With Us. “It seems that they are starting to realize that boycotting Israel is bigoted, unfair and not conducive to peace.”
Even President Obama, not necessarily Israel’s biggest defender, signed last month the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015, which includes anti-BDS protections for Israel, although he irked the bill’s supporters by saying the provisions would not extend to Israeli settlements.
For more than a decade, “Israeli Apartheid Week” has appeared at dozens of campuses worldwide, as the Jewish state’s detractors take center-stage to condemn the “settler-colonial project” where “apartheid policies over the Palestinian people” amount to “ethnic cleansing,” according to IAW’s mission statement.Anti-Israel Organization Banned from Israel’s School System Welcomed at Columbia
In the assessment of some Israel supporters, loud elements of the pro-Israel community have made mountains out of molehills with their reaction to IAW, the annual Israel-bashing fest of Students for Justice in Palestine. In the words of an anonymous “Northeast Hillel director” quoted by JTA this week, “Apartheid Week” and other SJP activities amount to “kind of a big nothing.
“Many pro-Israel activists say their most successful strategy is simply to ignore it,” said Nadya Drukker, Brooklyn College’s Hillel director, in the article.
But on another part of the pro-Israel PR spectrum, some activists vehemently oppose an “ignore it” strategy, and are ringing alarms about the growth of campus anti-Semitism catalyzed by SJP’s supposedly “big nothing” activities — notably including the group’s quest to eliminate Jews from student government, aided by partners like Palestine Legal.
“Israeli Apartheid Week is a tremendous source of anti-Semitic expression and incitement of hatred for the Jewish state and Jews generally,” said Tammi Rossman-Benjamin, cofounder and director of the Israel advocacy AMCHA Initiative.
Breaking the Silence, a radical Israeli organization which implies that all of Israel is occupied territory and defames the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) worldwide, is hosting a presentation at Hillel House, a Jewish student organization on March 31st at Columbia University.Moazzam Begg Refuses to Condemn Stoning Women to Death for Adultery
Breaking the Silence (BtS) alleges that the IDF has committed war crimes and is guilty of "crimes against humanity" and "ethnic cleansing.” The organization has provided 57 negative testimonies in international reports against IDF soldiers. The Palestinian foundation The Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law Secretariat, operating in Ramallah, noted in a report published in 2015 that it paid Breaking the Silence in order to bring them at least one negative testimony against the IDF.
Hamas admitted this past year that it used the BtS report on Operation Protective Edge for the purposes of its warfare against Israel. In 2015, the organization held countless events worldwide, with the purpose of accusing the IDF of committing war crimes.
The ‘testimonials’ that BtS publishes does not expose the names of those who give them. Their recent reports have been dismissed as ‘baseless findings’, and their presentations in the U.S. include a range of lies, distortions, and half-truths presented out of context, with the sole goal of demonizing and delegitimizing Israel and its soldiers.
Students Rights say that after the even, a student pressed Mr Begg for an answer but he still refused to condemn stoning adulteresses to death.Moazzam Begg fails to condemn stoning a women to death for adultery
Last year, senior CAGE member Asim Qureshi refused to condemn the practice of stoning women to death for adultery in a BBC interview. When asked by presenter Andrew Neil about the views of a Muslim scholar he had described as a mentor, Mr Qureshi refused to say that stoning women was wrong, nor did he disagree that Jews are descended from pigs.
When pushed for an answer, he responded: “I am not a theologian,” before later adding: “I have no idea what you are talking about”.
He also explained: “As far as I am concerned, Sharia law isn’t practised correctly anywhere in the world.
“Jihad is part of the religion of Islam.”
Moazzam Begg challenged at the University of Exeter
The student had made his concerns about Moazzam Begg well known on campus, which was undoubtedly the reason he was denied the opportunity to ask a question – a prime example of why these events need independent moderators.British Jewish leader: Jews can’t trust Labour Party
Despite the questioning, it appeared many students were prepared to applaud Begg’s obfuscations, and it was disappointing to see the Feminist, Palestine, Socialist and Islamic societies stand by a group like CAGE.
However, this event was a step in the right direction, with Moazzam Begg and the NUS being vigorously challenged about their views for the first time on a campus this academic year.
Even though the panel was completely unbalanced, through leafletting and a robust Q&A students in the audience got to hear both sides of the argument, and CAGE were not allowed to present themselves as a mainstream civil rights groups without challenge.
Citing recent allegations of anti-Semitism and Israel hatred against several members of the Labour Party in Britain, the head of a major group representing British Jews said the Jewish community can no longer trust the party.If you attack Israelis, Jeremy Corbyn wants to be your friend
Jonathan Arkush, the president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, made the statement in an interview published Thursday in the online edition of the Evening Standard.
“Frankly, most people in the Jewish community can’t trust Labour,” Arkush said.
Relations between the political, mainstream establishment of the British Jewish community and Labour deteriorated following the election of Jeremy Corbyn in September to head the opposition party.
A hardcore socialist deemed by many as too radical to lead Labour back to power, he has alienated many Jews – which as a community used to be traditionally supportive of Labour – with his endorsement of enemies of the Jewish state, including the terrorist groups Hamas and Hezbollah.
Here’s another episode from Jeremy Corbyn’s career which shows that he is no man of peace. Far from it. If you are violent and attack Israelis, he has your back.Does the Labour Party have an antisemitism problem?
In 2012 a meeting was held in Westminster Central Hall for Palestinian prisoners. Sabah al-Mukhtar was chairing the meeting. He set the tone early on:
Sabah al Mukhtar, President of the Arab Lawyers Association, who chaired the gathering, opened by reminding that, “A basic right of a people under occupation is to resist.”
In any case, Corbyn’s Labour fellow Lord Dubs chipped in, what’s the big deal? Beastly Israelis, detaining people who stone them.
Most defendants were: “just throwing stones.”
It’s Corbyn’s turn. Let’s befriend them!
One suggestion, from British MP Jeremy Corbyn, is forming an international friendship network with prisoners, especially corresponding.
Mustafa Abu Sway to Speak at Elmhurst College in April
Introductory Note: Mustafa Abu Sway, a Palestinian Muslim scholar who lives in Jerusalem, is scheduled to speak at Elmhurst College, a small private liberal arts institution located in Illinois and affiliated with the United Church of Christ. The talk is scheduled to take place on April 15, 2016.Oberlin Professor Joy Karega Gets Big Thumbs Up From Neo-Nazis, White Supremacists
CAMERA has sent an open letter to faculty members, administrators and the school newspaper at the college in an effort to prepare the Elmhurst community for Abu Sway's presentation. The letter, sent on March 18, 2016, details some of the misinformation Abu Sway has presented to other audiences. The letter is sent in hopes of promoting honest and open dialogue about the incitement at Al Aqsa Mosque, its impact on the prospects for peace between Israel and the Palestinians and the status of non-Muslims in Muslim-majority societies in the Middle East. The text of the letter is below.
Some of the most notorious white supremacist websites have expressed support for Joy Karega, the Oberlin College professor who has come under heavy criticism after her Facebook posts, which contained conspiracy theories that many considered to be anti-Semitic, were revealed by The Tower last month.Why is the Walnut Creek Public Library giving a venue to white supremacist Alison Weir ?
Karega shared her beliefs that Israel was behind the Charlie Hebdo terrorist attack and the rise of ISIS, and that Jewish banker Jacob Rothschild owns “your news, the media, your oil, and your government.” She also promoted a lecture by Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, who said that “Israeli and Zionist Jews” rigged explosives to destroy the World Trade Center. In response, the chair of the college’s board of trustees called her posts “anti-Semitic and abhorrent” and said that a review “must be considered expeditiously.”
“The same college that has no problem promoting white guilt, white genocide, and the concept of evil whitey. Now is upset because a black professor is posting anti-Semitic comments online,” a dues-paying member of the white supremacist web forum Stormfront wrote on March 8. “I guess she should’ve just stuck to evil whitey comments. Then her job wouldn’t be in jeopardy. Though I am amazed that she posted the same stuff we do and she wasn’t fired on the spot.” Another user responded that if Karega wanted to make her case, “to Fing bad for the jews, the bad part is we have allowed this situation to evolve to the point where the entire country is threatened by enemies both foreign and domestic. The fight is here, not in the Middle East.”
Backgrounder on Alison Weir from the Web:California University system to vote next week on anti-Zionism proposal
Alison Weir has been a frequent guest of white supremacist Clay Douglas on his hate radio show, the Free American. Clay Douglas is concerned primarily with the survival of the White race. Examples of his racist, homophobic rhetoric can be easily found on the internet
"In the course of Weir's appearance with Clay Douglas on August 25, 2010, she was silent when Douglas invoked the Protocols of the Elders of Zion and engaged in a racist diatribe against Jews. Her troubling associations and choices further include giving interviews to a range of far-right outlets including The American Free Press, which the Southern Poverty Law Center has identified as a hate group, and the anti-gay, anti-Jewish pastor Mark Dankof."
Her work has also been featured on the website of the former head of the Klu Klux Kan, David Duke
She has not disavowed, debated, or challenged the thinking of any of these outlets individuals or institutions.
The controversy playing out at the University of California reflects a broader clash between pro-Israel groups and Palestinian rights activists over what constitutes legitimate criticism of Israeli polices in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.Ali Abunimah Suffers New Setback For Australian Tour; More Whining Ensues
The UC's Board of Regents is slated to act next Wednesday on a draft document produced by a working group to address the issue. Both sides in the debate say they believe that if adopted it would be the first such policy statement by the leadership of a major US public institution of higher education.
The University of California is considered one of the most prestigious public university systems in the country, comprising 10 campuses, among which are the University of California, Berkeley and the University of California, Los Angeles.
Supporters say the document grew out of a recent rise in anti-Semitism on UC campuses stemming from heated anti-Israel protest frequently expressed as anti-Zionism, which supporters define as calls for Israel's destruction or denials of its right to exit.
According to proponents of the draft, such rhetoric constitutes a contemporary brand of anti-Semitism that is often accompanied by or escalates into more explicit forms of anti-Jewish hatred.
When we last heard from Israel hater and terror supporter Ali “Abumination” Abunimah, he was quite cocky, boasting of obtaining a visa to Australia so he could spread his hate propaganda.Palestinian ‘Activist’ Bassem Tamimi Is Lying About His Visa Revocation
But since then, things have gotten a little pear-shaped. Sure, it looks like he will still get that coveted visa. But some are cluing in to what he is truly about. Like Sydney University, who have apparently cancelled the venue booking for his speech.
And naturally his supporters have launched another petition, again claiming “political bias” behind the decision.
Last week, Palestinian activist Bassem Tamimi published a letter on his Facebook page showing that his visa to come to the United States was revoked on March 1.Daily Show tackles anti-Semitism at Trump rallies
In a story published on Wednesday, the Palestine News Network (PNN) continued to push his claim that the US action somehow was in retaliation for a civil lawsuit he and others filed against dozens of Israel-supporters and companies doing business there. “To stop our effort against the Israeli occupation, the American consulate revoked my visa,” Tamimi wrote on March 8.
The whole story is a lie. Tamimi would have us believe that American bureaucracy is so efficient, so nimble, that it processed a visa revocation overnight. The lawsuit was filed on March 7 in Washington, DC district court. In addition, the visa revocation letter is dated March 1.
In order for the revocation to be payback for the lawsuit, the Zionist Occupiers must have perfected time travel.
Lowitt also addressed comments made this week by Trump surrogate Pastor Mark Burns about Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., including that the Jewish Democratic presidential candidate “gotta meet Jesus, he gotta have a coming to Jesus meeting.”LA hit with 2 anti-Semitic vandalism incidents in one week
“Meet Jesus? Bernie is a Jew who lives a simple life and wants to help the poor. All this guy is missing is an interest in carpentry,” Lowitt said. “I think that pastor needs a ‘come to Sanders’ moment.”
Lowitt marveled at the high percentage of US hate crimes directed at Jews.
“Hate crimes against Jews are so normal we don’t even talk about them anymore,” he said. “It’s like the nudity in ‘Games of Thrones.’ We’re just numb to the whole thing.”
Anti-Semitic graffiti was found in two areas of Los Angeles in a four-day span.Pro-Israel Candidate for Student Govt President at Trent U Loses Election Days After Swastikas Drawn Into His Name on Campus Graffiti
On March 13, anti-Semitic, racist and homophobic graffiti was found at Palisades Charter High School and on adjacent city property, The Jewish Journal reported. Four days earlier, Adat Shalom, a West Los Angeles Conservative congregation, found the word “Nazi” spray-painted in two places on its outside walls.
The graffiti has been cleaned and removed from all the affected areas.
The Los Angeles Police Department has arrested two teens in the later incident but did not release their names. It has identified a suspect in the first incident but has yet to make an arrest.
A candidate for student government president at Canada’s Trent University lost the election five days after antisemitic graffiti against him and his candidacy appeared on campus, The Algemeiner has learned.
Economics major Corey LeBlanc told The Algemeiner on Thursday that though he is not Jewish, he has been active in his support for Israel.
LeBlanc said that he first learned of the graffiti when photos of it were sent to him by a friend on Saturday night. Scrawled in chalk on two different walkways were the phrases “Just Not Corey” and “Anyone But Corey.”
Inside the “o” of his name in both cases was a swastika.
Argentine president vows progress on AMIA bombing probe
Argentine President Mauricio Macri promised to “make headway” in investigating the 1994 bombing of a Buenos Aires Jewish center in an address to Jewish leaders in the capital city.Argentinian judge denies request to reopen Nisman complaint against ex-president
Macri addressed the opening gala Tuesday night of the Plenary Assembly of the World Jewish Congress, which is being held this week for the first time in Latin America. The group’s plenary will include discussions of the AMIA Jewish center bombing and the 1992 attack on the Israeli Embassy, both of which remain unresolved.
“We are fully committed to contribute in any way we can to make headway with this investigation,” said Macri, who reminded his audience that his government, during its first week in power in December, voided an agreement with Iran to jointly investigate the AMIA bombing, calling it “unconstitutional.”
“Here, we suffer the ravaging consequences of two bomb attacks. We are still in the dark of what happened,” Macri said.
Federal Judge Daniel Rafecas on Feb. 10 turned down the request made in December by prosecutors to reconsider the complaint filed by Nisman four days before his still-unexplained death, which occurred on the day that he was to present evidence to Argentine lawmakers that Kirchner obfuscated Iran’s role in the attack, which left 85 dead and hundreds wounded.The murder that united Uruguay
Alberto Nisman, the Jewish government prosecutor tasked with looking into the decades old bombing, was found dead in his apartment early last year, only hours before he was due to testify to Congress regarding allegations that President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner had attempted to interfere with his investigation.
Nisman’s case was soon dropped while the Jewish journalist who broke the news of his death subsequently fled to Israel because he believed his life was in danger and that his phones were being tapped.
Prosecutor Raul Plee had asked the judge to review new information collected during a case dealing with the Memorandum of Understanding signed with Iran to co-investigate the bombing, with an eye toward reviving Nisman’s complaint. Iran has been accused of being behind the bombing.
Macri’s government voided the pact in December, days after it was sworn in, garnering plaudits from Jewish groups and Israel.
Uruguay's Jewish community is stunned by the murder of Jewish businessman David Fremd by a radical Muslim, but is awed by the support it has received from fellow Uruguayans • Some 10,000 Uruguayans took to the streets of Paysandu in a show of solidarity.PodCast: What’s an Egyptian diva doing in Jerusalem?
"There is no God but Allah, and Mohammed is his messenger." It was with this phrase that Carlos Omar Peralta Lopez (also known as Abdullah Omar), 35, exited the courtroom in Paysandu, northern Uruguay, just a day after he murdered 55-year-old local Jewish businessman David Fremd. The stabbing attack against the well-known businessman shook up the Jewish community and all Uruguay, marking the first signs of global jihad in the small South American country.
Uruguay's 15,000-member Jewish community has been in mourning since the murder, but its members are convinced that it was an isolated incident in a country where Jews are treated well.
"There are no words to describe the reactions within the community," said Jana Beris (Jerozolimski), editor of prominent Uruguayan weekly Jewish newspaper Semanario Hebreo. "I feel pain on a personal level because I knew David well, and I feel shocked on a national level because this is not the Uruguay I know. I am sure that there are some anti-Semites in the country, but it is not a trend, and the fact is that all the demonstrations and articles in recent days have expressed solidarity with the [Jewish] community."
One way that countries stake out their values and mold their identities is through symbols: monuments, seals, memorials, holidays, and, of course, names. The names we give to cities, the names we give to schools, the names we give to children, and the names we give to our streets.'Smooth' Santana to rock Israel this summer
The JPost Podcast is proud to introduce a new segment that looks at the amazing stories, politics, history and identity struggles behind Israel’s street names. We call it “A road by any other name,” and you can expect new episodes of this segment every couple of weeks.
In today’s episode, we look at Umm Kulthum street in east Jerusalem, named after the famous Egyptian diva. The process of getting the street name, however, was a long, contentious one that touches on many of the issues of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
We hear from Tour Guide Alex Stein, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel ACRI, and the Jerusalem Municipality about why street names can be so contentious.
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame guitarist Carlos Santana has announced a performance with his band at Tel Aviv’s Hayarkon Park on July 30.PodCast: Builders of a New Jerusalem
Santana, who rose to fame after an incendiary performance at the Woodstock Festival in 1969, last appeared in Israel in 1987. A return show in 2010 was canceled due to scheduling conflicts, although the BDS Movement attempted to take credit for it.
“Carlos Santana is a citizen of the world and he plays his music and spreads his message of love, light and peace wherever he goes,” said Santana manager Michael Vrionis in a press release. “Carlos believes the world should have no borders so he is not detoured or discouraged to play anywhere on this planet. We look forward to performing in Israel this summer.”
In much of Jerusalem these days you’ll find a busy, modern city. There’s a relatively new light rail system, sprawling shopping malls, and huge, new apartment buildings. But there are also iconic edifices and homes that went up nearly 100 years ago—when Jerusalem first started to grow beyond the walls of the historic old city. Who were the people—the architects—who put their stamp on this new Jerusalem decades ago?Teva Pharm sees close of $40.5 bln Allergan generics deal by June
Writer Adina Hoffman, who lives part-time in Jerusalem, wanted to find out. In Till We Have Built Jerusalem: Architects of a New City, she examines the lives of three of them—Erich Mendelsohn, Austen St. Barbe Harrison, and Spyro Houris, all of whom were born elsewhere. Hoffman was on Vox Tablet five years ago to discuss Sacred Trash, a book about the Cairo Geniza which she co-wrote with Peter Cole, her husband.
She joins podcast host Sara Ivry again—this time to talk about the multiple identities these three architects possessed; what kind of aesthetic influences they brought with them to Palestine and what kind of aesthetic choices they made in their work there; and why, in at least one case, it was so hard to track down much biographical information.
Israel-based Teva Pharmaceutical Industries said on Tuesday it now expects its $40.5 billion acquisition of the generic drug activities of Allergan to be completed by June.When it comes to Israel, no holds barred for Roseanne Barr
Teva, the world's biggest generic drugmaker, previously expected the deal would close by the end of the first quarter with the potential for it to be slightly delayed into April.
While significant progress has been made, "Teva now anticipates that completing the acquisition could take as long as June 2016, based upon its current estimate of the timing to obtain clearance from the United States Federal Trade Commission," it said in a statement.
Teva said it continues to work closely with the FTC to obtain U.S. regulatory approval. Last week it received regulatory approval from the European Commission for its acquisition, subject to certain divestitures.
True to form, it was no holds barred when Roseanne Barr recently discussed her about-face on Israel at a public event in the San Francisco Bay Area. Barr, who was previously vociferously critical of the Jewish state, attributed her former views to ignorance.StandWithUs Honored at the NY State Assembly
“I sought to be moral, but I was entirely incorrect and wrong,” she told a standing-room only crowd of about 170 at a February fundraiser for the Israel advocacy group StandWithUs at an Oakland synagogue.
As the comedian, author and TV personality elaborated on her position as a staunch advocate for the Jewish state, it came as no surprise to readers of her blog and her 288,00-follower Twitter feed, where she frequently shares her support of Israel and bashes anti-Zionists and backers of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions, or BDS, movement against Israel.
“If nobody ever tells you you’re wrong, you don’t know you’re wrong,” Barr said in explanation of her former anti-Israel stance. “If nobody ever confronts you with the actual facts, you might have no idea that you’re mouthing canards and bulls**t. It’s confrontation that keeps us honest. And without it, you know, I don’t think we can be honest.”
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