Facts reveal Israel’s unjust ways

By Fred Nuristani

There is nothing better than going to school at a major public
university such as UCLA. Among the benefits of such schooling is
the freedom to educate and to be educated. It is simply fascinating
to be able to present and learn about different struggles around
the world. But I find it utterly shallow, insensitive and extremely
hurtful to belittle a people’s struggle against oppression.
Moreover, it’s even worse to deny such oppression and label
educational activities as propaganda.

Between May 8-12, the Muslim Student Association made an earnest
and sincere attempt to educate the UCLA campus about Zionism and
the oppression and suffering it has inflicted on the people of
Palestine for the past 52 years. But our dedicated efforts were
callously attacked and labeled as hate-filled propaganda. Karen
Wessely wrote a submission titled, “MSA pushes anti-Israel
propaganda” (Viewpoint, May 17).

Wessely’s article was followed by another
“MSA-spreading-propaganda” article written by Josh
Sigal titled, “Article distorts Israeli celebration”
(Viewpoint, May 18). Sigal boldly made the claim that,
“(UCLA) should not succumb to the exaggerations, half-truths
and outright lies MSA members propagandize about Zionism. To combat
their malicious rhetoric, people must legitimately educate
themselves about the idea of Zionism that ultimately led to the
creation of the modern state of Israel in 1948.” Sigal also
made the claim that educating ourselves about Zionism “will
expose all of the MSA’s falsehoods and allow people to learn
the truth about Zionism.”

Now let us step back for a second and look closely at this
“propaganda” the MSA vociferously advocated. Yes,
Zionism did lead to the creation of the state of Israel, but what
Zionists forget to tell you is that it resulted in the expulsion of
4.5 million Palestinians. This is a fact, not rhetoric. The state
of Israel has violated 79 United Nations resolutions, is cited for
more than 3,800 human rights violations, has destroyed more than
531 villages and has committed hundreds of cold-blooded massacres
that have amounted in the death of too many civilians. Again, these
are facts, not rhetoric.

Do you see something wrong with this? How is this propaganda?
How is this rhetoric? Are you now going to tell me that these are
fabricated lies and this never happened? Who is being close-minded
here? Who has advised you not to listen to rhetoric, yet has
presented nothing but rhetoric to support their claim?

Let us not deny the truth ““ the state of Israel is an
outgrowth of Zionism that has secured a national home for the Jews,
but at the expense of the Palestinians. You need not be a Jew to be
a Zionist, nor a Zionist to be a Jew. They are diametrically
different. Every race is entitled to a home, but never at the
expense of another.

As the Zionist community at UCLA celebrated their day of
“independence,” I sadly watched. I was dismayed as
people danced and paraded in celebration of a day that marks the
merciless slaughter and expulsion of Palestinians.

Yet, Sigal has the audacity to criticize The Bruin because it
decided to cover the story in full. To cover only the celebration
is merely half the truth, and to cover the MSA protest is also half
the truth. But to cover both, which the Bruin did, is the complete
truth. Why is Sigal concerned with half the truth? Is it because it
looks bad and hurts? Yes, I have to admit it is ugly and it hurts,
but it still remains the truth.

So who did the Israelis gain their “independence”
from? The fact of the matter is that the Zionists did not gain
their “independence” from anybody. Instead, they stole
the land from the native Palestinians, who made up the overwhelming
majority of its residents. The end result of this, of course, was
that the Zionists reaped the benefits of the people they sought to
destroy. Therefore, Israeli “Independence Day” should
really be called “Zionist Theft Day.”

I agree with Sigal that we should educate ourselves regarding
Zionism. But the statements he made indicate that he has not been
properly educated about the topic. Zionism is a racist ideology
that must be differentiated from Judaism. Judaism is an Abrahamic
religion, while Zionism is a racist political movement.

Perhaps the following quote by former Israeli Prime Minister
Golda Meir, a Zionist, will convince you of this. She states:
“there is no such thing as a Palestinian people … it is not
as if we came and threw them out and took their country. They
didn’t exist.” Statements like this by one of
Israel’s “greatest” figures truly represent just
how evil and racist Zionism is.

Malcolm X, one of the greatest reformers and seekers of justice
in American history once said: “The Zionist argument to
justify Israel’s present occupation of Arab Palestine has no
intelligent or legal basis in history.” Indeed, we must
constantly seek the truth in the Palestinian-Israeli matter because
ignorance is our greatest slavery.