SAIA York condemns smears, harassment and administrative repression: York admin should reverse course, distance itself from intimidation tactics

March 13, 2009

Students Against Israeli Apartheid (SAIA) at York University condemns the intensifying efforts to shut down Palestine solidarity activism on campus. In recent weeks, SAIA and its allies have organized numerous successful events, many coordinated with the international Israeli Apartheid Week 2009 (March 1-8), which took place in over forty cities across the world. In the process, we have faced defamation, physical intimidation and harassment. The decision by the York University administration (finalized on March 5) to fine and suspend our organization is disgraceful, part of a pattern of administrative repression faced by Palestine solidarity groups on university campuses.

SAIA Condemns Violations of Human Rights

In its recent attack on the population of Gaza Israel killed 1300 people, including some 430 children. Israel continues to besiege and starve the population of Gaza, to imprison thousands of Palestinians without trial, to subject Palestinians to torture, and to commit a host of other violations of international law, all with the support of all too many Canadian politicians and institutions.

SAIA agrees with the majority of world opinion, expressed through repeated United Nations resolutions, in opposition to these atrocities. We endorse with the call from 2005 by a broad coalition of Palestinian civil society groups and more recently by UN General Assembly President Miguel D’Escoto Brockmann, for a campaign of boycott, divestments and sanctions (BDS) against Israel to force it to comply with international law. We join many from academic institutions around the world, including the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT), in condemning Israeli attacks on Palestinian educational institutions in Gaza.

The February 12, 2009 Rally

On February 12, 2009, we organized a rally and march at York University to demand that York University president Mamdouh Shoukri issue a statement condemning targeted Israeli attacks on Palestinian schools. Since York University, like many other Canadian universities, condemned the call for an academic boycott as a violation of academic freedom, we felt that the outright blowing up of universities and schools with students still in them would constitute a greater violation of academic freedom, worthy of perhaps even stronger condemnation. Rather than respond thoughtfully to this reasonable demand, the Shoukri administration chose to suspend our organization for a month and fine us $1,250. Note: this is approximately $1,250 more than our volunteer organization presently has.

At our February 12 demonstration, we were confronted with an aggressive counter demonstration organized by York-based “Israel advocacy” groups and off-campus political figures and groups who have been harassing us at our tables and circulating defamatory lies about us in the media. The counter-demonstration explicitly sought to drown out our speeches with chants, megaphones and drums. We tried to have our speeches heard, and as this became difficult, we terminated the stand-off by proceeding on our march. It was not until after they began drowning our speeches out that we used “sound amplification” equipment. The fact that we are now being punished for this is a preposterous insult.

A coordinated Sabotage of our Activities

Our membership, in trying to distribute critical political literature on our campus, has faced persistent harassment, slurs and abuse. At our tables, campus clubs including Hillel and the Hasbara Fellowships, backed by their parent organizations, have harassed us in direct conjunction with middle-aged thugs from such off-campus hate groups as the Jewish Defense League (JDL).

On Wednesday, March 4th, One female organizer was physically attacked (pushed by a JDL member). Another member was called ‘a filthy Arab’ and told: ‘Your womb is only good for producing suicide bombers.’ Another participant was told: ‘If I were one of your parents, I would
f**cking kill you.’ Many have been called ‘terrorists’ and told ‘to go blow yourself up.’ Members have been persistently harassed on campus day-to-day even when not participating in any political activity. Though it is not our strategy to file complaints with security and police services, when police were notified of these incidents, no action was taken.

Israel advocates and the York administration are working hand-in-glove to try to sabotage our rallies and activities, making them disruptive through aggressive counter-demonstrations and then using the disruption as a justification to shut us down.

False Smears Against our Activists

The York administration and Israel advocacy push to shut us down includes attempts to smear us with baseless, unsubstantiated charges of ‘anti-Semitism’ through a campaign of distortion, innuendo and outright lies.

We oppose Israel’s policies of occupation, denial of the right of return, and denial of equality to its Palestinian citizens. To suggest that this is ‘anti-Semitic’ is false and reprehensible. To fabricate false statements and attribute them to our organization without evidence, as has been done by some of our political opponents, is still worse. Some of those responsible, especially those who have published the most extreme smears (e.g., the Calgary Herald), have opened themselves to litigation and we are considering our legal options.

We continue to demand:

1. That President Shoukri uphold basic principles of academic freedom and political decency by condemning the Israeli bombing of Palestinian educational facilities.
2. That York University publicly distance itself from claims that SAIA and IAW activities constitute ‘hate’ or ‘incitement’
3. That York University make a public statement that SAIA’s activities are protected on grounds of free expression and condemning disruptions and harassment of SAIA activists.

Students have the right to political assembly on campus. We also have the right to speak freely at rallies, and where our voices are being drowned out, to try our best to allow participants in our rally to hear our speakers. We will continue to assert our rights to organize, distribute political literature and demonstrate on campus as our work requires.