Tuesday, 4/22/97 ‘Years of Oppression’ exhibit angers Jewish
community Propaganda produced by uninformed people shouldn’t be
tolerated by anyone
by Joshua Geffon On Wednesday, April 16, 1997 a few groups
produced a number of signs entitled, "Israeli Independence:
Celebrating 49 Years of Oppression." I am greatly disturbed by the
exhibit. Rather than being educational this exhibit is merely
propaganda. I feel that a number of organizations that cosponsored
the event were uninformed of the Arab- Israeli conflict. Therefore,
I believe these organizations made a rather large error and
vilified the Zionist/Jewish community at UCLA. Let me state clearly
and emphatically, I do not feel the organizations that co-sponsored
this event are racist, prejudice, or hate me because of my
political or cultural heritage. Rather, I contend that a number of
these organizations are uninformed of the history and issues that
surround Israel and decided to cosponsor this exhibit to
demonstrate their opposition to oppression. If you believed the
rhetoric which these signs implied and took this piece of
propaganda to heart, I must begin, then, by apologizing to you, for
I have not fulfilled my responsibility as JSU President. I
apologize if I have not shown you the stable and fair democracy of
Israel. I have not discussed the history of my people, nor have I
educated you about the struggle to build a country for the people
in the State of Israel. I have not begun to elaborate on the
oppression of the Jewish minority throughout our history, and how
that played into the formation of fair, equal and just laws in the
State of Israel. I have not elaborated upon the freedoms that all
the people of Israel share: that of speech, of suffrage, and the
freedom of religion. I am sorry, for I have failed in my
responsibility. I believe, however, that you too have failed in
your responsibility. You have failed to question the intentions of
the community that brought you this "educational" exhibit. You have
become accomplices in a propaganda war aimed at a community.
Zionists are to be found all over the world-from Africa to
Venezuela, from Europe to Iran. Further, you have failed to accept
the fact that you might not know all of the contentious issues that
exist in this political debate, and you are now an unwitting
accomplice to a strategic and coordinated campaign against Israel.
I believe that this exhibit is merely propaganda: it is not an
educational forum which highlights an alternative view of Israel.
In particular, the quotes drawn upon depict a racist and oppressive
Israel. These quotes, chosen from 56 years of debate, obviously,
were chosen to highlight a particular viewpoint with regard to the
history of the Middle East. In addition, these are quotes by
leaders of Israel, not the actions taken by these leaders. I cannot
deny these quotes until I verify them. I must deny, however, that
these quotes represent the Zionist movement. As the title of this
exhibit illustrates, the exhibit portrays a particularly
controversial viewpoint. This exhibit implies three things: 1)
Israel does not have a right to exist. 2) Israel was founded by a
racist community, who oppressed its minority (the Arab community)
to gain the land. 3) These Zionist leaders not only oppressed the
Arab minority in its own land, but it also accepted and supported
the oppression of the black minority in Africa. I have attached to
this letter a few sheets that illustrate the history of Israel.
These history sheets, I hope, will make you question the
stereotypes associated with Israel, the Zionists, and the Jewish
culture. These sheets are factual. I encourage you to question
them, and to seek out the sources that I have provided, as well as
your own sources. I encourage you to ask questions. The brief
history that I have attached should, at the very least, interest
you. If it does not, however, please give it a chance and read it
with an open mind. I, or anyone who knows about the history, people
and culture of Israel should be happy to answer any questions or
comments with regard to a quick lesson on the history of the Middle
East. I hope that each of you not only question the propaganda that
you have seen, but that you endorse and support the Jewish Student
Union’s exhibit commemorating 49 Years of Israel’s History. I would
like to conclude with a short story: A Jewish student here at UCLA
recently asked me why I am a Zionist. I said, because I believe in
democracy and I believe that the institutions of Israel are right.
I believe in the Zionist leaders, and I believe in Israel. I am a
Zionist because, as the Declaration of Independence for the state
of Israel declares: "the country will be open for Jewish
immigration and for the ingathering of the exiles; it will foster
the development of the country for the benefit of all its
inhabitants; it will be based on freedom, justice and peace as
envisaged by the prophets of Israel; it will ensure complete
equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants
irrespective of religion, race or sex; it will guarantee freedom of
religion, conscience, language, education and culture; it will
safeguard the Holy Places of all religions; and it will be faithful
to the principles of the Charter of the United Nations." You have
failed to question the intentions of the community. … You have
become an accomplice in a propaganda war.