Defend Free Speech at Rutgers, Reply to Mothers Against College Anti Semitism part 1
the most important weapon in a political movement's arsenal is the elbow.
The Zionist entity has long employed intimidation and threats to suppress anti-Zionist sentiment on college campuses. Its supporters have used tactics such as doxing and harassment through groups like “Canary Mission” to label critics as anti-Semitic and attempt to ruin their careers and reputations. Since the rise of Palestinian solidarity following October 7th, a new group has emerged within the Zionist united front against free speech: “Mothers Against College Anti-Semitism.” This Facebook group, created to counter the growth of pro-Palestine organizations last semester, uses its influence to attempt to shut down pro-Palestine groups.
Members of this group affiliated with Rutgers University have released an open letter calling for the shutdown of two Rutgers student organizations: the Rutgers chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and The Endowment Justice Coalition (EJC). SJP is a national alliance of pro-Palestinian students, while EJC campaigns for the university to divest its endowment from Zionist and other unethical enterprises. This response addresses the open letter, which is an attempt to use concern about anti Semetism to stifle political speech the authors disagree with.
“The unabated antisemitism remains emboldened by Rutgers’ failure to take necessary action. We are requesting, even pleading, that you take immediate action against Rutgers to ensure Jewish students receive an education free from antisemitism, harassment and intimidation.”
Anti-Semitism has been a longstanding issue at Rutgers, with multiple instances of white power groups recruiting on campus for a so-called race war and intimidating students. Rutgers has not taken appropriate action against these groups but has instead aggressively targeted anti-genocide activists.
Meanwhile, Rutgers has largely ignored anti-Palestinian, anti-Arab, and anti-Muslim violence, including the attack on the Center for Islamic life and threats against pro-Palestine activists from a Zionist club.
“SJP and EJC’s conduct now consists of rank intimidation and harassment that has escalated into militaristic style “expressions” of Jew hatred, along with disrespect and a blatant rejection of the law”
In the context of the ongoing genocide in Gaza, SJP and EJC have intensified their actions. The international law being violated involves the complicity of the U.S. in aiding and abetting this genocide. Any minor rule-breaking by SJP and EJC must be seen against the backdrop of the lawlessness perpetuated by 75 years of Zionist actions in Palestine.
“SJP and EJC are a danger and have become a threat to not only Jewish students but to academia, the entire Rutgers’ community, America and our democratic values.”
The only thing that poses that danger are letters like this, and the university administrators who follow their advice.
Its worth noting that the unelected Rutgers Administrators have refused to honor a vote by 80% of Rutgers students calling for divestment from “Tel Aviv” University which sits in occupied Jaffa. Even if these clubs are disbanded, it will not extinguish the pro Palestinian sentiment that animates the majority of Rutgers Students.
“CAL is the new Arab cultural center that was created pursuant to the terms of the agreement EJC and SJP were able to extort from Holloway, in exchange for their termination of the illegal encampment in May 2024 (Encampment Agreement).
AlAreer was allegedly a professor and an “activist” at the Islamic University of Gaza, a university used by Hamas as a terrorist training camp and for arms production. AlAreer received international media attention in connection with his interviews and social media posts for his abhorrent statements justifying Hamas’ attack on over 1200 Israeli civilians who were brutally murdered, raped, tortured and burned to death, calling it “legitimate” and “moral,” and equating it with the “Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.” In response to a social media post about the horrific murder by these terrorists on 10/7 when they murdered a baby by baking him in an oven, AlAreer replied tweeting “WITH OR WITHOUT BAKING SODA.”
The joke about baking soda appears to critique false narratives that have emerged following the events of October 7th. While there have been real and serious acts of violence, including war crimes committed by Hamas on that day, no evidence of babies in ovens has emerged. This is a falsehood, and while the joke is obviously cruel; this is a man who was murdered by the IOF for teaching young Palestinians to write. The joke was made during the terroristic bombardment of Gaza by the IOF which was resulting in the deaths of thousands of Gazans daily. He can be forgiven for a bad joke at the expense of a well known hoax!
This is the first instance in the open letter that reveals clear contempt for Arab students. Although the letter does not explicitly state it, it strongly suggests that the authors believe an Arab cultural center should not exist on campus. Tent-state protests are not illegal, and the encampment was a well-organized protest that achieved concessions from university leadership through democratic negotiation. While Zionist supporters vandalized the Center for Islamic Life, the peaceful students had a camp out in the lawn and tried to create a new kind of society.
The letter provides no evidence linking Al Areer to armed struggle, only referencing his contentious stance on the October 7th attack. Despite involving civilian casualties, the attack was not notably more brutal than other military actions in the Arab-Israeli conflict and can be compared to the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising in its historical context. Naming the Arab cultural center after a significant Arab political leader, poet, and professor is as legitimate as Rutgers’ numerous tributes to American founding fathers who owned slaves. If there are objections to the proposed name, alternative suggestions should be put forward rather than using it as a basis to ban the club.
“The university was one of the first targets destroyed by the IDF in an airstrike within a few days following Hamas’ massacre on 10/7. AlAreer was later specifically targeted by the IDF in a subsequent airstrike in December 2023 in Gaza and killed. [3]”
The authors of the letter seem to expect us to accept the claims of the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) at face value, despite their role in endorsing genocide. It is crucial to remember their actions, and they should be held accountable for their criminal behavior. If, as this document suggests, Al Areer was killed due to his tweets, it further evidences that "Israel" is conducting a genocidal campaign. The killing of a non-combatant based solely on his online posts is a politically and racially motivated act. Additionally, it is important to note that Al Areer was killed along with several members of his family.
Al Areer ran a group called We Are Not Numbers that matched Palestinian young writers with skilled authors. This act of reproducing Palestinian culture is more dangerous to the Zionist entity that all the rifles Hamas possesses. The goal of the Zionists is to erase Palestine, and to do that they must erase its inteligencia. This is why Al Areer was singled out for assasination.
“We live in a civilized country and do not glorify or honor terrorists. We value law, rules, peace, democracy and respect. This characterization, at the minimum, is inconsistent with our values and those of Rutgers. This is the promotion of a dangerous radical ideology and Jew hatred, and both have no place in America let alone in an educational institution.”
We live in a country that prides itself on being civilized while systematically undermining principles of “law, rules, peace, democracy, and respect.” While hiding behind these principles, the authors of this letter aim to destroy the freedom of Americans to criticize a foreign government. Celebrating a Palestinian academic who was murdered alongside his family is an effort to restore these values to their rightful place in our culture. In a nation that honors Confederate figures and celebrates a rebellion led by genocidal slave owners every Fourth of July, the notion that this naming choice is particularly shocking is laughable.
This concludes part 1.