Thousands rally in Melbourne in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. Photo by Matt Hrkac/Wikimedia Commons. In the immediate wake of the recent events in Israel-Palestine, conservative and even centrist politicians all over the West have denounced rallies organized in support of the Palestinians and many have suggested prohibiting them and
Continue readingAuthor: Larry Haiven
Canadian Dimension: Hamas campaign recalls Tet Offensive: Could this also be a turning point?
Palestinians celebrate beside a destroyed Israeli tank at the Gaza Strip fence east of Khan Younis. Photo courtesy AP. If you stand back just far enough, history repeats itself. And we might just learn something from the outlines. The lesson comes from the Vietnam War. On January 30, 1968, during
Continue readingCanadian Dimension: What’s really going on in Israel’s political crisis?
Photo by Momo/Flickr We often hear the refrain that Israeli politics is very complicated. It’s usually used as an excuse to stop conversation dead. But given the current turmoil among Israel’s Jewish population, it’s imperative to try to step back and simplify. The crisis now roiling Israel and the Jewish
Continue readingCanadian Dimension: Racialized are prime targets of pro-Israel attacks—and it’s deliberate
Photo by Abbas Momani Okay, let’s talk about an elephant in the room. What do Faisal Bhaba, Desmond Cole, Javier Dávila, Nadia Shoufani, Rehab Nazzal, Rana Zaman, Linda Sarsour, Idris Elbakri and Fadi Ennab and countless others have in common? They are racialized people who have been special targets of
Continue readingCanadian Dimension: The cry gevalt syndrome: are Jewish students really ‘terrified’ on campus?
Student protesters gather at York University to denounce an event that brought members of the Israel Defence Forces to campus, November 2019. Photo courtesy SAIA York/Twitter. As recently as September 6, 2022, as students returned to campuses, long-time Israel defender Avi Benlolo (formerly of the Friends of the Simon Wiesenthal
Continue readingCanadian Dimension: Feds’ proposal on Holocaust denial a very bad idea
The gated entrance of the Sachsenhausen Nazi death camp with the phrase ‘Arbeit macht frei’ (work sets you free) in Oranienburg, Germany. Photo by Thamara Salvagni. The federal government has just introduced an initiative to make “condoning, denying or downplaying the Holocaust” a criminal offence. This is a very bad
Continue readingCanadian Dimension: What really happened at a public meeting in Winnipeg labeled ‘anti-Semitic’?
If the IHRA definition succeeds in becoming the benchmark, and many future meetings fall afoul of its criteria, then we are in deep trouble and can kiss reasoned debate and academic freedom goodbye, writes Larry Haiven. Photo from Shutterstock. Proponents of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance insists that its working
Continue readingCanadian Dimension: ‘Cancel Culture’ and the Pro-Israel Lobby
Protestors wave Israeli flags during a demonstration in London, United Kingdom, November 4, 2017. Photo by Bruce Emmerling/NeedPix. When Sportsnet fired Canadian media personality Don Cherry in November 2019 for his bigoted remarks on Coach’s Corner, we heard the usual right-wing complaint chorus about the suppression of free speech by
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