Laurence Thomas, Professor of Philosophy, Syracuse University

http://www.moralhealth.com/blog/_archives/2007/6/27/3051069.html

So we are to believe that Palestinians in Israel have the standing that blacks once had in the Apartheid days of South Africa. This is what the University and College Union (UCU) of the United Kingdom would have us believe. There are not many times in my life when I am going to be this blunt. But I know from personal experience that this claim on the part of the UCU is nothing but lie. This I can say without supposing for a moment that, with respect to Palestinians, things are perfect in the State of Israel.

Here is the personal story. One of my friends who was born and raised in Palestine but had relocated to Syracuse NY, flew to Tel Aviv with his family to visit family members that had stayed behind in Palestine. Being in Israel at the time, I went to the airport to greet my friend and his family. Indeed, an Israeli Jew drove me to the airport. We talked about one thing and then another on the way to the airport, but the issue of my meeting a Palestinian never came up. Indeed, the issue never came up with any of my Israeli friends who arranged for me to be taken to the airport.

What is more, the manner in which my friend was treated at the airport was utterly decent and respectful. I have gone through the Tel Aviv airport on at least 6 occasions. And I know for a fact that my Palestinian friend was treated with no more suspicion than I was. It is not as if I am some public figure and Israeli security was on “good behavior” in front of me. And since I am very visibly black, it is not as if I just blend right in.

My Palestinian friend speaks a little Hebrew and spoke some Hebrew to my Israeli Jewish friend. We all exchanged pleasantries, pictures were taken, and my friend and his family went on their merry way.

As my Israeli friend and I were riding back to Haifa, I explained to him how I met my friend in Syracuse NY of all places; and he that thought my story extremely fascinating, because it pointed to how wonderful things can happen in quite unusual circumstances. I encountered no gasps from anyone about associating with a Palestinian.

Now, there is nothing in what I have just said that sounds remotely like the experience of blacks during the Apartheid era in South Africa, a country which I have also been very fortunate to visit.

Turning in a different direction: My trips to Israel have in most cases been to the city of Haifa. I have lectured at Haifa University. Indeed, I can even say that I am friends with the President of Haifa University; for he and his family hosted me on a kibbutz. Moreover, I have shared meals with a very dear Israeli friend and his family, with 3 languages operating in the home during my visits: French between me and the parents; Hebrew between the family members, and English between me and the children. That was exciting. But not a word about “those Palestians” was ever blurted out by anyone. By the way, no such utterances either from the President of Haifa University and his family; and I knew them long before he occupied that position.

At Haifa University there are many Palestinian students. But on any given day, people got on with the business of learning. Again, this all sounds nothing like what the experience of blacks was during the Apartheid era in South Africa.

Of course, drawing an analogy to South African Apartheid has enormous moral capital. But when that analogy is wrong, it is also one of the most malicious things people can do in order to advance their political ends. To the uninformed, the Apartheid analogy easily has an intuitive appeal, given the right images. And make no mistake about it: images of destitute Palestinians abound. No one denies that. But few are interested in why there are so many destitute Palestinians.

Might it have anything to do with the leadership of Yasser Arafat? He is a man who acquired millions of dollars in support for his cause, no small amount of which was given to him by the European Union. But what did he do with all that money? Well, he did support a wife in Paris. And there is something to be said for a man who is willing to support his woman, no matter what. That has to be the reason why all the pro-Palestinian folks did not criticize him for this.

Did he try to establish a school for Palestinians or a Hunger Center? Or how about Arafat University? Had he established a university in his name, nothing would have ever been allowed to bring about its demise. Had Israeli forces destroyed it: well, that would have been a public relations faux pas the likes of which this planet has never before seen. But if there is anything I am clear about, I am clear that Israeli forces would have done no such thing.

Arafat could have set up a university in his name. But could South African blacks during Apartheid have set up a university? Absolutely not.

But there we are letting facts get in the way of a political agenda. There is nothing like people so committed to an agenda that facts become irrelevant. And this has become fashionable. It is also a way of unwittingly committed evil. And at some point the doing of evil is not so unwittingly insofar as people are more interested in the cause than they are in getting the facts right.

In a word, then, boycotting Israeli academics is morally fulsome simply because there is no analogue in Israel to South African Apartheid. Not at all.

This is true even if there various things that can be done by Israelis to improve the plight of Palestinians.

Why there are lots of things that white Englishmen-those UCU folks, in fact-could be doing to improve the plight of their citizens of color. Yet, England is a very long ways from anything remotely resembling Apartheid. One might say the very same thing about France and the United States. And so on.

No one wants to consider the fact that part of the problem with Palestinians is that they have been betrayed by their leaders. Moreover, taking a page from black Americans apparently, Palestinians have been poisoned not to be critical of their leaders.

Then there is the simple truth that ideological greed has gotten in the way. Ideological greed? What is that. It has seemed to many in the Arab world that there is no reason to cooperate with Israel because it will be easy enough to destroy it.

So where there could have been a rich spirit of cooperation between Israelis and Palestinians there has been next to none, precisely because Palestinians have been feed the belief that Israel’s demise is imminent or, in any case, fighting with Israel is morally superior to cooperating with them.

Once again, the UCU does not want to hear any of this. After all, scholars all worked up are running around with moral outrage. Why, on earth let mere facts get in the way when there is a very easy target.

Well, I conclude with this observation. It is the UCU that reminds me of whites in the Jim Crow south of the United States. It was much easier back then for whites to blame an innocent black than trouble themselves with getting at the truth about a crime committed against a white person. And many an innocent black was blamed and tried and found guilty. Why? Because the black happened to be in the vicinity when the crime was committed by a white.

Folks of the UCU: Your call for a boycott of Israeli scholars is painfully akin to the racist whites of the Old South in the United States. Like them, you have merely fixed upon the most vulnerable target. By contrast, there is simply no comparison between Israel’s general moral posture towards Palestinians and the bile that constituted South African Apartheid. This is so manifestly obvious to the naked eye that the fact that you UCU folks are so intent upon ignoring this very differential supports the opening claim of this paragraph.

To the members of the UCU: Your moral outrage on behalf of Palestinians is a farce, since it is not about the facts.