Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Thursday, February 18, 2016

Jewish group attacks York University over ‘anti-Semitic’ move to divest from weapons manufacturers

In the latest caustic outbreak in an ongoing cultural war, a prominent Jewish organization Wednesday urged Jewish Canadian high school students to think twice about applying to York University.

In a blistering statement, the Friends of the Simon Wiesenthal Centre for Holocaust Studies (FSWC) accused the university’s faculty association of endorsing “a campaign of censorship against Israel and the Jewish People.”

In the statement, FSWC president and CEO Avi Benlolo said his group is concerned “for the safety and security” of York’s Jewish students and faculty. “What I’m asking for Jewish students, who are considering going to York or putting in their application for the … 2016-17 year, is to know what’s going on at York (and) to maybe take a pause until the final vote is in,” he said in an interview.

The outcry relates to a vote by the faculty association executive in favour of a campaign urging York to divest itself of any investments in weapons manufacturers, domestic or international.

The motion approved by the executive, in an 11 to 1 vote, makes no mention of Israel. In fact, it specifically states that the vote does not represent an indication of support for “any state or non-state actors involved or associated with a specific political or military conflict.”

Despite that, Benlolo said Wednesday that the vote represents an act of “anti-Semitism.” That’s because, he said, the divestment campaign is being led by the York chapter of Students Against Israeli Apartheid (SAIA), a group that advocates a broader campaign of boycotts, divestment and sanctions against Israel and Israeli academics.

“The problem is, they’re aligning themselves with SAIA,” he said.

However, Richard Welland, the president of the faculty association, said SAIA is just one of dozens of organizations, including Amnesty International, supporting the divestment campaign. He said the executive vote, which still has to be approved by the union’s Steward’s Council, has nothing to do with anything other than weapons manufacturers.

He also accused the Friends of the Simon Wiesenthal Centre of “bullying” him and other members of the executive. “I’m Jewish (and) they’ve basically called me anti-Semitic,” he said. “It’s distressing.”

The outcry over the divestment campaign comes just weeks after a heated fight over a controversial painting in the York University student centre generated international headlines. The presence of the canvas, which shows a Palestinian holding rocks behind his back while staring at an under-construction Israeli settlement, spurred film mogul Paul Bronfman to pull all philanthropic support from the school.

Asked about the divestment campaign Wednesday, a spokesperson for York said the university’s investment approach, which has been approved by the Social Investment Organization and the Coalition of Universities for Responsible Investing, “does not recommend the use of negative screening or divesting from particular companies.”

Original Article
Source: news.nationalpost.com/
Author: Richard Warnica

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