One of the achievements I’m most proud of in my life is my part in educating Arab students, and helping them achieve careers. Especially women. I’m tempted to put up pictures of my Arab students who achieved doctorates, many of whose families were almost illiterate. Divest from them?
Next to my offices is the medical school, and at least half the students are Arab. Divest from them?
We embrace them – we don’t divest from them.
divestment – 4.26.24 Read Post »
just a note – I’m getting an uncontrollable urge to wear a yellow star at Columbia University. Not because I think the students are antisemitic, but because I think they should be aware of some of the consequences.
I actually think they have some justifiable points. If children are starving, it is terrible. If we are killing Gazans because they are Gazans and not because we’re looking for the people who killed thousands of our loved ones, we are definitely to be blamed. Still, even if we are to be thrown into the sea, most of the Jews around the world have never been connected to Israel, so they should be left alone, right?
If all Jews are to be killed, then I think that’s called genocide, right?
Nili’s Acting Class is doing two poems of mine for the June 6th launch of the Hebrew book about household objects. Nili and I mention that since the book came out in September the significance of things has changed, the meaning of objects has changed for us, and the students immediately change gear. At first it was a humorous poem about leaving a note for the burglar about the value of the household effects, but their understanding of the loss endured by our lack of watchfulness permeates their interpretation of the poem.
I would say these students are particularly perceptive, but it isn’t that. There is no one who doesn’t translate everything that happens to the massacre.
But when the students at Columbia say that there will be 10000 October 7ths, I think of the difference in their knowlesge and education about this situation. Not that I think that Nili’s students are smarter or more politically wise, but we have gone through much more.
rehearsal – 4.24.24 Read Post »
I have to admit that when I was in college, I too demonstrated. I demonstrated for equal rights, and against the war in Viet Nam. The situation was simpler, though, and the demonstrators knew exactly what they were fighting for.
And it was never the death of the other.
a holiday of freedom when we have kidnapped victims whose fate is unknown, makes us all slaves again. Even though we wore the shirts of the communities massacred, I couldn’t concentrate on the freedom.
We cut the seder short and went home – but I didn’t sleep all night. I was broken.
A friend called to ask why we have to involve the whole world in our conflicts, as my granddaughter, stuck in school at Columbia, show me the people shouting for the destruction of our people. “10,000 times October 7th”. That’s a bit more than “Go back to Poland!” which assumes we have another country, and that more than half of our population wasn’t evicted from Arab countries. The ignorance of history, of sociology, of society, of the facts on the ground – astounds me.
Take for example, the support of Hamas by LGBTIQ – they would not fare well under shariya law. what would make them ignore that danger?
couldn’t do it – 4.23.24 Read Post »
I look at the signs at Columbia University, and none of them make sense. They don’t apply to the situation. As if the students have no connection to the real live situation.
Do they know that there are Bedouin who are hostages? Americans? Thais? Are they enemy as well? Do they too deserve to be tortured as resistance?
Do they know that most of the Jews they’re threatening don’t have any connection to Israel or the subjects of their protest?
There is so much we all need to learn – but we’re not going to learn it on the south lawn of Columbia.
I spent 3 years as a visiting scholar at Columbia, I saw Edward Said walking to class with his wife behind him carrying his briefcase, and using the stairs while he took the elevator. That was my lesson at Columbia.
“resistance is not terrorism” – 4.21.24 Read Post »
How can we have a seder? The seder is to remind us about freedom, and not only are the 133 hostages still imprisoned and enslaved, but so are all of the population of Israel. We are all traumatized, functioning on neutral, trying not to despise the people who have murdered us and managed to make us into the villains.
The Hagaddah is so clear. It makes sure we know who are the good guys and the bad guys. Even when Pharoah relents, he regrets it and has to be reminded who the boss is. So we know he’s really really bad.
And it’s not our fault that he’s being punished. It is the Lord who’s doing the punishing. We’re just the victims.
Ah, the good old days.
But seriously, we’re not only leaving a place for the hostages at our table, we’re wearing shirts with their pictures on it. So we’ll be making sure we remind ourselves that we’re not free even as we read about freedom.
Maybe we should stop being such masochists and label the villains as villains. You know if they had succeeded in their plan on October 7 we would not be having a seder at all tomorrow.
It seemed like propaganda. We watched the Gazans enjoy their beach, all looking fit and happy, and we were jealous. So today we all went to the beach. I mean there was no room to park, no room in the water that was too choppy to swim in.
It reminded me of the poem by T. Carmi – I once translated it but I can’t find it now. It goes something like this: “It is hard for two conch shells to have a conversation. Each one hears his own sea,” But, as he ends the poem, “once you listen, you hear the same sea.”
on the beach – 4.20.24 Read Post »
