Letters to the Editor do not reflect the editorial opinion of The Daily Free Press. They are solely the opinion of the author.
We, students, alumni and, community members at Boston University, condemn Boston University Students for Israel (BUSI) and Hillel’s event “Vigil for Victims of Terrorism” and call on Boston University administration to take strong measures to address the misleading and inciting rhetoric that these groups are using.
The event held on October 16th was an example of the one-sided, manipulative propaganda present on our campus. The event was co-hosted by outside organizations such as Israel Campus Roundtable, Zionists Of America, StandWithUs, The Hasbara Fellowships, The David Project, the National Hillel organization, and the Jewish Agency for Israel. The presence of these organizations is both alienating to Palestinians on campus and divisive to the greater BU community.
Within the past two weeks alone, 50 deaths have occurred, 7 of which were Israeli and 43 of these tragedies were Palestinians. In addition, more than 1,200 Palestinians have been injured due to live rounds being shot at protesters including women and children. More than 800 Palestinians have been arrested and can face indefinite detention and torture based on the common practice of the Israeli police and military. While we agree all lives should be mourned, the ultra-nationalistic event rejected to mourn the Palestinian lives by urging on their Facebook event, “come and support Israel this Friday.”
The deliberate use of the word “terrorism” to refer to the Palestinians is an attempt to dehumanize them. This serves to divide our campus by triggering families and students at BU, who are deeply connected to Palestine and the experiences of living under the ongoing occupation. We are calling for a condemnation of this inexcusable political agenda that cannot coincide with the mission of inclusivity and cultural diversity at BU. We urge BU students, professors, and administration to foster an inclusive environment and prevent outside organizations from propagating toxic rhetoric that destructs the common ground this community is built on.
Statement by Boston University Students for Justice in Palestine
Media Contact: Jose Godoy, godoysjp@gmail.com
Eytan • Nov 13, 2015 at 1:22 pm
I assume that according to the demented “logic” of this letter, the writer feels his own group should be banned from campus for being one-sided?
Rob Green • Oct 28, 2015 at 3:26 pm
“Common Ground”? Does that include your pathetic “die in” supporting the deaths in Gaza caused by the wanton attack against the sovereign state of Israel and it’s citizens by the terrorists in Gaza, firing thousands of missiles at Israel. Israel profusely apologizes for having a defense system to keep their casualties low and they promise to die more in the future to make the casualty count more even. The SJP presence on campus makes all Jews and Israeli supporters feel unsafe and the administration should ban them immediately.
SJP Supporter • Oct 22, 2015 at 7:21 pm
This is clearly a divisive issue, and it is imperative to recognize the historic use of words like “terrorism” and the fact that the state of Israel is absolutely committing human rights crimes and a genocide against Palestinians. Being anti-Israel is not being anti-Semitic.
That said, I am conflicted due to the fact that there ARE anti-Semites within BU SJP that do nothing but bring down the group and corrupt their message. Those leading SJP would do well to do some self-examination and make sure certain very visible members are good representatives for their cause.
jason • Oct 22, 2015 at 11:31 pm
So, by your tone, you define terrorism as an act of violence meant to spread fear against a civilian population. Unless those civilians are Jews, of course.
And genocide? Your definition must be different than the dictionary version, because the Palestinian population in and out of Israel just keeps growing. I don’t recall any systematic attempts by the Israeli government and it’s people to actualy annihilate an entire people.
Not that Jews would know anything about that, having never been exposed to any attempts to their decimation.
But let’s just focus on the human rights of the Palestinian people shall we? Do these rights include the right to wantonly murder? Is that the right Israel should be accused of damaging?
No,no, you mean the right freely practice their religion. So you’re ok with the stone throwing, because their religion says it’s ok to throw rocks at Jews because a tree told them so. Cool. Real classy. I’m sure anybody with a car or, you know, a working skull would be ok with that religious practice.
Or the freedom to stand against their oppressor? Like when the Palestinian people rose up against their colonizers, Egypt and Jordan and they fought them and murdered them during the anti colonialist wars of never ever happened? Nah. It’s just when Jews control the borders, that’s when their human rights are being destroyed.
Whatever. You look like you got a lot of Meeeeeeeee on your pants
Craig Parker • Oct 23, 2015 at 1:27 pm
Terrorism is terrorism. Excuse it, diminish it, all you want. If you and your fellow anti-semites (and yes, that is what you are when you accuse Israel of genocide and weep for the Palestinian terrorists) truly support peace you would not be lending your support to those who seek only to kill Jews and have shown no interest for decades in advancing peace for all.
In the last few days John Kerry met with both Netanyahu and Abbas. What was the outcome? Israel removed all restrictions on the Temple Mount (except of course the Palestinian restriction against Jews) and the Palestinians declared a day of rage. Some genocide.
Riv • Oct 22, 2015 at 5:16 pm
Honestly, this is offensive to anyone connected to the victims of terrorism in the recent weeks. Are we not allowed to mourn our dead because you choose to turn a blind eye to violence? There are people stabbing people just because they are Jews. This deserves attention, frankly from someone who’s going to be honest and give a clear story about who the victims are and not from SJP…
jason • Oct 22, 2015 at 2:52 pm
SJP should change their name to ‘It’s All About Meeeeeee’
Or-el Vaknin • Oct 22, 2015 at 2:40 pm
Thank you for proving your support for terrorism by condemning those who hold a vigil for the victims of it. SJP has proven their divisiveness, and proven that they do not care about condemning terrorism, but are instead seeking to excuse it.
It is not dehumanizing individuals with knives stabbing other civilians to call them terrorists; it is accurate. You neglect to mention that most of the Palestinians killed were killed while trying to murder others, and that the rest were killed in accidents. This is incomparable to the Palestinian murderers who intentionally attacked civilians.
Your failure to differentiate would make groups like Al Qaeda giddy with happiness. If they were treated the way you propose we treat terrorists fighting Israel, their cause would be much more tenable. And that’s disgusting.
Miryam Khadr • Oct 22, 2015 at 12:57 pm
So SJP is NOT divisive and Hillel IS divisive? Palestinian nationalism is fine, but Jewish nationalism is “toxic”? LOL.
Which planet is this person from?
Craig Parker • Oct 22, 2015 at 11:36 am
As a fervent supporter of Israel who is greatly troubled by the recent rise in violence by Palestinians against Israelis I remain hopeful that at least the Palestinians and their coddled U.S. University devotees haven’t lost their sense of humor.
“The deliberate use of the word “terrorism” to refer to the Palestinians is an attempt to dehumanize them. ”
Do the ever-insightful Boston University Students for Justice in Palestine have an alternate term to refer to a group of singularly, violence-minded people wielding knives and randomly stabbing Israelis? If calling terrorism, terrorism wouldn’t be fair to the actual terrorists, what then should we call it? Anti-peace activism? Non-mutual cutlery dispute resolution?
Or, how about we just call it what it is – terrorism. And if the term terrorism hurts the feelings of the knife-wielding terrorists and their pampered university sycophants, all the better.
akk • Oct 22, 2015 at 10:19 am
from elderofziyon
the Friday event, students at Boston University held a “Vigil for the Victims of Terrorism” on campus. It looks like what they did was have attendees walk to Marsh Plaza where they united in a large circle as rabbis recited prayers and spoke of the emotional toll the attacks put on students following the tragedies. After the prayer, students sang “Hatikvah,” the Israeli national anthem whose title means “The Hope.” The photos in the newspaper show them holding signs that say “we stand with Israel.”
SJP: You say by condemning terror against Jews, the event organizers are guilty of hate speech!
The subtext is clear: Jews deserve to be axed and stabbed to death, and any expression of outrage is offensive to these self-appointed arbiters of political correctness.
These people who are so concerned about being “inclusive” and the feelings of all people on campus are of course the same people who sponsor the annual “Israel Apartheid Week” there. I don’t think they mention Jewish victims of terror in that “inclusive” event.
If there is a silver lining in the current terror spree, it is that people who pretend to be against violence are outing themselves as supporting whatever outrage Arab terrorists decide to do. They are writing articles justifying the attacks as a reasonable response to “occupation” or “settlements.”
They are revealing, quite clearly, that their support for “Palestine” is really a front for their hate for Israeli Jews and a Jewish state.
akk • Oct 22, 2015 at 10:06 am
When you write protesters, you know they are throwing molotov cocktails, stones that are cinder blocks, and other items meant to kill?
DJ • Oct 22, 2015 at 6:50 pm
exactly. As an alumni of BU I am embarrassed that we have a group of people on campus that advocate the murder of innocent civilians and then try to claim that “protesters” who throw rocks at cars, wait for the people (jewish people) who are driving to get out and then run them over with a car waiting to attack them. This is called murder everywhere in the world except in the PA and when jews are the ones being killed.
akk • Oct 22, 2015 at 10:02 am
the definition of terrorism is:
1. the use of violence and threats to intimidate or coerce, especially for political purposes.
2. the state of fear and submission produced by terrorism or terrorization.
I believe Palestinians using cars to run down people, using knives to stab people and trying to take someone’s a gun to shoot people is covered by that definition.
Anonymous • Oct 22, 2015 at 9:28 am
Goddamn, you terror apologists can’t even let your victims mourn their dead in peace, can you?
SJP should be banned from every campus. It is a hate group in line with the KKK and the Westboro Baptist Church.
Janet • Oct 22, 2015 at 8:37 am
I agree that terrorization is dehumanizing. If honesty is a value treasured at BU like inclusivity and cultural diversity, acknowledging murder and attempted murder of Israeli citizens by hostile and armed Palestinians is not an attempt to dehumanize. The behavior of people who murder speaks for itself. Please stop trying to wrap up the situation up using toxic politically correct rhetoric like inclusiveness to instill shame on those who were only defending themselves.
Ryan Bellerose • Oct 22, 2015 at 4:53 am
you neglected to mention that the 43 palestinians were trying to murder innocent Israeli Civilians or in a couple cases uniformed soldiers. SJP, Stabbing Jews for Palestine should be your name, you people are a joke and not a funny one.
george • Oct 21, 2015 at 9:01 pm
Pretty sure this was copied from the Onion. If not, what they are saying is that any statement of support for Israel is not allowed on campus, and certainly pro-Israel activism not allowed.
Its OK, because these are just arrogant and ignorant students. How do you explain UNESCO, however, which has now taken the stand that delegitimization of Israel is insufficient, and that the organization should now start to delegitimize Jews in general.
Message from SJP and UNESCO: “Jewish Lives Do Not Count and Jews do not count as a people”
Al • Oct 21, 2015 at 3:24 pm
Is this not satire?
An Educated BU Student • Oct 21, 2015 at 6:07 pm
No, this is not satire. I was at the event.
An Educated BU Student • Oct 21, 2015 at 1:53 pm
What this message from SJP fails to state:
The 43 Palestinian killed each murdered or attempted to murder Israeli citizens and were killed because they were hostile and armed (terrorists). All deaths are tragedies, we especially pray for those who feel it is enlightening to be a martyr and sacrifice their own lives.
Instead of hosting a vigil for the victims like BUSI hosted, the Students for Justice in Palestine decided to protest the vigil by attempting to create a wall to block the BUSI vigil from the public’s view. They say that they “agree that all lives should be mourned” yet they choose to protest a vigil instead of host one of their own.
Food for thought, stay educated my friends.
An Educated BU Student • Oct 21, 2015 at 6:07 pm
What this message from SJP fails to state:
The 43 Palestinian killed each murdered or attempted to murder Israeli citizens and were killed because they were hostile and armed (terrorists). All deaths are tragedies, we especially pray for those who feel it is enlightening to be a martyr and sacrifice their own lives.
Instead of hosting a vigil for the victims like BUSI hosted, the Students for Justice in Palestine decided to protest the vigil by attempting to create a wall to block the BUSI vigil from the public’s view. They say that they “agree that all lives should be mourned” yet they choose to protest a vigil instead of host one of their own.
Food for thought, stay educated my friends..
Lol • Oct 21, 2015 at 1:14 pm
THIS MUST BE SATIRE HAHAHA
Karen Ferguson • Oct 21, 2015 at 11:15 am
Thank-you for standing up for the Palestinian people!
Al Joost • Oct 22, 2015 at 11:08 am
And we will fight with them until we end the occupation!
DJ • Oct 22, 2015 at 6:46 pm
From the River to the Sea…. right?
Samy • Apr 16, 2016 at 8:33 pm
Why not from the River to the Sea?
Do you deny that the Palestinians are indigenous to all of Palestine?
And if you do not deny their indigenousness, then on what basis would you deny their right to return to their homeland?
On what basis would one deny an indigenous people living under foreign colonial domination the right to exercise effective resistance as permitted under the voluminous corpus of international law, and the basic tenets of morality and reason?
And if you do not deny their right to resist, then what forms of resistance would you permit?
The fact is, there is a poisonous notion that infects much of pro-Israel advocacy, and the poisonous notion I refer to is the patently false claim that Palestinians are not indigenous to all of Palestine. This poisonous notion is itself a form of hate speech and discrimination. As an extension of this poisonous notion, all forms of Palestinian resistance are deemed criminal and or even terroristic, even when they only resort to peaceful free speech and boycotts, let alone lawful armed resistance against colonialist military targets, as permitted by international law. This is the same poisonous notion that justifies the dispossession of the Palestinian refugees, attempting to nullify and deny the self-evident and inherent justice and legality that underpins the Right of Return of these same refugees to their homeland. Conversely then, any denial of the Right of Return of the Palestinian refugees is in itself a vile form of anti-Palestinian hate speech and discrimination.
So yes, why not from the River to the Sea? What self-respecting indigenous people would expect any less for itself?