From today’s Democracy Now headlines:
Palestinian Professor Sentenced to 11 Years For Refusing to Testify:
In Chicago, a federal court has sentenced a Palestinian-American activist to more than 11 years in prison for refusing to testify before a grand jury in 2003 about the activities of the Palestinian group Hamas. Abdelhaleem Ashqar defended his refusal to testify saying that he shouldn’t have to give testimony that would aid the Israeli government.
Ashqar told the court:
“The only option was to become a traitor or collaborator, and that is something that I can’t do and will never do as long as I live.” Ashqar is a former associate professor of business at Howard University in Washington. Earlier this year a jury acquitted Ashqar of being a leading member of Hamas and conspiring to support terrorism from the United States.
While Amy Goodman did report this story on Democracy Now, the corporate media did not, or when it did, it did so on page 25, in small print, without any comments.
I mean, how cares, right? Yet another Palestinian academic is getting jailed for refusing to be a snitch. It’s not even the first case. Remember Sami Al-Arian, who is now serving time in jail for refusing to testify against former associates?
In both cases the government lost at trial and failed to provide any proof that these academics were linked to terrorism. But that’s no big deal, Uncle Sam will jail them for refusing to snitch on their friends.
The most amazing thing is the deafening silence in which all this is taking place. The US academia is silent about this, presumably freedom-loving democrats (small ‘d’) are saying nothing, probably assuming that, hey, this is not a good time to speak up for an ‘AYErab’.
All those who now look away would do well to remember the following words:
When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.
When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.
When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.
When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I wasn’t a Jew.
When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.
Pastor Martin Niemöller (1892–1984)
Nice post, though disgusting indeed VS.
This is yet another example of how far the Bush regime is prepared to go to silence any criticism of its foreign policy, and at the same time how pathetic the Democrats are in opposing the “War on Terror”.
In the USA you have 2 ruling class parties vying for political power. Their agendas differ in minuscule. The problem is that you have no/little political expression (however confused) outside of the capitalist parties ie some sort of social-democratic party that exists in Europe/Australia/New Zealand et al.
This doesn’t make it fascist though (as you imply with your quote from Pastor Martin Niemöller).
well, I actually did not mean to imply anything, but now that you mention it – it is compelling, ain’t it?:-)
VS, thanks for bringing this to light. It is astonishing how quiet academia is on this. On the other hand, what did you expect? Even if there are hundreds of professors and students who are supporting him, they lack the clout or influence in the (largely neocon-controlled/influenced) media to bring this into the public spotlight. On the other hand, every time Alan Dershowitz has an intellectual eruption it is trumpeted to high heaven, extolled by the mainstream as yet another brilliant intellectual achievement by the Israel Lobby’s best friend.
Speaking of friends of the Israel lobby, have you heard or read any commentary from Naomi Wolf on this injustice? ;-)Well, I don’t expect you will.
Speaking of friends of the Israel lobby, have you heard or read any commentary from Naomi Wolf on this injustice? ;-)Well, I don’t expect you will.
First, I have not heard everything that Naomi Wolf says, second, I don’t even know if she has heard of the case, third, she might have said something but it might not have been reported, and fourth there are plenty of people which did not say a single word about this case besides Naomi Wolf. You are implying that she is not saying anything about this *because* she is Jewish. While this might or might not be true, all you have to make your case is a simple coincidence and not a causality. Not only that, but to make your case you would have to prove that besides all other possible motive her unique main motive would be her alleged sympathy for Israel (heck, if she is the nasty Feminist you claim she is she might just be busy defending oppressed woman and might not want to take on the issue of oppressed men figuring that men would do that themselves).
If a non-Jew did not say a word about this case you would not suspect him/her of remaining silent solely because he/her is a Jew. So in your logic being a Jew creates a ‘guilty until proven innocent’ kind of logic in which Jews and non-Jews are judged by a different set of rules. And that, my friend, I am sorry to say, smacks of crude racism as it implies that Jews are somehow ‘different’ from the non-Jews. I find that factually false and morally repugnant as it denies our common humanity.
Please do not take offense at my words but, as always, I call it as I see it.
Kind regards,
VS
oh, and more more thing: Amy Goodman, who raised this issue on her show Democracy Now today is Jewish (in fact, her grandfather was a rabbi). I am yet to hear the ‘patriotic’, and presumably non-Jewish, folks following her example.
VS,
Sorry for getting you riled up. I really was just joking.
Another thing VS,
Most of us aren’t media personalities and don’t have the experience, time, and financial means to proclaim injustices, but that does not mean we do not care. I do what I can with the means I have.
I assure you that I was not riled up in the least. I just called it the way I saw it, which is what I always do, sometimes with an truly appalling lack of diplomacy.
The emoticon “:-)” was not especially conspicuous. One last comment…silence among the mass of people who have no platform and no media visibility can not be equated to silence by these great pontificators on political and moral virtue. I happen to have an antipathy for Naomi Wolf based on her hateful writings, so I couldn’t resist bringing her up (again). Once again, no offense was intended.
none taken, but I do think that some jokes go down better than others, in particular those which are made on the same subject as one previously seriously discussed.
Dear VS, I am glad you publish stories that need attention and that remain untold elsewhere (for whatever reason) (except for on Democracy Now!).
A.
Dear A:
The credit really goes to Amy Goodman. All I did is take her story and add a reminder about Al-Arian. But thank you for your encouragement. I try to look at current events from a different prospective and to say the simple truth the best I can ascertain it.
Have a super-wonderful day!
Has anyone heard Naomi Wolf ever say anything about the Israel Lobby? She has dwelt at length on the military-industrial complex or “armaments industry”, but not one word about the Lobby.