The fight for freedom

Editorial

Even as the resolution calling upon Mountain Equipment Co-op to boycott Israeli products was defeated at the co-op's annual general meeting April 30, the anti-Israel activists were already promising more such BDS (boycott, divestment, sanction) attempts against Israel.

One such group – Independent Jewish Voices – is doing its part. IJV in Montreal has brought Caryl Churchill's Seven Jewish Children: A Play for Gaza to that city, with a reading planned for Toronto in mid-May. No doubt, it is just a matter of time before it arrives in Vancouver.

Churchill was born in London, grew up in Montreal and now once more lives in London. Her approximately 10-minute play was aired on CBC last Sunday and can be found on the Internet, as can the entire script. In February, it was performed at London's Royal Court Theatre and the debate began: Is it anti-Israel or anti-Semitic?

Written as a reaction to the Israeli incursion into Gaza, Seven Jewish Children comprises seven scenes of Jewish parents musing about how they should explain various events in Israeli and Jewish history to their children.

It begins with the Holocaust and ends with Gaza. The main thrust is that the Jewish parents cannot, or won't, tell their children the truth, even in the case of the Holocaust. Not only do the parents lie, but they take joy in the fact that the blood-covered child in Gaza is not their child, evoking, as pointed out on the CBC, the ancient blood libel of Jews using the blood of Christian children in their rituals and being the killers of Jesus Christ.

Apparently, Independent Jewish Voices is sponsoring the readings of the play because the group feels it raises important issues that should be discussed. A spokesperson for the IJV's Montreal chapter said, "I just want people to know there are many ways of looking at events and talking about events and we need to be discussing this."

Fair enough, if this were a play that promoted dialogue. But it's not. Deemed too controversial by the BBC – not exactly known for its pro-Israel stances – to broadcast, the play doesn't promote peace; rather, it depicts Israelis (Jews) as incapable or, at best, undesiring of peace. It paints all Israelis with one simplistic brushstroke: as a people who use the Holocaust as a justification for indiscriminate murder.

While Churchill is obviously a feeling person, she certainly doesn't seem to understand or value the complexities of the conflict – and the common humanity that exists on both (if there are only two) sides. This humanity is capable of great violence, as well as amazing acts of loving kindness.

It would be easy to counter with a play called Seven Palestinian Children, about the lies Palestinian parents tell their children, perhaps to shield or comfort them, perhaps for other motives. There is certainly a lot to criticize about the terrorist government of Gaza, which uses children as human shields and teaches them to hate; which sends rocket after rocket into Israel, as well as homicide bombers. But to paint all Palestinians as terrorists would be racist, just as depicting all Israelis as warmongers is anti-Semitic.

Criticize the policies of the political leadership, fine. Condemn the actions of extremists and terrorists of every religion, country or ideology, yes. A civil society in which people are free to do pretty much anything but harm each other is what we should be working toward worldwide.

In the specific case of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, people like Churchill – who ostensibly want to see peace in the region – should remember that the majority of Israelis and Palestinians want to live peacefully beside each other in their own respective countries. Polls have shown this for at least the last few years, including one taken just last month by the OneVoice Movement, which indicated that 74 per cent of Palestinians and 78 per cent of Israelis are willing to accept a two-state solution.

While perhaps it would have been preferable for MEC to not even entertain the anti-Israel motion that was defeated last week – and for the co-op to make it clear that they oppose anti-Semitism – civil and open discussion resulted in the morally correct outcome. Similar positive results have been attained by the community-organized buycott campaigns against activists' attempts to have liquor stores boycott Israeli wines here. Two other examples include Canadian Jewish Congress Pacific Region's contributions to bringing international attention to the crisis in Darfur and the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre's current exhibit on Armin T. Wegner, who campaigned for both Armenian and Jewish human rights between the two world wars.

If we didn't know it already, we're quickly finding out that freedom and democracy require eternal vigilance. We as a community must continue to speak out and act against anti-Semitism, racism and bigotry in all its forms. Vilifying an entire people is never OK. It never leads to dialogue and peace. It leads to genocide.

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