‘Proud pinkwasher’ Assi Azar confronted by US campus protesters. Recounts ‘horrifying experience’

[grossproffit]

[quote]Azar, a noted LGBTQ activist, told The Times of Israel this week that he had been looking forward to an engaging and productive dialogue with the 70 students who had shown up at the Hillel-sponsored event. But when he noticed that 15 of them had pink duct tape over their mouths, he had a feeling things might get ugly.

As he feared, the event turned out to be highly upsetting for both Azar and many of the students. It was “one of the most horrifying experiences I have ever faced,” Azar wrote on his Facebook page.

According to Azar, when the film was over, the 15 students — apparently from the campus LGBTQ organization — removed the tape and stood up. They chanted anti-Israel slogans and waved signs with various anti-Israel messages, including some accusing Israel of mistreating Palestinian gays.

“These chants were combative and filled with distortions of facts — mostly anti-Semitic,” he wrote.

This was Azar’s fifth tour of US campuses and film festivals with his 2010 film. On this trip he visited Cleveland, San Francisco, Pittsburgh, Nashville and Washington, DC, in addition to Baltimore. In none of the other cities, nor on any of his previous tours, had he encountered this kind of disruption and confrontation.[/quote]

[url]http://www.timesofisrael.com/proud-pinkwasher-assi-azar-confronts-campus-protesters/[/url]

[leftynyc]

1. All these stunts do

Is piss off serious people. Do they honestly think their actions will get the Palestinians a state.

[oberliner]

2. Hollow activism: Flaws in Goucher’s activism culture

Excerpt:

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is messy. If anyone, Goucher Hillel included, does not believe it to be so; they are oversimplifying. I am a Jewish queer person who participates in and is employed by Goucher Hillel. I grew up in a liberal Jewish home. My position on the conflict cannot be assumed simply by politicizing my identity. The personal is deeply political, and try as we might to water this conflict down to an activism elevator speech, for those of us with complex and conflicting religious, sexual and political identities, it just cannot be done.

But there is no room on this campus for that kind of nuance. Hillel’s depiction of Israel has on willful “Birthright Blinders,” (read: a glossy brochure approach, featuring Jews on camelback) and pro-Palestinian students make being anti-Israel interchangeable with liberal values and queer identity.

And worse still, we rarely engage in rigorous discussions of policy and history on this campus, instead opting to distract from the gaping holes in our knowledge with catch phrases like “collective liberation” and “systemic oppression.” We scream, shout and call out everyone around us, before we consider educating ourselves on exactly what we’re fighting for. We love our activism like we love our Twitter: wrapped up in 140 characters.

The term “Pinkwashing” draws conclusions without the context required to support the intersectional claim it makes. On this campus, it functions as a catchall term that excuses us from true debate or robust knowledge of particular issues.

In class, it is enough to claim that we are offended, throw out a few buzz words and leave it at that. In allowing us to continue on this shaky foundation, our mentors do us a grave disservice. And we allow it happen—grateful to continue with the status quo, lest we be asked to dig deeper. If we really wanted to delve into the queer politics of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, we would find a rich discussion that we are letting pass us by. We would do what (we believe) we do best: talk human rights, access, power and privilege.

In regards to Assi Azar’s film and appearance this week, an email was sent on behalf of TALQ BIG to students in Hillel that stated if the organization “refuses to cooperate in this discussion and ignores our demands, We, TALQ BIG, will take immediate grassroots action for the event to be shut down.” TALQ BIG ironically uses the word “discussion” despite its own disregard for the word. This is not grassroots organizing. This is intimidation.

Is this who we are? Are we “curious activists” who email threats and shutdown film screenings? Who refuse to engage in intellectual debate unless a piece of art reflects our own viewpoint? It’s worth noting too that this film is not right-wing propaganda that sings the praises of expanding the West Bank settlements. When an LGBTQIA+ group is threatening to shut down an event which features a person who is advancing gay rights in a part of the world that desperately needs it, we need to ask how we got here.

And what is more compelling than engaging a person in discussion who fights for some of your own views but departs from others? What could be more in line with “curious activism” than confronting a campus division in an open forum? But no, we’d rather boycott.

When John Huntsman, a former Republican governor and ambassador came to campus three years ago, liberals were first at the microphone to engage him. Despite his views on abortion and same-sex marriage, we spoke to him directly, and his views became an opportunity to sharpen our own opinions.

https://thequindecim.wordpress.com/2015/11/06/hollow-activism-flaws-in-gouchers-activism-culture/

[6chars]

3. Sounds like he has a fascinating story to tell

Shame on those who want to silence him.

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

4. If that's one of the most horrifying experiences he has ever faced, he lives a pretty coddled life.

Maybe he should spend some time in Gaza, asking Palestinians to recount their 'most horrifying experiences'. He could learn a thing or two.

[King_David]

8. How could you say such an ignorant thing ? The man is Gay

He would be killed day one in Gaza .... Because he is Gay....

You do understand this ?

[shenmue]

5. Israel is fairly accommodating on LGBT rights,

as far as I know.

[King_David]

7. Yep

And quite the opposite in the Palestinian Territories.

[Crunchy Frog]

9. An interesting article.

He claims that the chants were "mostly anti-semitic", but he never states what any of the "anti-semitic" chants actually were. In another part of the article, he expresses his surprise that many of the protesters were in fact Jewish. I find it just a little bit implausible that Jewish students would be chanting anti-semitic slogans.

His belief in freedom of speech also seems a little bit selective.

As far as Azar...is concerned, it is not acceptable for Jews anywhere to attack Israel.

Just for the record, I'm opposed to the practice of disrupting speeches on college campuses, but I do think that people should be free to protest anything that they want, even Jewish people.