Sunday, November 24, 2013
Thursday, November 7, 2013
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
Chavaya Fellowship
The Chavaya Fellowship is a year-round program aimed at developing the future generation Global Leaders of the Jewish Community Worldwide. 30 fellows will be chosen from New York, Israel and Germany (10 from each country) to work together during monthly sessions and workshops, developing their own artistic Jewish programming which they will then facilitate with a younger Jewish generation in summer camps in New York and Israel and while visiting Germany and spend part of their summers implementing the program abroad. All trips, flights and lodging are fully sponsored and funded by the Chavaya Fellowship and once accepted a registration fee is required. Apply now for a chance to develop your artistic work, leadership skills, contribute to the development of the global Jewish community, travel the world, meet and network with young leaders and artists from around the world!
Registration is now open and ends October 31st. Please share this incredible program with your community - only 10 candidates will be chosen from New York and our goal is to select the most enthusiastic and qualified candidates possible.
For more information regarding this program, please visit our website at www.chavayafellowship.org/
The application can be accessed here: www.chavayafellowship.org/#!apply/cfvg
Once accepted, an application fee is required to participate in the program.
The deadline to apply is October 31st.
For any questions or additional information, please contact Sivan at shadari@kingsbayy.org
Tuesday, October 15, 2013
Saturday, September 28, 2013
Press: Times of Israel
"The challenges may seem insurmountable at times, but their cause is righteous, their goals noble, and their methods a model of proactive change for the better."
Read article HERE
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Press: Mondoweiss' Continued Obsession with A4I
The falsity in everything they say is evident by the very first line of the story. This is like the 6th article on us that says how desperate and ineffective our advocacy is yet they spend a significant amount of time writing about us. Odd
Article HERE
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Monday, July 29, 2013
Drawing Out the Darkness: Art Therapy in Israel
One of Artists 4 Israel's most exciting new projects is A4I CARES, an art kit put together specifically to help children from Israel's war-torn areas cope with the trauma and stress of their lives. The kits have been assembled by a team of artists, mental health professionals, emergency service workers, and other according to the ideas presented by the growing field of art therapy. Recognized by Israel's Ministry of Health as a para-medical profession in 1998, art therapy has the unique potential to raise self-esteem, encourage insight, reduce stress and otherwise improve the quality of life for everyone from children to adults. For more information on A4I CARES, please contact info@artists4israel.org
What is Art Therapy?
Unlike traditional talk therapy or medication, art therapy is available to everyone: old or young, rich or poor. It harnesses the healing power of the artistic process allowing people to express otherwise unspeakable thoughts and to see themselves as creative, worthwhile human beings (in a sense, this is similar to the process of changing the public perception of Israel through art). This can be done with a pencil and paper, although the A4I CARES kits contain a range of unique supplies to foster emotional expression, such as modeling clay and bracelet-making materials. All kinds of art fall under the heading of art therapy, and the Israeli Association of Creative and Expressive Therapies recognizes six: visual and plastic art, music, movement and dance, drama, psychodrama, and creative writing. In more structured settings, art therapy classes also allow participants to connect to each other in a community setting, giving them the confidence and trust needed to share their work. Any given individual's skills isn't the point, the healing process is.
Art and Children
Children are natural artists, unhindered by expectation of the inner critic which appears in adults. Giving them the chance to explore their creativity as a therapeutic tool can be deeply healing, since most feel more comfortable expressing themselves through art rather than by trying to articulate feelings they may not be able to find words for. Going through trauma and living in a rocket-targeted area can also play havoc with their self-esteem, making art's confidence-building potential particularly important in improving their lives. Children in more stable situations can also benefit from art therapy, whether structured or unstructured. In fact, a 2009 study at the University of Haifa found that children of drug addicts were better able to cope with their lives when given the chance to express themselves through drawing, rather than traditional talk therapy. It's an exciting insight into the role art can play in helping children who have been subject to abuse and pain.
Art and Addiction
The children of addicts aren't the only ones whose lives can be changed through art. Art therapy for addiction has been shown to help ease rehabilitation, while also working to prevent relapse at a later date, and has been quickly picked by Israeli rehabilitation centers. There are approximately 25,000 people struggling with addiction in Israel, giving art therapy the potential to change lives, families, and communities. Making art throughout their time in recovery is a way for people to clarify who they really are beyond their addictions, moving through shame and fear to a place where they can better understand themselves and others. This can be particularly important for "social addictions" which, by their nature, involve how an individual relates to other people. The treatment of sexual addiction, for example, is still in its infancy in terms of understanding what works best. However, it is clear that by allowing people to access their own creative instincts, they can understand themselves on a deeper level and learn new ways of understanding and communicating with other people.
What You Can Do
The A4I CARES kit currently cost $150 to cover the supplies, but additional support would allow Artists 4 Israel to buy in bulk and lower the cost of bringing this much needed gift to the children who need it. It's also possible to harness the power of art in your life and community - some local centers host arts and crafts events for lower-income children, and these are often in need of volunteers to help out. Of course, you can also take art therapy's healing strength to heart and use it in your own life, simply by picking up some paint and paper.
A wonderful guest post by Missi Toms
What is Art Therapy?
Unlike traditional talk therapy or medication, art therapy is available to everyone: old or young, rich or poor. It harnesses the healing power of the artistic process allowing people to express otherwise unspeakable thoughts and to see themselves as creative, worthwhile human beings (in a sense, this is similar to the process of changing the public perception of Israel through art). This can be done with a pencil and paper, although the A4I CARES kits contain a range of unique supplies to foster emotional expression, such as modeling clay and bracelet-making materials. All kinds of art fall under the heading of art therapy, and the Israeli Association of Creative and Expressive Therapies recognizes six: visual and plastic art, music, movement and dance, drama, psychodrama, and creative writing. In more structured settings, art therapy classes also allow participants to connect to each other in a community setting, giving them the confidence and trust needed to share their work. Any given individual's skills isn't the point, the healing process is.
Art and Children
Children are natural artists, unhindered by expectation of the inner critic which appears in adults. Giving them the chance to explore their creativity as a therapeutic tool can be deeply healing, since most feel more comfortable expressing themselves through art rather than by trying to articulate feelings they may not be able to find words for. Going through trauma and living in a rocket-targeted area can also play havoc with their self-esteem, making art's confidence-building potential particularly important in improving their lives. Children in more stable situations can also benefit from art therapy, whether structured or unstructured. In fact, a 2009 study at the University of Haifa found that children of drug addicts were better able to cope with their lives when given the chance to express themselves through drawing, rather than traditional talk therapy. It's an exciting insight into the role art can play in helping children who have been subject to abuse and pain.
Art and Addiction
The children of addicts aren't the only ones whose lives can be changed through art. Art therapy for addiction has been shown to help ease rehabilitation, while also working to prevent relapse at a later date, and has been quickly picked by Israeli rehabilitation centers. There are approximately 25,000 people struggling with addiction in Israel, giving art therapy the potential to change lives, families, and communities. Making art throughout their time in recovery is a way for people to clarify who they really are beyond their addictions, moving through shame and fear to a place where they can better understand themselves and others. This can be particularly important for "social addictions" which, by their nature, involve how an individual relates to other people. The treatment of sexual addiction, for example, is still in its infancy in terms of understanding what works best. However, it is clear that by allowing people to access their own creative instincts, they can understand themselves on a deeper level and learn new ways of understanding and communicating with other people.
What You Can Do
The A4I CARES kit currently cost $150 to cover the supplies, but additional support would allow Artists 4 Israel to buy in bulk and lower the cost of bringing this much needed gift to the children who need it. It's also possible to harness the power of art in your life and community - some local centers host arts and crafts events for lower-income children, and these are often in need of volunteers to help out. Of course, you can also take art therapy's healing strength to heart and use it in your own life, simply by picking up some paint and paper.
A wonderful guest post by Missi Toms
Friday, June 28, 2013
Monday, June 24, 2013
Sunday, June 23, 2013
An Open Letter to Shuki Sadeh and Haaretz
In regards to THIS ARTICLE.
My name is Craig Dershowitz and I am the Executive Director of Artists 4 Israel. Since you have failed to print my comment to Mr. Sadeh's article, What's between the JNF and pro-Israel graffiti in Hebron (or, alternately, Spray-Painting Over a Problem: What's the connection between a right-wing organization that spray-paints graffiti in Hebron and the Jewish National Fund), I am forced to write this open letter. As there are slight differences between your online and print copy, this letter will address them in combination.
I do not write nor speak on behalf of the JNF and, although I do speak for Artists 4 Israel, this letter is not on their behalf. As an author and a proud supporter of freedom of press, I write on behalf of journalism. What you have published is not an article, it is not reporting, it is a thinly and insultingly poorly veiled editorial. It is out of date, fallacious, inflammatory and flies in the face of journalistic standards. Oh, yeah, and it is really, really poorly written.
At your own words (words you use twice in one sentence - high school writing 101 mistake), Artists 4 Israel is a "small organization", yet, you spend a whole half a page above the fold decrying our work. Must have been a slow news day or, perhaps, there is something more here. After all, if you are going to give us so much press (PS, thanks for that), you should at least really make your accusations sting and not just ridicule our size. Yet, the best you do is describe us as "right-wing" (again, using that phrase twice - seriously, can we buy you a thesaurus - maybe the JNF will pay for it) yet your only proof of this political orientation is that we paint "Pro-Israel" messages. Your equation then is that "Pro-Israel" is synonymous with "right-wing". We do not ascribe to a notion of right and left wing as such divisive politics is an invention of bigots like yourself who choose to separate and alienate. We choose to unite. We believe that beauty of art is pan-wing. However we do see your bias through this false equivalency. Yours is a sad belief which paints (pun intended) everything life affirming with the gloomy sepia of politrix (typo very much intended).
Spray-paint (I want to write "sic" here but I think it is more relevant to point out that you don't even copy edit your own work. It is spray paint - two words, no hyphen) is a form of creation. It is creation, like the Third Temple might be. It is creation like our paintings in Judea, Samaria, Tel Aviv, Ariel, Shiloh, Arab villages across Israel, mixed schools and community centers. We have created art in child daycare centers, in refuges for battered women and homes for at-risk children. It is creation like the JNF's planting of trees, building of parks, growing of flowers, green grass and a hopeful earth-driven future. It is the opposite of your attempts to destruct and to destroy. Grab a can of spray paint (hyphenate if you must) or a handful of seeds and earth and create something other than the fictions in your reporting. No one can hate life that much so, maybe there is something else going on here.
Your story's lies go from the wishful (saying we come to Israel to paint every few months (if only!) to the mundane (there are no videos on our website) to the slanderous (painting on a "Palestinian's" home never happened). The only truth in your fable comes from your uncredited appropriation of a JPR video. The JPR, unlike you, are serious, investigative journalists. Their story was timely (aka the "new" part of "news"), their reporters were on the ground, their sources were primary, their reporting comprehensive and multi-sided. You couldn't even post the video that matched your description of it! That is not me speaking on the video. That is SKI, a member of the UR New York art collective, a New Yorker of Dominican descent and Catholic beliefs. Yet, you hinted at some sort of racist, evil religious Jewish plot in our painting of the Temple. That makes no sense. Maybe there is something more going on here.
SKI's words are precious. He informs everyone (well, except for your editorial staff it seems) that he is there "spreading the word of peace through art". Peace. Art. Creation. How dare you respond to such unbridled life affirming actions with destructive lies and hate?
SKI's words are also prescient. Being in Israel to "see the reality - it is not what you read about." According to your words, Haaretz is "the world's leading English-language Website for real-time news and analysis of Israel and the Middle East" As such, it is the monolith of your bastardized reporting that is creating the misrepresentation of Israel that SKI had to venture into Hebron to expose.
And, SKI learned the truth well. While bricks and giant rocks were being hurled at him in an attempt to maim and kill an artist of the world by "Palestinians", SKI was being treated to watermelon and lemonade by his new Israeli friends. When a group of stick weilding "Palestinian" youth tried to ambush SKI, he was saved by an IDF soldier. When SKI asked the soldier why he wore his helmet in the sweltering heat he was told because it was too unsafe for him to take it off. SKI learned, even in the heart of Hebron, a site of so much ridicule from your paper, that he loves Israel. "this place is amazing. It is this little gem." And, he hadn't even seen the Tel Aviv beach.
If only you could see what SKI saw. If only you could see the country through the wide-open eyes of an unbiased observer. But, you can't because you were not there. You weren't even there when you wrote this article. If only you could remove your destruction-tinged glasses that want only to strip and break. But, you can't. You can't because there is something else going on here.
Maybe you are not just evil-doers who hate all art and creation. It would be very Haaretz of me to make such black and white, sweepingly broad, generalizations. It would be far too much like the "reporting" of Mr. Sadeh to make accusations without merit and to find negative in all your actions. Maybe SKI was prescient again when he said that graffiti is "more powerful than any billboard...anything that advertisers spend money on." While your market share continues to plummet in Israel, your pay walls become increasingly taller. While your subscription base dwindles, your need for financing becomes greater. Perhaps that is why my computer is littered with pop-up ads whenever I have to pay to access one of your hit pieces. It is well known that bashing Israel creates controversy that then begets readership. Controversy increases when you drag a name like the JNF into your fire as you attempt to siphon off their following at the same time you steal a JPR article hoping to cannibalize their readership. Maybe this is what is going on.
Maybe you are not haters of art. Maybe you are just petty thieves. Trying to rob the JNF and JPR makes (corrupt and nefarious) sense. But, including such a "small" and "small" (if you read closely, you will get this joke) organization like mine seems foolish. After all, I don't have a PR office like the JNF. I don't have filters and talking points. I have this silly little thing called reality and this big stupid thing called a mouth and I use both often. So, why pick on us? we have nothing to lose. After all, I don't write to you to ask you to fix your erroneous comments (we all know you fired or merged your corrections department long ago in an attempt to stop the fiscal bleeding). Thinking Mr. Sadeh would open his eyes to nuance or dialogue is silly too - we've seen his other "articles". I write because you are bigger than us and if I can bait you into the next round of this fight you started, I might be able to get some free publicity and some funding and go to Israel and add beauty as often as you think we do. That is my gain. You do not have a similar advancement from throwing stones at us.
Unless, and this would be awesome, we are not as inconsequential as you try and make us appear. When we painted bomb shelters in Sderot, we helped expose the world to the constant trauma that "Palestinian" rockets inflict upon Israel. When we painted in Hebron, our artists were exposed to the violence that "Palestinians" visit upon their Israeli neighbors and, in this case, on visiting international artists with no political agenda. When we paint in Judea and Samaria, we expose the warmth and righteousness of these people you sneeringly call settlers. When we speak, we elevate and educate. We provide truth and, like good journalists should, bring reality to the eyes of the uninformed. Artists 4 Israel must be on the cusp of exposing something good if you are attacking us preemptively. Like the Temple being re-built, I hope we find whatever it is that you fear and we expose it speedily. Maybe we already know something about you and why the JNF and JPR are so fearful to you. Then again, maybe we don't. Whatever it is, it is coming. In the meantime, I thank you for your support.
My name is Craig Dershowitz and I am the Executive Director of Artists 4 Israel. Since you have failed to print my comment to Mr. Sadeh's article, What's between the JNF and pro-Israel graffiti in Hebron (or, alternately, Spray-Painting Over a Problem: What's the connection between a right-wing organization that spray-paints graffiti in Hebron and the Jewish National Fund), I am forced to write this open letter. As there are slight differences between your online and print copy, this letter will address them in combination.
I do not write nor speak on behalf of the JNF and, although I do speak for Artists 4 Israel, this letter is not on their behalf. As an author and a proud supporter of freedom of press, I write on behalf of journalism. What you have published is not an article, it is not reporting, it is a thinly and insultingly poorly veiled editorial. It is out of date, fallacious, inflammatory and flies in the face of journalistic standards. Oh, yeah, and it is really, really poorly written.
At your own words (words you use twice in one sentence - high school writing 101 mistake), Artists 4 Israel is a "small organization", yet, you spend a whole half a page above the fold decrying our work. Must have been a slow news day or, perhaps, there is something more here. After all, if you are going to give us so much press (PS, thanks for that), you should at least really make your accusations sting and not just ridicule our size. Yet, the best you do is describe us as "right-wing" (again, using that phrase twice - seriously, can we buy you a thesaurus - maybe the JNF will pay for it) yet your only proof of this political orientation is that we paint "Pro-Israel" messages. Your equation then is that "Pro-Israel" is synonymous with "right-wing". We do not ascribe to a notion of right and left wing as such divisive politics is an invention of bigots like yourself who choose to separate and alienate. We choose to unite. We believe that beauty of art is pan-wing. However we do see your bias through this false equivalency. Yours is a sad belief which paints (pun intended) everything life affirming with the gloomy sepia of politrix (typo very much intended).
Spray-paint (I want to write "sic" here but I think it is more relevant to point out that you don't even copy edit your own work. It is spray paint - two words, no hyphen) is a form of creation. It is creation, like the Third Temple might be. It is creation like our paintings in Judea, Samaria, Tel Aviv, Ariel, Shiloh, Arab villages across Israel, mixed schools and community centers. We have created art in child daycare centers, in refuges for battered women and homes for at-risk children. It is creation like the JNF's planting of trees, building of parks, growing of flowers, green grass and a hopeful earth-driven future. It is the opposite of your attempts to destruct and to destroy. Grab a can of spray paint (hyphenate if you must) or a handful of seeds and earth and create something other than the fictions in your reporting. No one can hate life that much so, maybe there is something else going on here.
Your story's lies go from the wishful (saying we come to Israel to paint every few months (if only!) to the mundane (there are no videos on our website) to the slanderous (painting on a "Palestinian's" home never happened). The only truth in your fable comes from your uncredited appropriation of a JPR video. The JPR, unlike you, are serious, investigative journalists. Their story was timely (aka the "new" part of "news"), their reporters were on the ground, their sources were primary, their reporting comprehensive and multi-sided. You couldn't even post the video that matched your description of it! That is not me speaking on the video. That is SKI, a member of the UR New York art collective, a New Yorker of Dominican descent and Catholic beliefs. Yet, you hinted at some sort of racist, evil religious Jewish plot in our painting of the Temple. That makes no sense. Maybe there is something more going on here.
SKI's words are precious. He informs everyone (well, except for your editorial staff it seems) that he is there "spreading the word of peace through art". Peace. Art. Creation. How dare you respond to such unbridled life affirming actions with destructive lies and hate?
SKI's words are also prescient. Being in Israel to "see the reality - it is not what you read about." According to your words, Haaretz is "the world's leading English-language Website for real-time news and analysis of Israel and the Middle East" As such, it is the monolith of your bastardized reporting that is creating the misrepresentation of Israel that SKI had to venture into Hebron to expose.
And, SKI learned the truth well. While bricks and giant rocks were being hurled at him in an attempt to maim and kill an artist of the world by "Palestinians", SKI was being treated to watermelon and lemonade by his new Israeli friends. When a group of stick weilding "Palestinian" youth tried to ambush SKI, he was saved by an IDF soldier. When SKI asked the soldier why he wore his helmet in the sweltering heat he was told because it was too unsafe for him to take it off. SKI learned, even in the heart of Hebron, a site of so much ridicule from your paper, that he loves Israel. "this place is amazing. It is this little gem." And, he hadn't even seen the Tel Aviv beach.
If only you could see what SKI saw. If only you could see the country through the wide-open eyes of an unbiased observer. But, you can't because you were not there. You weren't even there when you wrote this article. If only you could remove your destruction-tinged glasses that want only to strip and break. But, you can't. You can't because there is something else going on here.
Maybe you are not just evil-doers who hate all art and creation. It would be very Haaretz of me to make such black and white, sweepingly broad, generalizations. It would be far too much like the "reporting" of Mr. Sadeh to make accusations without merit and to find negative in all your actions. Maybe SKI was prescient again when he said that graffiti is "more powerful than any billboard...anything that advertisers spend money on." While your market share continues to plummet in Israel, your pay walls become increasingly taller. While your subscription base dwindles, your need for financing becomes greater. Perhaps that is why my computer is littered with pop-up ads whenever I have to pay to access one of your hit pieces. It is well known that bashing Israel creates controversy that then begets readership. Controversy increases when you drag a name like the JNF into your fire as you attempt to siphon off their following at the same time you steal a JPR article hoping to cannibalize their readership. Maybe this is what is going on.
Maybe you are not haters of art. Maybe you are just petty thieves. Trying to rob the JNF and JPR makes (corrupt and nefarious) sense. But, including such a "small" and "small" (if you read closely, you will get this joke) organization like mine seems foolish. After all, I don't have a PR office like the JNF. I don't have filters and talking points. I have this silly little thing called reality and this big stupid thing called a mouth and I use both often. So, why pick on us? we have nothing to lose. After all, I don't write to you to ask you to fix your erroneous comments (we all know you fired or merged your corrections department long ago in an attempt to stop the fiscal bleeding). Thinking Mr. Sadeh would open his eyes to nuance or dialogue is silly too - we've seen his other "articles". I write because you are bigger than us and if I can bait you into the next round of this fight you started, I might be able to get some free publicity and some funding and go to Israel and add beauty as often as you think we do. That is my gain. You do not have a similar advancement from throwing stones at us.
Unless, and this would be awesome, we are not as inconsequential as you try and make us appear. When we painted bomb shelters in Sderot, we helped expose the world to the constant trauma that "Palestinian" rockets inflict upon Israel. When we painted in Hebron, our artists were exposed to the violence that "Palestinians" visit upon their Israeli neighbors and, in this case, on visiting international artists with no political agenda. When we paint in Judea and Samaria, we expose the warmth and righteousness of these people you sneeringly call settlers. When we speak, we elevate and educate. We provide truth and, like good journalists should, bring reality to the eyes of the uninformed. Artists 4 Israel must be on the cusp of exposing something good if you are attacking us preemptively. Like the Temple being re-built, I hope we find whatever it is that you fear and we expose it speedily. Maybe we already know something about you and why the JNF and JPR are so fearful to you. Then again, maybe we don't. Whatever it is, it is coming. In the meantime, I thank you for your support.
Thursday, June 20, 2013
An Open Letter to Max Blumenthal, Philip Weiss and Mondoweiss
In response to this ARTICLE
Dear Max and all,
It is an absolute honor to have your undivided attention. Truly, I appreciate that you have spent countless hours researching me, exploring the depths of google, listening to my speeches, observing my actions, studying not only what I have written but what others have written about me, admiring my appearance, commenting on my looks, talking to others about me and learning my life's most intimate and personal sadnesses.
As you made clear, I love many things. I love Israel. I love art. I love creativity. I love my dog. I love freedoms.
What do you love? Besides me, what occupies your time?
It is hurtful to have my most personal issues dragged up and exposed once again. But, it gives me great joy to know that you have so little negative to say about the organization I helped build and the country that organization supports that you must resort to personal attacks on a lone individual.
So, why you continue to obsess over those that strive for peace and beauty in our world, I will take your words as impetus to continue to create.
(PS: I am 36, not 32 and I am nowhere near affluent - but thanks though!).
Dear Max and all,
It is an absolute honor to have your undivided attention. Truly, I appreciate that you have spent countless hours researching me, exploring the depths of google, listening to my speeches, observing my actions, studying not only what I have written but what others have written about me, admiring my appearance, commenting on my looks, talking to others about me and learning my life's most intimate and personal sadnesses.
As you made clear, I love many things. I love Israel. I love art. I love creativity. I love my dog. I love freedoms.
What do you love? Besides me, what occupies your time?
It is hurtful to have my most personal issues dragged up and exposed once again. But, it gives me great joy to know that you have so little negative to say about the organization I helped build and the country that organization supports that you must resort to personal attacks on a lone individual.
So, why you continue to obsess over those that strive for peace and beauty in our world, I will take your words as impetus to continue to create.
(PS: I am 36, not 32 and I am nowhere near affluent - but thanks though!).
Monday, June 10, 2013
Monday, June 3, 2013
Friday, May 31, 2013
Sunday, May 5, 2013
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Monday, April 29, 2013
Sunday, April 28, 2013
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Friday, March 22, 2013
Monday, March 18, 2013
Hillel's Many Vices
In response to THIS ARTICLE
My name is Craig Dershowitz. I am a former freelance writer for VICE Magazine, Editor-in-Chief of BOMBIN' Magazine and the current Executive Director of Artists 4 Israel, an Israeli advocacy organization that, although having no formal relationship with National Hillel, works very closely with the Hillel Israel Fellows on a large portion of college campuses. I do not speak, in any capacity, for Hillel.
Vice Magazine has a long history of one-sided, overly-simplistic and borderline ignorant analysis on Israel. Its self described "online den of nefarious activites", while ironically self-flagellating to the point of near humor, best describes its ethos. This is a periodical whose reporting seeks sensationalism, scandal and stupidity. It is sophomoric at best. At worst, it is downright mockery of investigative journalism (similar to the New York Times). Their brand of "immersive" reportage, a bastardized version of Gonzo journalism, removes all hope for a nuanced or comprehensive review of a situation. After all, if one must enter a "den" of vice, it is best that one not bring with it a noble hero such as Israel but, instead, travel with the murderers, terrorists and liars that oftentimes direct the anti-Israel chorus.
As such, I have declined in the past to respond to Vice's many absurd anti-Israel stories. After all, a magazine also known for their "Guide to Shagging Muslims" where it is taught that "concubines are treated just fine" and that there is "something sensual and potent about the Arab male" while celebrating "raping and pillaging" fantasies is racist and deliberately provocative. Any response on my part would only satisfy their desire for controversy and further the joke that this is a magazine to be taken with any bit of seriousness. I still read the Do and Don't section, though. You guys are hilarious!
But, now, that hilarity is at the expense of an unarmed opponent and it is a whole lot less funny. I do not expect Hillel to respond equal to the puerile standards of Vice. Perhaps it is because Hillel is far more considered and conscientious than that. Perhaps it is because Hillel's students sometimes tend to be shy and retiring - some would say dorky (sorry, guys). Perhaps because, as the first line of the Vice article indicates, Hillel and the Jewish world which it attempts to represent is full of a million voices, a million thoughts, a million ideas, hopes and challenges.
Unlike the ideological purity similar to any fascist group mentality that can be found in Israel's constantly "on-message" enemies, Hillel is made up of individuals with opinions, thoughts and sensitivities that are as dynamic, shifting and multi-dimensional as any one person can be. It is a false-positive to take one incident on one campus by one person at one time and stereotype it to be the truth of the whole. There is a humanity in Hillel (specifically speaking, not metaphorically) that is the basis for the hope of peaceful reconciliation in the Middle East. It is person to person, peer to peer and, as such, it is sometimes sloppy and vulnerable to attack by unscrupulous parties who don't seek dialogue but want rhetorical victory.
Any organization or individual with the requisite appreciation for thoughtfulness and honesty that is of utmost importance when discussing the serious life and death situation in the Middle East would be incapable of matching Vice's broad over-generalizations and reductionist practices that would be libelous if not for their inanity. Vice's claims that an organization who had donated $240,000 (while a lot for more and the freelance writers of Vice who make a pack of Kools and bragging rights per published story earn, is an insubstantial sum in comparison to the millions anti-Israel, terrorist-sympathizing groups spend on college campuses) had influenced policy hints at typical and boring stereotypes of the hook-nosed, rich Shylock Jew and the casual use of the term "West Bank" to refer to an area whose name is, at best, open for debate, shows how little Vice cares for fairness and accuracy.
Most embarrassing of all, Vice discusses the BDS as a legitimate movement. This mischaracterization is particularly offensive as Vice considers itself the bastion of free speech. The BDS is nothing more than a mask for the crimes of censorship and the oppression of arts and creative dialogue. The BDS movement supports and is supported by those in traditionalist Muslim ruled countries where art is threatened by religious doctrine, moral orthodoxy and political ideology. How a magazine that would be banned in most countries who support the same sort of anti-Israel sentiment published within the magazine can support these combatants is irony to its fullest extent.
But, it is irony and not reporting that fuels Vice. According to the referenced article, Hillel is "staunchly pro-Israel" (semi-true if you squint) - they are actually "steadfastly committed to the support of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state"; Hillel has "disciplined" individuals for promoting discussion of the Israel-Palestine conflict (not true at all); and according to one student (people not at all prone to hyperbole and dramatic mistruths) McCarthyist (true only if McCarthy was completely the opposite of who he was).
And, although the quoted collegian is a poor student of history, I understand her frustration. I, too, have been stymied by Hillel. However, it is that frustration that has allowed me to take a more in-depth look at the organization and to find great respect for it.
As a proud Israeli advocacy group with politics that are often considered "right wing" because we have actively supported the people living in Judea and Samaria (through the sin of painting pretty pictures), Artists 4 Israel have sometimes felt under-appreciated by Hillel. We are often asked "but, you will represent both sides in the conflict when you speak, won't you?" Well, no. Their side represents them. We represent us and a third party represents that third party. The overwhelming desire of Hillel to make sure "all sides" are heard is, to this man, weak but, it is also inclusive and far more representative of a mindset of peacefulness and co-existence found far more in Israel than in her enemies, be they ideologically or the homicide-belt toting kind. Even when attempting to erect a Bomb Shelter Museum that simulates life in Israel's south when the popularly-elected terrorists of Gaza fire rockets at kindergartens (p.s. that entire past sentence was frighteningly 100% factual), we have been cautioned "make sure you offer all alternative views." I still don't know what the other side of "don't shoot rockets at children" might be but I do applaud the mindset that seeks to turn every moment into an opportunity to consider the opinions of the other and to look for bridges to mutual respect.
On some campuses, I have been welcome. On others, not so much. The truth of the matter is, each campus Hillel operates semi-autonomously. Some are more "right wing", most are more "left wing", but to ascribe a universal truth to any of them is false at base. In fact, most of my frustration with Hillel has come from its "open tent" philosophy where far too many opinions are taken into account and where, due to Hillel's inclusive and forgiving nature, enemies of Israel use this good nature to get inside and corrupt within. Could you imagine attending a SJP or BDS group meeting and asking them to consider Israel's point of view. Go ahead, Vice, embed that reporter and lets see what happens. In fact, send a reporter to Israel as a "Palestinian" sympathizer and one to Gaza as an Israel supporter. Lets see who files their story first or at all.
My anger at attending a Hillel program or meeting a Hillel sanctioned speaker or, even, speaking to a Hillel employee who openly advocates a two-state solution (almost all do) without even considering a one-state solution or allows for speakers overly-critical of the state or who disinvite me because of my "radical" opinions (opinions such as Gaza terrorists are bad people and innocent civilians living ANYWHERE in Israel deserve equal protections) is softened by the fsct that they are trying so hard to offer as many middle of the road, progressive, peace-building, war-stopping ideas as possible.
Unfortunately, for Hillel, they do not recognize that while they are centrist at best and inclusive to a fault, their enemies are not. The old expression about giving an inch and others taking a foot is true here but it is quite problematic. Where Hillel has sought to be fair and open, the enemies of openness are now using that freedom to demand ever more and more liberties while shutting down dissent and closing the door to the other side. This referenced article is but one example. Hillel is a grand organization with high hopes. It dreams of a time when Jews may represent themselves freely on campus and when they are not being attacked for supporting a country that allows for their protection in the face of terrorists and terrorist sympathizers. But, until then, it must walk a treacherous path in between staunch freedom of speech advocates as Artists 4 Israel, true peaceniks, thoughtful students, sensationalist magazines and the manipulation of anti-Israel groups in costume. I do not envy them.
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Billet Unchained: An Open Letter to Alexander Billet and the Electronic Intifada (press)
In response to THIS POST
African-American History Month draws to a close in just a few days and, it seems, that Alexander Billet has already forgotten the lessons he was supposed to learn. The black community in America and around the world is beautiful, dynamic, nuanced and multi-faceted. It is not, as Alexander's above referenced post asserts, some sort of simplistic caricature of a people defined only by slavery and bass-heavy music.
Alexander Billet's post is patronizing, paternalistic, insulting and viciously racist.
He envisions himself some sort of Dr. King Schultz riding in
The very assertion that hip-hop is the essence of the African-American experience is pig-headed and indicative of Mr. Billet's disgustingly myopic view of the black community.
According to Alexander, hip-hop is "a music and style that gestated in reaction to the willful neglect and apartheid treatment of African-Americans and people of color." If we ignore the fact (no easy task) that this sentence indicates America as an apartheid state (there are not a lot of African-Americans in South Africa - just Africans), what we can not ignore is that hip-hop was not born from that racist form of government. By doing so, Alexander is conflating the entirety of African-American existence into two events - one theme. To do so is to dehumanize a race that is so much more. While it is true that a portion of hip-hop is dedicated to raising the masses, speaking truth to power and being the "CNN of the Ghetto", most of it is not. For every Chuck D reporting live from the Terrordome, you have a Fat Boy singing about cheesecake, a Li'l Wayne waving his red flag, a DJ Khaled yelling non-sequiturs, an Action Bronson talking about hookers in Poughkeepsi, new dances being danced, new slang being invented, a Queen Latifah rhyming about women's rights regardless of skin color or a Tim Dog (bringing it back) reppin' New York City for no good reason.
The beauty of hip-hop is that it is so varied and, so often, meaningless. By assigning it only one role or insinuating meaning where there is none is to act as if judge of what that role should be or arbiter of that meaning. Telling a people what they should or should not be, limiting their expression and experience and speaking on their behalf is paternalistic and culturally colonizing. Alexander Billet, by having the chutzpah to believe he knows what is and what is not hip-hop, is no better than Rudyard Kipling.
Worse yet, he then attempts to ghettoize the African-American community. In his mind, hip-hop is only for black people and, specifically, only for the downtrodden among them. By asserting a racial dependance on this art form, he invalidates the entire movement. Hip-hop is not a song or a pose. Hip-hop is a movement that has grown into one of, if not the, largest, most powerful artistic voices in the world. To relegate it simply to the poor, blacks of Alexander's provincial imagination is to discredit its transcendent power and universal message. More outrageous is his seeming belief that only blacks should practice hip-hop. Are there now race specific job descriptions? Should only Jews be accountants? Only Irishmen be cops? Alexander Billet needs to leave his racism behind and realize that he can not strip boundaries by the creation of more.
Consider Gaza. After Israel gifted Gaza to the "Palestinians", the Gazans second move was to close the border to all Israelis and most Jews. (Their first move was to rain rocket fire down upon innocent Israelis. Their third was to elect a terrorist organization as their leadership. Fourth was to outlaw homosexuality). This is a direct and indisputable form of racism and apartheid. I pray that Alexander speak out against this actual practice of apartheid and not simply wield the word as a weapon used to cut away at the proud history of African-Americans nor to pervert their artistic vision into his own personal slave fantasy.
I also pray that Alexander put down his calls for boycott. When coming from a place of support for the apartheid, terrorist regime of Gaza, such calls ring hollow and can be seen for what they truly are - censorship. Hip-hop has a long and sad history of oppression. It has been misappropriated by marketers, co-opted by virulently self-serving intellectual colonists such as Mr. Billet and kicked and shunted out of mainstream society for so long. Mr. Billet seeks to limit it growth even further, to squash it under the guise of self-preservation. You can not hear one's true voice if you make them shut their mouth. Unless, of course, in Alex's case when you attempt to become that voice.
I must wonder if Mr. Billet's naming of some awful "Palestinian" rappers is not just a marketing attempt. In hip-hop, all that matters is skill. And, the acts for which Alex shills have none. Unless, of course, he was to get this article of his published somewhere, create a fictional racial conflict and cash in. Hmmmm...
Hip-hop never grew from apartheid conditions. And, fortunately, today, hip-hop is not merely a passive aggressive stance against racism. That war is long over. As Jay-Z said many years ago: "this ain't black and white, my nigger, we off that...tell Rush Limbaugh to get off my balls." As Game said "Fuck Jesse Jackson because it ain't about race now." Alex is no Jesse Jackson - he never attempted to truly lead his people. He is no Rush Limbaugh - he never had one ounce of that man's political acumen. Yet, somehow, Alex manages to squeeze the evil, hateful racism out of both and find a way to insult all people, especially those seeking harmony through creation, music and non-violent means.
Even Lupe Fiasco, Alex's poster boy (and 9/11 Truther with a trilogy of songs called "American Terrorist") has declared, in the very same song quoted by Mr. Billet: "Murdering is not Islam." I strongly suggest that Mr. Bellit take Lupe's message to the Gaza for which he stands and tell them that the murder of their own people, the slaughter of Israelis, the use of their own children as human shields is not acceptable.
The black community is rich and varied. It is indeed stained by slavery and forever traumatized by bigotry but it is also proud, full of great success - lawyers, doctors, world leaders, one current American President. Greater than all that, it is human. The black world is about the everyday man, the father who wakes up every morning to go to work to put food on his family's table, the young lady who struggles with calculus, the rapper, the octogenarian, all of us. None of this is because of or even despite of racism. It is regardless of it - the black community transcends its past, rises above towards it future and can not be summarized by one angry man with a anti-Semitic ax to grind. Maybe Alexander Billet is, after all, the Dr. King Schultz of his own bloody imagination - a mercenary out for his own good, stoking hatred and attempting to use the black man for his own evil ends.
Harlem Shake: The Enemies of Israel are the Enemies of Stupid Dance
I guess it was inevitable that we would have to do a Harlem Shake related post. SEE THIS ARTICLE. Egypt a declared enemy of Israel has arrested 4 kids for doing the Harlem Shake. Israel, on the other hand, had the biggest Harlem Shake so far.
Actually, not sure whose side I am on on this one!
PRESS: Electronic Intifadah Promotes Us
say what you want to say just spell our name right. See HERE. Response to follow whenever we time after we stop having to report on things like how the enemies of Israel are also the enemies of dance (see here).
Monday, February 25, 2013
An Open Letter to Alicia Keys
Dear Alicia,
My job here at Artists 4 Israel to refute the lies of the BDS. I am supposed to do so in a professional way. We know what they say to be so inaccurate, wrong, fraudulent, racist and insulting that we need not use tricks or impassioned pleas to discredit it. They claim apartheid, we can simply explain what is apartheid. End of story.
But, for you, I must be impassioned. I must be "set on fire". Alicia, we grew up in the same time period, in the same type of community, in the same mindset. We both continue to battle racism and hate. We are both proud of our heritage, however unusual it may appear to some. You are a strong, proud woman. My father died early and I was raised by a similarly strong and proud woman.
The BDS is going to try and tempt you to cancel your concert in Israel by abusing the word apartheid. It is a definition so far removed from the reality of apartheid that it is insulting to all those who truly suffered under that brutal regime. They are going to hide the fact that those they support are a woman-hating and woman-oppressing set of nations. They are going to ignore the history of racism, not only against Jews but against African-Americans.
They are going to attempt to make you censor yourself. They are going to ask you to oppress yourself and take the music and femininity and strength which brought you to where you are today and throw it away.
Then, when you choose to continue forward, to continue to share your music with the world, they will turn nasty. They will seek to vilify you for choosing freedom of expression over repression. They will call your act too sexy as they did with Rihanna. They will attempt to blackmail and extort you.
Luckily, like myself, you grew up around thugs and criminals. You will not be afraid.
Alicia, "Falling" came out at a time in life when I was DJing at clubs in NY. You would remember them - NV, Cheetah, Life - and you were our biggest star. We would play song after song of aggressive rap. People would be dancing on tables, screaming out the curses and ignorance of these songs. New York was still cold back then. There was still hate we didn't understand. Everyone would be posturing, acting tough, posing for the inevitable pictures, believing themselves to be bigger than the poverty, crime and dirt of New York.
And, then, I would drop "Falling" and we were healed. Grown men would stop their tough act and sing along. There was an acapella version and all I needed to do was let that first line hit the air. All of a sudden, eyes were opened. As you sung the very word, love would fill the room. You helped us transcend.
Alicia, don't take my words about Israel as gospel. It is a beautiful place with freedoms for all, especially for the most vulnerable members of our society. See that for yourself. Don't take the BDS words for gospel. Go to Israel with the same open eyes you provided us those cold, angry nights at the club. Fill the world with more love - help us to transcend once again.
An Open Letter to Gilad Atzmon (On Intellect)
In response to THIS CONFUSION.
Dear Gilad,
I believe that you best summed up a point Israel supporters have been trying to make for some time: "For the BDS leadership, intellect is a threat". Indeed! For once, we agree.
I think you should also add: For BDS sympathizers, intellect is an elusive beast. It is a beast with a racist's head atop a criminal's body.
Now, I normally reserve my criticism for your movement to the undeniable fact that one of its three tenants (and a third of its name) is based on trying to confuse, trick, extort and blackmail artists into self-censorship. But, today. Well, today you crossed a line of logic that is just too silly to let slide. And, worse yet, you are trying to deprive me of my art. Tsk, tsk.
My art is writing. My art is advocacy. My art is fighting you and your organization, the oppressors of women, creativity and freedom. My art is showing the hypocrisy of the BDS campaign. My art is picking apart your fallacious arguments and showing how ridiculous they are at core. My art is avoiding the divisive accusations of racism and seeking to destroy your message with the very message itself.
But, today you have made all that moot. Today, you have put the first stake in the heart of your vampiric organization. Today, you have lifted the woman oppressing veil for which your organization stands and showing the world the hatred upon which your organization is based. Today, you have begun to kill your own movement.
If you are the Godot of an artless world, so be it. But, today, you prove that for BDS sympathizers, intellect is a hated lie, an apology for bigotry and racism.
You begin by defending George Galloway. George Galloway is known to be involved with: removing homosexual rights from his party's platform, asserting that there are circumstances where rape is not rape, stealing money from needy Iraqi citizens in the Oil for Food program and openly supporting Hamas. He is a man so revolting that he was refused even entrance to Canada. Canada, the nicest country in the world.
This time, Galloway is under attack for walking out of a debate (that he was losing) because he did not want to debate the Israeli that he knew but pretended to be surprised to be debating. The BDS then distanced themselves from him, aware that his comments at the debate appeared to be anti-Semitic and, as Rachel Shabi, a spokesperson for the BDS indicated, by showing his anti-Semitism, it might drive away some of the Jewish support that has been tricked into helping the BDS.
You, Gilad Atzmon are angry at this Jew for trying to get more Jews to help you who hates Jews. Whoa, once.
You deny anti-Semitism by making the following points:
"BDS Committee in Ramallah has, once again, had to bow to its [Jewish] paymasters."
"Do you really want to turn Palestine (sic) into a synagogue and the solidarity movement into a yeshiva?"
and consistently referring to the "Jews in the movement" as some sort of scourge that needs to be eliminated.
Doesn't all this smack of anti-Semitism? Doesn't it just shout it from the Dome of the Rock? What is more indicative of Judaism than references to temples and religious schools? What is more old school racism than the hint of Jews as money-lenders and bank controllers? Not only is your anti-Semitism anti-Semitism, it is one of the oldest, most boring forms. At least come up with something new.
Wait, this is new: You confirm that Omar Barghouti is a racist. Well, we agree again. Barghouti is a racist and the leadership of the BDS - like Barghouti and yourself - are threatened by intellectualism.
To summarize your article. You are not racist because you are racist. The BDS isn't racist enough. You hate Jews so much you don't even want them tricking other Jews into supporting your racism. Whoa again.
Friday, February 22, 2013
The Israel College Lobby Has It All Wrong: A Brief Manifesto
As the Executive Director of an Israeli advocacy organization with the budget closer to that of a squirrel than, lets say, the Jewish Federation of Peoria, Illinois, I have tried to keep my mouth shut for fear of biting the hand that once in a while feeds. As well, there is a sense of "professional courtesy", "not rocking the boat", not presenting "shanda for the goyim" and other quotation mark worthy platitudes that keep me from speaking ill about my "partners" even if, sometimes, they act more like "competitors". Case in point, one organization that shall not be named has decided to steal one of our ideas and begin hosting a program directly like ours. How do I know this for certain? They reached out to our artists and tried to bribe them away from us! I know, right? I will deal with them later in this post.
The true impetus for writing is not anger at this direct thievery of our work. Instead, I am motivated by righteous indignation at the amount of energy, time, money and other resources that these organizations are wasting, causing us far more long-term damage than our enemies. This week alone, I read two articles in major Jewish publications explaining the "best practices" for invigorating Israel sentiment on campus. I will not name the papers nor the organizations - yet.
What follows is a five point list of "do nots" that all Israel advocacy organizations with a college program should abide by. This could be followed by a list of five affirmative items however, they would basically be the converse of the original five and I have too much else to do actually helping the image of Israel on campus to sit here and do all the work for these other guys. All of the below flies in the face of current wisdom. And, while these ideas may or may not be right - all of the previous ideas are wrong - proven wrong, terribly wrong. Israel might be the greatest product in the history of the world with no hyperbole. They are just in the face of injustice, strong in the face of strength, peaceful in the face of war and loving in the face of hate. Yet, these organizations with histories far longer and budgets far greater than ours still have the need to create best practices and stick around since they have failed miserably in the last 40 years. Were Artists 4 Israel given the keys to the kingdom of advocacy - we would be in and out in under 10. Job done.
List below the picture.
1. Do not "empower student leaders" nor "train advocates". Colleges maintain its own ecosystem of leadership. There are natural student leaders, taste-makers, trend-setters and, generally, "cool kids". Whether these students lead by purpose or accident, they all share certain similarities at direct odds with the current Israel advocacy on-campus model. Natural student leaders are untrained. They lead by inherent, natural instinct. Natural student leaders are unannounced and unsanctioned. The second an outside group anoints one a leader, they immediately lose their credibility and, thus, power to lead or influence. This is true not only for the eternally discredited current crop of on-campus advocacy organizations but of any group. In college, sanction equates to stasis. On-campus groups would be best advised to forego any student leader building exercise (my sincere apologies to all you kids who were hoping for a free trip to some warm climate for a leadership "conference" which we all know is code for drinking and sexing). Instead, they should seek to determine the student leaders, particularly those in other fields: the quarterback, the DJ, the funny fat kid, the sexy cheerleader and offer them some brief knowledge of Israel that they can generally incorporate into their repertoire. No, there will be no immediate measureables but considering how everyone is doing on campus, that might be in your best interests. A longer dissertation on this topic is available on request.
2. Do not "keep an on-campus presence". Do fashions stay static? Does the basketball star stay more than 5 years (3 only if he is very good)? In all seriousness, college campuses although maintaining some level of iconic similarity (the druggies will always be around), undergo complete metamorphosis every few years. Consider the example of "21 Jump Street" - the movie, not the tv show. Two undercover cops go back to high school only to discover that the ideas of cool and un-cool have changed drastically since they were last there. Not only is this movie funny (I was shocked too), it is instructive of changing social dynamics and unpredictable trends. The movie was a commentary on the very tv show from which it was derived and the faulty premise that any external group could ever create a lasting and permanent youthfulness. Not to spoil it but, at the end, two of the characters from the original series get murdered - a sure metaphor. Conversely, get in, get out. Like the Talmud demands anyone do when growing things, rotate crops and leave the land fallow for at least a year. Step back. Allow natural growth, re-consider your seeds and, if you have the proper product, begin anew.
3. Do not partner with other organizations towards status quo. We have been approached by various groups to bring our program to many campuses (usually this desire to partner is inspired by students demanding to the other orgs that they want us). These groups always seek to partner not only with us but with others as well. The resulting program by committee gets messy, competitive and, eventually, ineffective. While partnership might be a kind way to lessen the responsibility if things fail or to grab shine if they succeed or to share costs - it lessens the creative landscape for new ideas to be born. Instead, consider a moratorium on united programs. Think of your own, unique talents in advocacy and create programming toward that. You will learn that when the idea is right, it will find a way.
4. Do not steal. Related to the above. Yes, we know. We came out of nowhere, with no funding and routinely bring 100s more students to our events than you do to yours. Yes, we know. The students who attend our events transcend all racial, religious, social barriers. Yes, we know, we are sort after to the point where students pay us to come while most orgs must pay to play as it were, pumping money into the school economy to get followers. But, it just isn't right. I mean, this rule is one of the top 10 in the Bible. It is also bad for advocacy. We are experts in our type of advocacy, you are not. If you were to try and do our program you would fail, ruin the program and eliminate a worthwhile idea. At the same time, you would not be focusing on your own new initiatives. I think the converse of this is simple enough.
5. Do not do what I just did. Do not tell the world your strategies. Do not publicize your reports on best ways to manipulate the student body. Do not even admit that there are tactics much less announcing them. When I was a money-laundering prevention officer at Morgan Stanley I got in a lot of trouble when I offered to tell John Mack that a company (and a government) that describes its money-laundering prevention strategies is a company that has just told those looking to violate these same laws how to do it. Were other organizations promoting these agenda in closed door Protocols type meetings, that would be one thing. But, those don't exist or I have not been invited. It would even be acceptable if these ideas were effective and thus worth the cost of tipping your hand to the other side. They are neither. Keep it quiet, guys. Close in the huddle.
Let's see how many people this offends.
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
An Open Letter to David Sheen and Mondoweiss: Skateboarding Trips Are Not a Crime
Philip Weiss' Mondoweiss (oh, wow, I just got that - clever), via David Sheen (probably no relation) has once again decided to report on Artists 4 Israel (see here). This time, they are taking shots at our Skate The World trip, an official Birthright Israel tour co-sponsored by Young Judea. The article is, basically, an extended version of a previous post by +972 Magazine (see here). Of course, we rudely responded to +972 (see here), probably giving them more credibility than they ever deserved but...hey...we were bored that day.
In the past, Mondoweiss has written about our BOMB SHELTER MUSEUM and about our ARTISTIC MISSION TO ISRAEL (for my take on the "washing" label - see bottom of this post). We wrote about his CHEST HAIR. It is interesting that this time they failed to mention us by name and that Philip hid behind his faceless co-defendant (see pic above for Sheen's greatest photoshop job so far) and aspiring graphic designer to take kitten-paw swipes at us is interesting. Maybe he thought David Sheen with his thesaurus of skateboard jargon and grandfather like knowledge of "hip" would be an equal match for our wit. Well, better luck next time. See below.
Davey and I do have one thing in common: we both enjoy a good mocking of the other side to show just how ridiculous they are. Except, this time, it is not very funny. The posts by +972 and Mr. Sheen are furthering a trend already far too prevalent amongst all the enemies of Israel: a separatist hatred for those with differing tastes, lifestyles, sexual orientations, races and cultures.
Making fun of people planking is worthy of a chuckle (well, would have been 2.5 years ago when it was topical). I will even go so far as to say that Steam Punk fans deserve a good ribbing (well, 1.5 years ago). But, then we get to Jugaloos. Jugaloos is a community that certainly dresses and acts outside the norm but it is a subculture based on total acceptance and community support. Of course, these are just fictional trips, fantastical creations of David's feeble attempts at proving himself "cool" and showing off his Microsoft Paint circa 1996 graphics skills. When it comes to the real trips, Mr. Sheen is viciously un-funny.
Skateboarding is an international subculture that accepts all people, regardless of race, creed or sexuality. It is a society of individuals who are active, explorative, environmentally concerned, dedicated, supportive of each other and global in scale. Why would David have a problem with such a kind, loving group of people? Riders should be very concerned by Mr. Sheen's intolerance of them.
The trend of David and +972's disgust loses all humor when we get to the four actual trips these posts condemn: food-related, technology-related, handicap accessible and LGBT focused. While both +972 and Mondoweiss seemingly support a "Palestinian" state, it is not surprising, in particular, that they have some problem with homosexuality. "Palestine" as well as many other declared enemies of Israel have horrific histories of torturing and murdering LGBT citizens.
Israel has one of, if not the most, positive records on protecting homosexual rights. It is that very same inclusiveness and tolerance which makes it a nation that all should support and that every young Jew should be proud to visit. These young Jews, like all other young people, have multiple hobbies and passions. By Birthright Israel providing them with trips specifically focused on their personal and unique interests, they have an opportunity to increase their enjoyment and to discover an incredibly new and life-changing experience while maintaining a safety net of something they already know and feel comfortable within. I applaud Birthright, Young Judea and Artists 4 Israel for being so aware, considerate and giving towards the passions and beliefs of others. It is only the myopic, provincial haters like Mr. Sheen who are so focused on their burning hatred for Israel and all the people it protects who would seek to limit this experience.
I only wish that, contrary to Mr. Sheen's nearly reporting-less reporting (he admits to not having seen the very itinerary he is railing against), Birthright did offer political trips. There is a thriving skateboard community in Judea and Samaria, two areas that Birthright will not allow tours to visit. Not only should Jewish youth go there but so should all people so they could see for themselves that while outsiders like Philip Weiss and David Sheen throw hatred at homosexuals, handicapped individuals and the communities of the Yesha, the settlements of Judea and Samaria are peaceful and home to a diverse citizenry.
Then, I would welcome the opportunity for David, Philip and anyone else to take one of their Earthright trips. They should start in Iran and then visit Syria, Jordan and Gaza to see where their intolerance and focus on fighting and hate lead. They should go to the Sudan, Mali, Egypt and throughout North Africa to see what the Arab zealots whose ideology they share and promote think of them.
I will buy the tickets.
Thanks, guys. This was fun. See below for some commentary on Philip's overuse of the word "washing"/
Discuss Israel's record on homosexual rights and it is "pinkwashing". Discuss Israel's record on environmental rights and it is "greenwashing". Go to Israel and paint bomb shelters and it is "artwashing". My goal is to write a post on some Israeli super scientific soap invention (c'mon, you know that there is something like that out there considering all else their technology gurus can do) so that they can call it "washingwashing". Hehe. What is the difference between an Israeli advocate and an Israeli maid? The maid doesn't do window washing! Ha! I got a million of these.
Friday, February 15, 2013
An Open Letter to the Jewish Forward and Abe Foxman of the ADL. The BDS is Hate Action.
In response to THIS
The editorial by the Jewish Daily Forward is well-written, intelligent and makes some incredibly insightful and cogent points although it posits a misleading and problematic question.
Abe Foxman's decision to place a large ad in the print edition of the New York Times (at a cost that is a large percentage of Artists 4 Israel's entire annual budget) is misguided, poorly considered and a disservice to the Israeli advocacy community.
Both the decision by Mr. Foxman and the editorial question "Is BDS Hate Speech?" are incorrect at face and miss the greater issue. The BDS is far more than hate speech. The BDS is hate ACTION against artists (artists who are Jewish or not, Israeli or not). Consider their goal - to prevent the spread of cultural and academic items. We can argue whether or not it is hate speech, however, there is no argument that is repression. Worse, it is an insidious and self-replicating form of artistic oppression, self-censorship. Keyser Soze once said: "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." The truth is, the greatest trick he ever pulled was convincing others to be their own devils.
The enemies of Israel continue to prove themselves the enemies of free expression, creation and art. At some point today, if the New York Times does its job of reporting the news effectively (stop laughing), we will read about artists who have been banned from performing in an Arab nation, those who have been killed for expressing viewpoints that go against an Arab despot or any number of musicians, actors, writers, thinkers and creatives who are exiled, living in fear, imprisoned or worse. We will then compare this list of nations to those who attack Israel - militarily, politically or culturally - and we will see many similarities.
To turn the attention of the issue of attacks on the arts towards hate speech against Jews as Mr. Foxman does is a waste of money and energy. At best, it is a failed enterprise that serves no end. At worst, it benefits those it attempts to thwart. As we have editorialized about the failed attempts by Alan Dershowitz in this regard
HERE and HERE, all these actions serve to do are promote the BDS and its agenda. The Forward's editorial says it best: "turning it into a cause celebre for outside individuals and groups just feeds the media beasts and heightens [BDS'] exposure."
As such, the only proper response would be the creation of more art, the promotion of free expression and, as Artists 4 Israel does so well, the empowerment of creative individuals to support the proud nation of Israel through their unique talents. We agree with the editorial where it writes: "A better model is the reaction to a BDS conference held at the University of Pennsylvania last year - with quiet, affirmative programming by the campus Hillel..."
It is no surprise that the University of Pennsylvania was responsible for bringing Artists 4 Israel to its campus last year for one of our college programs. It was there that a number of New York's infamous graffiti artists painted a mural that read "I Support Israel." Students were given the opportunity to help us paint and sign their name to the same mural. When given the choice between hate speech and positive art, art wins every time.
We encourage Abe Foxman and Alan Dershowitz to consult with us before worsening these situations and we ask that Mr. Foxman re-invest the money with which his many donors entrusted him into positive programming like Artists 4 Israel.
PRESS and an Open Letter to +972Mag and Mairav Zonszein
In response to whatever THIS IS
Is this a negative story? Does the writer (whoa, that is being generous. Lets just say "blogger") attempt to use the device of rhetorical questions to insinuate something nefarious about our program but fail miserably because there is nothing bad here to report on? +972 resulted from "a merger of a number of popular English-language blogs..." - does this really mean that they were failed blogs which, unable to survive on their own, banded together in the hope that pooling their resources would keep them afloat?" Is it raining? Why do you park on a driveway and drive on a parkway? When does the term "blogger" stop you from having any journalistic standards like, oh, I don't know, contacting the two main subjects of your story for information on the story? How many more rhetorical questions do I need to ask until it becomes obvious that I am making fun of the story's lack of story.
It seems that the only actual reporting the blogger did was to research and expose that Birthright also has niche trips catering to the "LGBT community, food enthusiasts and wheelchair-bound Jews". Still not quite sure the blogger's intention of mentioning this in the story (if only she had used a random facetious question here to help clarify) so, I will offer an interpretation of its relevance. Birthright is awesome! It is so awesome that it concerns itself with all types of people, regardless of their lifestyle, sexuality, hobbies, interests, physical conditions or differing capabilities. Could one imagine an LGBT trip to Hamas controlled Gaza?
Other blogger posed questions insinuate that there is a shortage of Birthright Israel trip participants (there is not), that there is no demand for skater trips (obviously, there is) and questions why these trips are being offered (um...for fun). This blogger asks that blogger: You know what fun is, right? It is that thing you are allowed to have in Israel even if you are LGBT, a foodie or wheel-chair bound.
When not asking questions, the blogger forgets a closing quotation mark and misrepresents our mission statement.
All the above would be forgivable if not for the following. Near the end of her blog post, the blogger offers her own much-needed insight: "If you ask me (we hadn't), there flyers are committing some cultural crime". The blogger's profile lists that she has volunteers for "Palestinian" communities. You would imagine that while volunteering for this group, she would have become aware of that community's penchant for launching rockets into Israel, using their own people as human shields, encouraging or blackmailing women and kids into blowing themselves up while attempting to kill innocent Israeli children, bad reporting, oppressing artists and homosexuals and needless blogging - way worse crimes than creating flyers about skateboarding.
Blogger - I hope this answered your questions. Now, pick up a board and join us.
Is this a negative story? Does the writer (whoa, that is being generous. Lets just say "blogger") attempt to use the device of rhetorical questions to insinuate something nefarious about our program but fail miserably because there is nothing bad here to report on? +972 resulted from "a merger of a number of popular English-language blogs..." - does this really mean that they were failed blogs which, unable to survive on their own, banded together in the hope that pooling their resources would keep them afloat?" Is it raining? Why do you park on a driveway and drive on a parkway? When does the term "blogger" stop you from having any journalistic standards like, oh, I don't know, contacting the two main subjects of your story for information on the story? How many more rhetorical questions do I need to ask until it becomes obvious that I am making fun of the story's lack of story.
It seems that the only actual reporting the blogger did was to research and expose that Birthright also has niche trips catering to the "LGBT community, food enthusiasts and wheelchair-bound Jews". Still not quite sure the blogger's intention of mentioning this in the story (if only she had used a random facetious question here to help clarify) so, I will offer an interpretation of its relevance. Birthright is awesome! It is so awesome that it concerns itself with all types of people, regardless of their lifestyle, sexuality, hobbies, interests, physical conditions or differing capabilities. Could one imagine an LGBT trip to Hamas controlled Gaza?
Other blogger posed questions insinuate that there is a shortage of Birthright Israel trip participants (there is not), that there is no demand for skater trips (obviously, there is) and questions why these trips are being offered (um...for fun). This blogger asks that blogger: You know what fun is, right? It is that thing you are allowed to have in Israel even if you are LGBT, a foodie or wheel-chair bound.
When not asking questions, the blogger forgets a closing quotation mark and misrepresents our mission statement.
All the above would be forgivable if not for the following. Near the end of her blog post, the blogger offers her own much-needed insight: "If you ask me (we hadn't), there flyers are committing some cultural crime". The blogger's profile lists that she has volunteers for "Palestinian" communities. You would imagine that while volunteering for this group, she would have become aware of that community's penchant for launching rockets into Israel, using their own people as human shields, encouraging or blackmailing women and kids into blowing themselves up while attempting to kill innocent Israeli children, bad reporting, oppressing artists and homosexuals and needless blogging - way worse crimes than creating flyers about skateboarding.
Blogger - I hope this answered your questions. Now, pick up a board and join us.
Sunday, February 10, 2013
Sunday, February 3, 2013
An Invitation to DJ Khaled from Craig Dershowitz
Dear DJ Khaled,
My name is Craig Dershowitz and I am the Executive Director of Artists 4 Israel. Among our many programs, we seek to educate artists about the freedoms that Israel protects, allowing them to create their work undisturbed, without censorship or oppression. Unfortunately, that is not the same around the world. In fact, right next door to Israel stands the residents of Gaza who have a long history of repressing their citizens and, as an extension of that, the creatives within their community. When women, blacks, latinos, non-Muslims, homosexuals and political opponents are not allowed to live freely, fearful of being arrested, tortured or murdered, artists are equally in danger.
As such, it is distressing that recently you, a well respected artist with a large following, have been expressing political sentiments that seem to support Gaza. Hamas, the terrorist rulers of this area, are no fans of your label mates, friends or fellow artists. I believe that your support for Gaza is misguided and ask that you might consider joining Artists 4 Israel on a tour of this geographic location.
We will leave political discussions behind and, simply, allow you to tour Israel and Gaza (mind you, no Israelis are allowed into Gaza under the threat of death by Hamas, but we will arrange for your safety) and learn for yourself the reality of life in this area. We will respect whatever opinions you form and welcome the opportunity to help you share them with the world. We believe that once you have toured the area, seen with your own eyes that the lies said about Israel are indeed lies, met the beautiful people there, seen the mansions in which the corrupt, treacherous Hamas rulers live and the way they oppress their own people alongside artists and Israelis, you will join us in our support of Israel and struggle to protect the rights of creatives who are in danger in Gaza.
Please let me know how I may make this happen.
Sincerely,
Craig Dershowitz
Executive Director
Artists 4 Israel
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