About the Columbia incident. Context is important. Antisemitism is always wrong, but the blame should be placed correctly.
@sfleetucker
So, the thing that occurs to me after reading this article is this: Many people try to equate Israel with the Civil Rights Movement in the US.
Thereby earning allies among people who rightfully protested Jim Crow and segregation.
But, it doesn't seem the same to me.
Israel literally has to defend itself against genocide, murder and kidnapping.
That's not the same as segregationists or advocates of Jim Crow, and this article makes them seem the same, when they're not. 🤔
@sfleetucker
...Like.... to elaborate: MLK wasn't chanting Death to anyone and he definitely wasn't threatening to bomb people or saying they didn't deserve to exist as a country.
But that's literally Hamas' modus operandi, has been for decades, and they use people as human shields.
You're my friend, 💜 and lord knows I didn't want this war, but I am pointing out how the two are sometimes made to seem the same and they really do not seem the same to me.
I don't support Hamas, and I think the protestors are misguided and may be being used. I don't believe they're anything like MLK.
My read on the article was that there has long been an active protest culture on these campuses and that folks are trying to shut that down using the power of congress and the government.
I also think there's plenty to criticize and protest about concerning what Netanyahu is doing in Gaza.
1/n
Israel absolutely has a right to defend itself from extremists. But Israel also has been ignoring its own agreements in the West Bank by expanding settlements and has been unduly harsh in Gaza, both of which breed resentment.
All that being said, my intent was to show that the attack on a Jewish student was *not* committed by the protestors on campus, nor by other students. The attack is reprehensive, but punishing peaceful protestors however misguided is not warranted.
2/n
All that being said, I don't think we're at odds, @janallmac, to any great degree.
@sfleetucker
I agree 100%! I think you know more or less the background I come from, right? I am going to share an article that points out that there is apparently a huge financial incentive for American universities to allow rich foreign extremists to attend their classes under the guise of "DEI".
It seems dodgy AF to me. Assuming it is true.
https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/news/articles/american-universities-foreign-students-antisemitism
@sfleetucker
^^if that article is true, then
I find it particularly infuriating, because it screws over the exact people DEI initiatives are meant to help, while bringing an element of protests to universities that are not homegrown, and making it seem like it's the civil rights movement, when it really is not.
I am still learning, please, please bear with me! 💜
But then we have that idiot senator from Georgia, who was mentioned in that other article saying that God would smite university presidents, so... yeah.
That further complicates things and really, do we need to go there??? Can we maybe, you know, not encourage terrorists without bringing additional religious nutjobbery into this???
Ugh. It is all extremely complicated and irritating.
@sfleetucker
If it was homegrown, it seems to me it would have gone both ways, in terms of people protesting excessive violence from both Hamas and Israel. But it doesn't. Actual Americans generally have the attitude of "You both need to stop this BS and get along." but the protests are more one-sided, which makes it seem not homegrown to me. (Is my take on it)
But maybe things are different in NY.
@sfleetucker
It's all very fucking terrifying so I am talking too much at you! 😁 Sorry.
@janallmac No worries. And for the sake of all the innocents in the region, I hope that things calm back down soon.
@sfleetucker Me too! Absolutely agree.
@sfleetucker Columbia Incident still makes me think of the space shuttle. I'm only 21 years behind the times.