By Tim King & Nahida Izzat 30 April, 2010
Salem-News.com [Image] (SALEM / LONDON) - The Southern Poverty Law Center may be as racist as anything else in the deep south. It hit me like a ton of bricks when I finally took the time to visit their Website today to investigate these allegations I have been hearing, about how they will not say a word against Israel's extremely inhumane treatment of the Palestinian people. I'm a little vague in my overall understanding, I admit that. There were a few things to confirm that they acknowledge the importance of protecting people of Arab descent, but if you enter the word 'Gaza' into their Website, and this is what you get in return: "Minuteman fence modeled on West Bank, Gaza barriers". What? So I thought, let's just do a general search and enter the one word in the world that is synonymous with genocide: 'Palestine'. I was not ready to see that this anti-racism site would come up empty for such a query. No site with these claims could possibly overlook the hundreds of murdered children in Gaza, that is unless they were another American fantasy, another national disgrace, one more ruse in red, white and blue. I have always thought a great deal of this group, hearing their stories of championing the rights of black people and Jewish people in the country's southern states, but as I increasingly become aware of the constant daily suffering of the Palestinians, I learn that they are still a cog in the wheel of racism. Really it is worse than that, as SPLC is little more than a pro-Israel political operation. It seems as though every other word on their pages is 'anti-Semitism' and it is a serious boy who cried wolf scenario. Our team of writers including the acclaimed Maidhc Ó Cathail in Japan, along with distinguished Professors, Dr. Alan Sabrosky and Dr. Paul Balles in the U.S., Award-winning international Writer Alan Hart in London, and noted Author/Attorney Jeff Gates, took the time to explore the mystery of Zionism in a special Salem-News.com series[1][2][3][4]. I don't have any regret or moral questions about calling the plight of the modern day Palestinians a tragedy and genocide in the making. It evolves from an attitude, and from hatred toward the Arab people. This hate is extreme and widespread in Israel, and always described as "defensive" when in fact it is rarely that. Everyone in Israel is not this way, many are fighting the racism from within, but it is all tied to that theory that a chosen few get every square inch of land. That is Zionism, and it is used as an excuse for murder, with the bloody hands of America loading the guns. I don't think this attempt to eliminate an entire culture is wrong, I know it is wrong. But watch, these morons will come along every time any of us criticize the Israeli government and call us "anti-Semites". Then, you turn around and read about someone like David Duke, and you are seeing the real personification of what they mean with that term anti-Semitic. If I was standing near David Duke and not on somebody's clock as a reporter, I'd be tempted drop kick him to the floor Marine Corps style. That's because I hate Nazi's and fascists and the people who toss hate like confetti at a birthday party[5]. But I will inevitably be called anti-Semitic and a Nazi and everything else at one time or another for the criticism of Israel's military abuse of Palestinians. People supposedly fighting racism better figure it out or hang their hat and retire. I think I have more of a problem with a veiled support of racism than I do a direct one. That's like using religion falsely, very very wrong by any standard or measurement. Some Good Energy I detect a degree of confusion in the ranks of the SPLC as well. If you look around, you see things like a slam against the anti-Arab and anti-Muslim Jewish Defense League, which had stated: “We’ve decided not to take any vacations to Islam-loving Hawaii. There are 49 other states to visit. And we love to travel in Israel too!” SPLC presented this for what it is. OK, they get a small vote of confidence, and not because they simply criticized something the JDL said; but because there are obviously people in their group that can identify the universal problem of racism. Also to their credit, they cite a very interesting story, "Mainstream Scholars Attend Racist Conference Hosted By Jewish Astrophysicist", that really gets to the root of the problems in America today that are inspired by Jewish people part of the time, just like any other group. The aim of the “Preserving Western Civilization Conference” according to the SPLC, was to defend “America’s Judeo-Christian heritage and European identity.” (This in and of itself, is the racist philosophy of Zionism, taught in tens of thousands of churches and synagogues in the west.) It is the belief that Jewish people are "entitled" to steal land from the Palestinians, and over the last 63 years, Israel has taken almost all of it and killed countless thousands in the process. The conference apparently was more centered around claims that "blacks are not as intelligent as whites, immigrants are destroying America, and Islam is no religion of peace — it’s expansionist, intolerant, militant, and seeks to destroy." Along with the organizer, Jewish astrophysicist Michael Hart, was the noted American racist politician David Duke. You have to love the insanity of that; two men with a common goal? But still, the SPLC is obviously and clearly not saying a word against Israel. They want to object to racism in the U.S. while they inadvertently support it in Israel. Class Example I see it as a classroom of elementary school students. You have the nice girl and the nice boy, and the mean boy who likes the girl, but not the other boy. The nice boy knows right from wrong, but the mean kid would likely beat him up if he objected. So, when class ends, the mean kid starts bothering the girl, the nice boy just happens to be looking away at that moment. That girl is Palestine, the mean boy is the racist Zionist government of Israel, and the nice boy is the world that could speak up, could get involved, but does not. How do you roll? What would you do? In the end of this story the nice boy is unscathed, but he doesn't need to be. Even if he lost the fight every time, he should still be in it, not ignoring it for the sake of keeping his hands clean. The SPLC calls a few things for what they are, but they are an agent of the extremist racist view of Zionism which I place in a pile with radical Islam and all of the other philosophical or religious wastes of time that people dedicate their miserable and sad lives to. Our same group of distinguished writers took this subject on from a number of angles also. Regardless of the ignorance, Zionism is the reason hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have died long before their time[6][7][8][9][10][11]. God, Allah, did not place people on this earth to kill each other, or rip each other off, and he didn't brand the phrase, "He who dies with the most toys wins" - the over funded rednecks of America came up with that one. He doesn't want you to kill your neighbors in search of your own security. It is as simple of a point as anyone will make; an organization can not stand against racism selectively, that is just an extension of the same bigotry, and these guys have it written all over them. They rally for Jewish people, good, I do too. I rally for all oppressed people, however Israel is not a country that is at the bloody end of the sword these days, instead they bear the sword and kill without accountability while the world looks the other way. The United Nations' report from Judge Richard Goldstone, a South African Jew, cites Israel for using illegal weapons to illegally slaughter civilians in Gaza. Almost EVERY DAY the Israelis kill more innocent, unarmed Palestinians[12][13]. They seek peace and are met by bullets and tear gas canisters that are fired directly at them at close range. The most recent death was reported yesterday in Gaza[14]. Two weeks ago Israeli Defense Force soldiers were acquitted in the shooting death of an unarmed man in West Bank[15]. The same man's brother was the subject of one of our reports just months earlier; he was manacled by Israeli soldiers and shot at point blank range[16]. A little Palestinian girl videotaped it, the soldiers from Israel next went after her, destroying her family's home and belongings, but failing to get their hands on the videotape. So, the Israeli soldiers took her brother, a little kid, away in a military jeep kicking and screaming. Anyone who approves of Israel's behavior toward these innocent oppressed people is a monster and fan and supporter of genocide. It is not a matter of opinion. Then there is the Israeli Navy, and their targeted attacks on families who go to Gaza to enjoy a day at the beach. Speaking of little girls, I recently reviewed a story where a young girl's family was slaughtered by an Israeli patrol boat; picnic baskets, little kids and all[17}. The Southern Poverty Law Center seems like it is poor in terms of equality. I will close with a poem written by our Poet Nahida Izzat, a Jerusalem-born Palestinian refugee, that was first published on Salem-News.com yesterday:
Thank you So, let me get this straight: You tear my veil to free me You jail me to rid me of my terror You kill my beloved to liberate me You shoot my baby to erase my misery You starve me to show me how to vote You threaten me to bring me to my senses You wage war on me to help me find peace You slay my people to teach me compassion You humiliate me to aid me live with dignity You insult me to illustrate freedom of speech You crush my bones to save me from my evil You demolish my home to elevate my morality You torture my children to teach me how to love You uproot my tree to raise my ethical standard You steal my resources to bring me social justice You assassinate my leaders to bring me democracy You destroy my history to educate me about progress You dehumanise me to coach me into humanity You bomb my town to train me into security You wipe me out to push me to civilisation You scorn my faith to bring me salvation Thank you sir How can I -ever- pay you back? Here are the articles referenced in this report:[1] Mar-19-2010: The Complicated Faces of Anti-Semitism - Dr. Alan Sabrosky Salem-News.com[2] Mar-15-2010: Anti-Semitism - What is it? - Jeff Gates Salem-News.com[3] Mar-14-2010: Anti-Semitism Zionist Myth v Truth and Reality - Alan Hart Salem-News.com[4] Mar-14-2010: Anti-Semitism: Zionism's Indispensable Alibi - Maidhc Ó Cathail Salem-News.com[5] Feb-27-2010: Nazi Racists Unwelcome in Eastern Oregon's John Day - Tim King Salem-News.com[6] Feb-11-2010: Special Series on Zionism - Tim King Salem-News.com[7] Feb-11-2010: ZIONISM UNMASKED: 'Anti-Semitic' - the Label that Stops Criticism - Dr. Paul Balles for Salem-News.com[8] Feb-10-2010: ZIONISM UNMASKED: End of Zionism = Peace - Jeff Gates Salem-News.com[9] Feb-10-2010: ZIONISM UNMASKED: A Fairy Tale That's Become a Terrifying Nightmare - Alan Hart Salem-News.com[10] Feb-11-2010: ZIONISM UNMASKED: Chutzpah, thy name is Zionism - Maidhc Ó Cathail Salem-News.com[11] Feb-28-2010: UN Extends Goldstone Investigation of Israel for Gaza War Crimes - Tim King Salem-News.com[12] Dec-06-2009: USA-IPA-Congress: Yes to Gravestones, No to Goldstone's - By Mohamed Khodr Special to Salem-News.com[13] Apr-29-2010: Israeli Military Opens Fire, Killing Teen at Nonviolent Protest In Gaza - Salem-News.com[14] Apr-02-2010: A Tale of Two Palestinian Brothers... and Israel's Dismissal of Murder - Opinion by Tim King Salem-News.com[15] Dec-17-2009: Israelis Shot Palestinian Man Who Was Bound and Gagged - Political Commentary by Tim King Salem-News.com[16] Apr-07-2010: The Noble Deeds of Israel's Military - Tim King Salem-News.com Tim King is a former U.S. Marine with twenty years of experience on the west coast as a television news producer, photojournalist, reporter and assignment editor. In addition to [Image]his role as a war correspondent, this Los Angeles native serves as Salem-News.com's Executive News Editor. Tim spent the winter of 2006/07 covering the war in Afghanistan, and he was in Iraq over the summer of 2008, reporting from the war while embedded with both the U.S. Army and the Marines. Tim holds numerous awards for reporting, photography, writing and editing, including the Oregon AP Award for Spot News Photographer of the Year (2004), first place Electronic Media Award in Spot News, Las Vegas, (1998), Oregon AP Cooperation Award (1991); and several others including the 2005 Red Cross Good Neighborhood Award for reporting. Serving the community in very real terms, Salem-News.com is the nation's only truly independent high traffic news Website. You can send Tim an email at this address: newsroom@salem-news.com
Nahida Izzat is a Jerusalem-born Palestinian refugee who has lived in exile for over forty two years, after being forced to leave her homeland at the tender age of seven in 1967, during the six-day war. She has a degree in mathematics, but art is one of her favorite pastimes. She loves hand-made things and so makes dolls, cards, and most of her own [Image]clothes. She also writes poetry, participates in written dialogues and believes in building bridges, not walls. She started writing when her friends insisted she should write about her memories, experiences and feelings as a Palestinian.When she did it all came out sounding—she was told—like poetry! So she self-published two books: I Believe in Miracles and Palestine, The True Story. Her dream is to return back home to a free and liberated Palestine. If you like poetry and are intrigued by the notion of helping the Palestinian people and learning more, you can purchase Nahida's books, I Believe in Miracles and Palestine, The True Story by visiting: I Believe in Miracles: a Collection of Palestinian PoemsISBN 13: 9780954839109 | ISBN 10: 0954839102£12.99 paperback Nahida Izzat (2004)You can write to Nahida : nahidaexiledpalestinian@gmail.com