Anti-Semitic Feelings Abound at ‘Progressive’ College

To the Editors:

I am appalled at the extreme level of ignorance, one-sidedness and counterproductive anti-Semitic sentiment that has been permeating this self-proclaimed “liberal” and “progressive” college campus for the past few months. The recently advertised “Locked In: A Week of Education About Palestine” is perhaps the most blatant evidence of such sentiments. We are all intelligent people. We should be working for peace and not against it. We should be instigating productive dialogues in an unbiased setting to come up with reasonable conclusions and solutions to this horrible age-old war that is going on in the Middle East. But no. Instead we are perpetuating the hatred and the estrangement of the supporters of both sides of this conflict.
Want a clear example of what I’m talking about? Take a good look at the flyers advertising the week of “education” that are posted all over this campus. There you will find a photograph of Palestinian “victims” reaching their hands out between the bars of an Israeli prison. How ignorant and biased can one be? Yes. Let us all pay attention solely to the Israeli “aggression” as of late. Let us ignore the fact that Palestinians have been tormenting the state of Israel for years with bombings, shootings, and murders of not only innocent Israeli citizens, but tourists and students as well. Yet do we see posters denouncing the Palestinian aggression against Israel all over college campuses nationwide? No. Because that would be completely against any end of peace-making or compromise. After the years of horror that Palestinians have bestowed upon Israel (and I’m completely ignoring any deeper issue of who is to blame for the origins of this conflict, because, as most reasonable people can deduce, the issue has escalated far beyond whose land is whose), after the numerous peacemaking attempts that have been abolished due to the refusal of Palestinian authorities to do anything to stop the terrorist attacks, after all this, Israel finally takes action and there is an outcry against the “Israeli aggression.” Somehow, it is acceptable for America to have their “War On Terrorism,” but apparently, Israel has no such right. What of the years of Palestinian aggression? What of the thousands of Jews murdered by Palestinian suicide bombers? Why is no one paying any attention to the facts of the situation, and how can anyone victimize Palestinians with a straight face?
Instead of holding events and forums that slant the facts and further entrench the hatred and dissension, instead of having groups entitled “Stop US Aid to Israel Now” (SUSTAIN — which, FYI, is an incorrect acronym) rallying against the “US funding of Israeli terror,” we need to stop pointing fingers and get to the solutions (because apparently, the U.S. is the only government allowed to fight terrorism). We need to stop disguising anti-Semitic propaganda as “voices for peace,” and we need to get together, supporters of both Israel and Palestinians, and begin the peace-making process here. Until we can break through the ignorance, the blaming and the hatred, we cannot dare call Oberlin College a progressive institution. Please people, think about what you’re doing.

–Natasha Uspensky
College first-year