Anthony Badami ’11: The language of Brown’s Israeli-Palestinian exchange

Opinions Columnist

Published: Thursday, March 18, 2010

Updated: Thursday, March 18, 2010 01:03

The quandary of Israel and Palestine is nearly inescapable for Brown students. Because of a personal connection, I have been witness to plentiful dialogue efforts, lectures, panels and even had the opportunity to dispute current Israeli security policy through a Janus student debate. The assorted and relevant campus organizations — Hillel, Common Ground, Brown Students for Israel, Brown Students for Justice in Palestine, Puzzle Peace, etc. — ensure no decline in the coverage of this issue in the coming years.

However, I write this column not to comment on the substance of these disagreements. Instead, I would like to remark on the forums, the arenas of language, in which these disputes take place. To make headway on the Israel-Palestine matter, we must be cognizant of the way we converse.

If my endeavor seems unclear, refer to Roberta Goldman's '13 recent guest column ("Brown students for Palestine (and Israel)," March 4). One component of the Israel-Palestine question is the lexicon one uses to engage others. For Goldman, the grievance lies in the use of the term "apartheid." Now, while I agree with the conclusion she states, I take great issue with the line of argumentation she uses.

Her general thrust seems to be this: "All students are entitled to advocate their personal beliefs, but not to the extent that they trample upon fellow students' beliefs." In other words, individuals are free to express their opinions, as long as those opinions do not affront others.

I do not mean to be snide, but this seems to me to be a serious misreading of free speech, a value imperative to political discourse. As Salman Rushdie emphasized in his recent lecture to Brown undergraduates, the right to free speech begins with speech that is offensive — speech that is, in Goldman's words, trampling.

In fact, when speech is restricted, it can be more compelling. Rushdie pointed out that banned speech does not dissipate; it goes underground. At this point, its taboo message becomes even more alluring and attractive.

This logic mirrors closely my objection to Goldman's argument. Why try to get the word "apartheid" proscribed from the public dialogue? I have no trouble believing that it offends many, but that is why free speech is necessary. It is up to those participating in the discussion to delineate useful and constructive reasoning from harmful and unproductive quarrel.

But, by disallowing the use of the term "apartheid," you effectively limit an individual's ability to contribute. You assert a conclusion without having been exposed to the pertinent information.

The conception of free speech theory rests on John Stuart Mill's formulation of the "marketplace of ideas." This model argues for a many-sided meeting of opinions and arguments in the hope that the most valid points will rise to the top. It assumes that all people (or at least those partaking) are capable of rational and reasonable conversation.

I make this assumption too. If Goldman believes that "apartheid" is a fruitless expression in the context of this dilemma, then I assume she probably has some very convincing reasons as to why that is the case. But, if the expression "apartheid" is stricken from the general dialogue, then Goldman's argument will be absent as well. Thus, we lose out on a better understanding of the word's implications.

Yes, "[t]he cheapening of words is a great moral danger." But, a greater moral danger is the exclusion of words before they can reach the discerning light of cogent deliberation.
The controversy surrounding Israel and Palestine encompasses the usage of innumerable, hotly contentious phrases (apartheid, occupation, cantonization, Zionism, etc.). Some of these terms possess legitimacy; some do not. However, we cannot distinguish between them if we allow some and bar others. Moreover, it may be true that one or more of these words becomes applicable later. In this case, why ban today what we can utilize tomorrow?

So, use the word "apartheid." Use it freely and prodigiously. Tie it to trees, paint it on banners and proclaim it from podiums. You have every right to do so. I, as a conscious and intelligent individual, will decide whether or not I take issue with it. And, if I do, you better believe that I will be contesting your view just as vociferously.

Anthony Badami ‘11 is a political theory concentrator from Kansas City, MO. He can be reached at anthony_badami (at) brown (dot) edu.

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Arafat Yasir

Mon Mar 22 2010 13:52

Did someone say "apartheid"?--------------------------------------------------------------------------------MALCOLM HEDDING: ISRAEL AND APARTHEID By Malcolm HeddingPublished in: malcolmhedding.blogspot.com March 3, 2010 Day by day the anti-Israel alliance, and sadly in collaboration with major church movements mainly from the historical Protestant world, is seeking to make the Apartheid State accusation leveled at Israel stick. There is more to this than meets the eye in that the real intention behind labeling Israel an Apartheid State is to remove altogether the Jewish State. The Apartheid State of South Africa was rightfully dismantled in the late nineteen eighties and early nineties. It was first discredited, then delegitimized and finally dismantled to the joy of the world and the enslaved black majority who had lived under and endured its brutality. However, to describe Israel in these terms is, quite frankly, immoral and wicked and yet on the university campuses of the Western World this is becoming the popular thing to do. Radical leftist academics and politicians are teaming up with Islamic elements to pursue this goal. They want to equate Israel with the original apartheid state and thus demand that the world do as it did to South Africa; dismantle it! Most of these people know absolutely nothing about Apartheid but the word is extremely powerful since it conjures up notions of hatred, discrimination, brutality, racism and prejudice.It is quite astonishing to witness how a lie told often enough can eventually be accepted as truth! Most of these people have no knowledge of the “inner workings” of the apartheid regime and couldn’t even tell you the basic facts about it. It’s just a very powerful weapon to use when discharging their hatred of Israel. Essentially apartheid was a totalitarian system of governance, not unlike those of the Arab world today, where a minority population subjugated and enslaved the overwhelmingly black population. It was ideologically driven and was obsessed with racial superiority. The superior white population could not mingle with or even sit on a bench with the inferior black peoples. Even the education system was “dumbed down” for black people because they were mentally inferior and could not cope with the high levels of learning that whites could embrace. The towns and cities were “white by night” as all “blacks”, as they were called, had to be removed to their shanty towns that served as cheap labour ghettos for the nation. The black people could not vote, own property or even move freely in their own country.Various instruments of state were used to ruthlessly apply the system of total and complete segregation and these included the police, the military and the judiciary system. In short, it was Aryanism in a new form! There is absolutely nothing equivalent to this in the dispute that rages between the Palestinians and Israel today. Arabs, Jews, Christians and Palestinians share the same shopping malls, benches, hospitals, theatres, and in many cases, suburbs. The educational institutions do not have a “dumbed down” Arab/Palestinian curriculum and the privilege of voting is given to all. Israel has Arab Members of Knesset and Jews, Arabs and Palestinians often work together on construction sites, in businesses and in hotels etc. Most important of all is the fact that Israel is a democratic state, (not a perfect one), with democratic institutions and is not governed by a totalitarian minority!It is also important to remember that there never was a Palestinian State in the region as even Jews were called, and registered as, Palestinian in 1948! The British government held mandate over the country and accepted the right of Jews to have a state of their own in what was their ancient homeland. Even the United Nations accepted and voted for this right. When Israel implemented this decision by declaring its existence she was immediately attacked by no less than five Arab countries!This brings into focus the real nature of this conflict. That is, it has very little to do with politics or peace agreements but everything to do with theology! By this I mean a radical jihadist theology that considers the whole land of Israel and not just the West Bank part of the house of Islam. This theology dictates that all this land must be returned to this house by peaceful, political or violent jihad. So, when the Palestinians had everything they say they want now from 1948 to 1967 they neither protested against the illegal Jordanian occupation of the region nor even remotely demanded a state of their own. They did however found the PLO in 1964 charged with the distinct mandate of destroying the State of Israel. They subsequently launched a terror campaign to prove it and throughout the Oslo peace initiative era refused to remove the infamous “destruction clauses” from their charter!The same jihadist theology drives Hamas, the Alaksa Brigade, Hezbollah, Ahmadinejad of Iran and all the...

Arafat Yasir

Mon Mar 22 2010 13:51

Aprtheid, apartheid, apartheid schmparteid...________________________________________KHALED ABU TOAMEH: WHAT ABOUT THE ARAB APARTHEID?By Khaled Abu ToamehPublished in: Hudson New York March 16, 2010How come the Lebanese students who recently talked about Israel's "war crimes" in the Gaza Strip during Israel Apartheid Week on many North American college campuses had nothing to say about the fact that tens of thousands of Palestinians have been massacred in Lebanon over the past four decades? Dozens of refugees were killed and hundreds wounded in the three-month offensive that also destroyed thousands of houses inside the refugee camp. Reporters said it was the worst internal violence in Lebanon since the civil war that hit the country between 1975-1990. And just three years ago, the Lebanese Army used heavy artillery to bomb the Nahr-al-Bared refugee camp in north Lebanon. Yet who has ever heard of a United Nations resolution condemning Syria or Lebanon for committing horrific atrocities or discriminating against the Palestinians? The Lebanese, Syrian and Jordanian students and professors who took part in the anti-Israel events on campuses have clearly "forgotten" that their regimes probably have more Palestinian blood on their hands than Israel. In the early 1970s, the Jordanians slaughtered thousands of Palestinians in what has become known as Black September. Can somebody point to one United Nations resolution condemning that massacre? And where was the United Nations when Kuwait and several Gulf countries expelled more than 400,000 Palestinians in one week? The exodus took place in March 1991, after Kuwait was liberated from Iraqi occupation. Ironically, the first week of March is being celebrated on university campuses as Israel Apartheid Week with no reference to the mass expulsion of Palestinians from the Gulf. Although there are more than 400,000 Palestinians living in Lebanon in twelve refugee camps -- which human rights organizations and Palestinians say have the worst living conditions of all the refugee camps in the Middle East -- as in most of the Arab countries, these Palestinians have been assigned the status of "foreigners," a fact which has deprived them of health care, social services, property ownership and education. Even worse, Lebanese law bans Palestinians from working in many jobs. This means that Palestinians cannot work in the public services and institutions run by the government such as schools and hospitals. Unlike Israel, Lebanese public hospitals do not admit Palestinians for medical treatment or surgery. Can somebody imagine the outcry of the international community if Israel's parliament, the Knesset, passed a law today prohibiting Arabs from working in certain professions or receiving medical treatment? Ironically, the Arab citizens of Israel enjoy more rights in the Jewish state than their Palestinians brothers do in any Arab country. The same applies to Palestinians living in most of the Arab countries. While Israel has never stripped its Arab citizens of their citizenship, Jordan has begun revoking the Jordanian citizenship of thousands of its citizens who are of Palestinian descent. Jordan was the only Arab country that has ever granted Palestinian Jordanian citizenship. In recent years, however, the Jordanians appear to have regretted that decision. As for the rest of the Arab countries, Palestinians can only dream of obtaining citizenship. It is almost impossible to find a Palestinian with Egyptian or Moroccan or Kuwaiti citizenship. Is it not absurd that Jordan and Egypt have been arresting Palestinians who demonstrate in support of their brothers in the West Bank and Gaza Strip or collect donations for them while Israeli citizens hold almost daily protests inside Israel in solidarity with the Palestinians? And is it not ironic that the government of Binyamin Netanyahu is doing more to boost the Palestinian economy in the West Bank than any Arab country?. At first glance, it looked as if the students who were distributing leaflets and posters that depicted the suffering of Palestinians inside Israel and the Palestinian territories, particularly those living in refugee camps, were actually talking about the suffering of Palestinians in their own countries - Lebanon and Egypt. How come there was no talk on these campuses about the plight of Palestinians living in most of the Arab countries, where they have been subjected to discrimination, massacres and intolerance? Perhaps the time has come to start paying attention to the plight of the Palestinians in the Arab world. Perhaps the time has come for these students and professors behind Israel Apartheid to consider holding not Arab Apartheid Week, but a year-long seminar to discuss repression and discrimination against Palestinians living in various Arab countries. Of course one week would not be enough for this topic and that is why there is need for a whole year. We have heard enough how "awful" Israel is. Let us take...

Arafat Yasir

Mon Mar 22 2010 13:49

I agree. Let's fly our Apartheid Freak Flag high.

This past week, college campuses throughout North America have declared “Israel Apartheid Week,” where Israel is berated as an allegedly apartheid entity.

But wait! Something ain't adding up here. So let's turn this accusation on its head and put the shoe on the other foot and to look at which side truly fosters an apartheid entity.

Presently, the newly constituted Palestinian Authority (P.A.) is preparing a state of Palestine based on new Middle East rules of Apartheid and institutionalized discrimination:

1. The P.A. claims the right of every Arab community to return to Arab villages lost in the 1948 war.
2. While 20 percent of Israel’s citizens are Arabs, the P.A. will not allow even one Jew to live in its midst.
3. P.A. law mandates that anyone who sells land to a Jew is liable to the death penalty
4. Those who murder Jews are honored on all official media outlets of the P.A.
5. P.A. maps depict all of Palestine under Palestinian rule
6. P.A. maps of Jerusalem once again delete the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem
7. P.A. documents claim all of Jerusalem.
8. The P.A. denies the right of Jewish access to Jewish holy places in their midst.
9. The Palestinian State Constitution denies juridical status to any religion besides Islam.
10. The P.A. will not allow the creation of any system of human rights or civil liberties in a future state.

If that is not the formula for a totalitarian apartheid state of Palestine, then what is?

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