02) "NEVER AGAIN FOR ANYONE"

By Liz Rowley

     "Never Again For Anyone" is the message of a 13‑city tour across Canada by Auschwitz survivor Dr. Hajo C. Meyer. The tour included a Feb. 1 meeting at the Winchevsky Centre in Toronto, sponsored by American Muslims for Palestine, the International Jewish Anti‑Zionist Network, and the Middle East Children's Alliance.

     The United Jewish People's Order in Toronto was a local sponsor of the evening. An imminent snowstorm and threats from some pro‑Zionist organizations did not deter the audience which filled the hall. A similar meeting had been held the night before at the Friends House in Toronto.

     On the platform with Dr. Meyer were Khaled Mouammar, President of the Canadian Arab Federation, and Lee Maracle, First Nations writer and advocate, whose early political awakening was in the battle against apartheid in South Africa.

     Meyer eloquently talked of his childhood exile in Holland and his imprisonment in Auschwitz until it was liberated. "The victims were Jews, not Zionists" he declared, noting the difference between Zionism and Judaism. He outlined steps the Nazis used to dehumanize the Jews, and showed how today these same ideas are used to dehumanize Muslims.

     Khaled Mouammar spoke about the Palestinian struggle to achieve statehood, and implementation of UN Resolutions 242 and others which explicitly call for creation of a Palestinian state.      Lee Maracle spoke of First Nations' fight to survive centuries of genocidal policies by both Tory and Liberal governments in Canada, including denial of education, which she characterized as "slow genocide".

     A lively question and answer period followed, and much appreciation was expressed to the UJPO by panelists and audience members. The event was the only one on the tour to be held in a Jewish hall. Everywhere else the panel had been black‑balled by the powerful Zionist lobby.

     The day before the meeting, the Toronto Section of the UJPO received a letter from the Canadian Jewish Congress (CJC) and the United Jewish Appeal (UJA), threatening to "sever ties" with the Winchevsky Centre (the building housing the UJPO'S offices, a school, and Yiddish cultural programs). Organizations housed in the centre receive grants and funding for their activities from the United Jewish Appeal.

     Not surprisingly, UJPO members were shocked and angered by the letter, but refused to cancel the meeting. UJPO Toronto President Marsha Solnicki said later the meeting had been co‑sponsored "to provide a space and a forum for discussion with people of varying political positions. We didn't feel this association would be anything more than an educational opportunity to hear a wide range of viewpoints. Now we are dealing with the aftermath, not only in our organization but also in the wider Jewish community and among the progressive left and Jewish communities."

     "We have a proud 85‑year history to draw on and a record of speaking out on issues where injustice and bigotry threaten our democratic and humanist values, no matter where they occur. These, we can be sure, are values shared by our membership," Solnicki said in a letter to members.

     After the event, the CJC and UJA were sharply criticized in letters to the Canadian Jewish News, and responded by saying they were willing to discuss the matter. The UJPO responded favourably, but has heard nothing since.

     Feeling the heat, the CJC has tried to justify its actions by quoting Dr. Meyer at the Feb. 1 meeting. In answer to a question posed by this writer about the strength and effectiveness of the anti‑Zionist forces inside Israel, Meyer said "it (Zionism) has grown much more aggressive and much less human than in the years after the Second World War. So that means that it can very easily lead to the destruction of Israel as a state from within. That is one of my hopes."

     The CJC contends that Dr. Meyer is calling for Israel's destruction, and that the UJPO supports this position by virtue of hosting the event. But the UJPO does not call for the destruction of Israel. It does, however, call for a peaceful political solution and adherence to UN Resolution 242 and others which call for Israel to return to its pre‑1967 borders; and for the establishment of a Palestinian state, including Palestinians' right to return.

     David Abramowitz, President of the UJPO, said the CJC had expelled the UJPO in the 1950s, alleging its campaign against the rearmament of West Germany showed UJPO was under Soviet control. At the time, the UJPO was the largest CJC affiliate, and it had the support of the Jewish population who were also opposed to NATO'S drive to rearm West Germany. UJPO remained outside the CJC for almost 50 years before re‑affiliating a decade ago. One long‑time member said, "(the CJC) has been knocking us around for 40 years. What's new?"

     In Hamilton, a Feb. 19 speech on Israel/Palestine issues by Dr. Norman Finkelstein was forced to relocate to Centenary United Church, after Zionists demanded that Mohawk College either cancel the meeting or give them equal time to speak. The College responded by slapping a $1500 "security" fee on top of the $519 rent for a 190 seat meeting room. The fee put the rental out of reach of organizers (Canadians for Peace and Justice in the Middle East), and was apparently intended to create the climate of danger that was missing prior to the College President's assessment that eight security guards were deemed essential. Centenary United, a progressive church near McMaster University, did not hire security guards, and supports the rights to free speech and free assembly guaranteed under the Canadian Constitution.

     Two years ago, the Ontario Legislature adopted a Conservative motion that equated criticism of Israel with a hate crime. Today, the Harper Tories in Ottawa are virtually the only government in the world still willing to stand with the US and Israel.

     What's clear from all of this is the intent of the Zionist lobby in Canada to suppress dialogue on issues in the Middle East, including any criticism of Israel's war on its neighbours and its own citizens. It is to the great credit of the UJPO and its members that after 85 years, they continue to stand firm against great pressure and pointed threats by the Zionist lobby, instead holding to their progressive and secular world outlook and their principles of anti‑racism and social justice. The UJPO can hold its head high. History is on their side.

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(The above article is from the March 1-15, 2011, issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading communist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50 CDN per year. Send to People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 706 Clark Drive, Vancouver, BC, V5L 3J1.)