This past Saturday, like previous Saturdays, Women In Black demonstrated against the war, against Israel, against US aid to Israel, and against Jewish statehood, in front of the Grandlake Theater in Oakland.
[WIB has promoted speakers who deny Israel's right to exist, and stood with activists who have demanded the destruction of Israel. Women In Black can be described as a peace group pretty much the same way Kahane Chai can be described as a peace group. But the question is: which of those two would you rather have on your side? If you had to choose?]
And so, like previous Saturdays, I headed across the bay with my protest sign and bad attitude to counter protest them. Every Saturday we've been gathering opposite Women In Black to prove that their hateful attitude is not uncontested, that their anti-Israel point of view is not without opposition, and that their silent vigil is naught more than a fig-leaf for terrorism.
Normally their number and our number do not differ very much. They get approving honks from passing cars, we get approving honks from passing cars.
[And from Sikh busdrivers - good man, sat sri akal, ji]
This Saturday, despite the low temperatures and gloomy overcast, the sun shone brightly, and warmth enrobed our endeavor.
We were joined by over five dozen congregants from Beth Abraham. Who stood with us singing Hebrew songs and holding banners and pro-Israel signs. As their rabbi said: "this is our community, and we will not allow it to be taken over". More or less. His exact phrasing escapes me at the moment (I'm still in a happy daze, as I'm sure you understand).
The best retrospective term for this weekend is from German: Schadenfreude.
Imagine the expression on the face of someone who just bit into a giant fewmet - a particularly ripe and juicy one at that. Imagine how appalled and disconcerted, nay, repulsed and disgusted even, that face would look.
Precisely that expression was on the sour faces of the fifteen or so Women In Black when they saw Rabbi Bloom and his congregation marching down the hill. They were so disturbed that they even placed a call to the Oakland Police Department, perhaps fearing for their lives.
[So, after Rabbi Bloom and his sanhedrion of congregants had departed, the local constabulary cruised by a few times, did not see any bloodshed or mayhem, and eventually casually inquired about events. It is possible that the phrase "panicky weasels" may have shown up on the report that was eventually filed. I sure hope so.]
Certainly the mental health of the Wibbies was under siege, but their physical health was never in any danger from our side. We were too busy grinning from ear to ear. It was good. It was refreshing. It was the most encouraging thing to happen in a while.
Despite the chill and overcast, it was the sunniest of Spring days. Even after nightfall, when the rain was bucketing down, it was sunny and springlike.
Kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell, kvell.
And neener, neener, neener.
Thank you, Rabbi Bloom, for making my day. I know I speak for all of us when I say that you have made us very happy. We appreciate the support. And we very much look forward to this next Saturday.
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In other news, Jimmy Carter will be at Zellerbach Hall on the UC campus next week. His coming here is not without controversy. If I weren't such an utter cheapskate, I would burn his most recent book in the middle of Sproul Plaza. I bought the damn thing, it was my money, I can do with it whatever the divvil I want.
But again, I'm a bit of a cheapy. So I'll probably settle for a less pyromaniac expression of disgust.
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11 comments:
If the WIBs were afraid of violence, it stands to reason they are capable of it... That might make you a target, yes?
Ah, the designated target on our side is 'Dan-the-piñata'.
Who has gotten clobbered twice in the past half-year by the peace-loving women in black or their henchpersons.
But yes, I believe the wibs to be capable of it. Though more often they merely morally support it.
I'm just afraid even if every time they call the police and the police find nothing but a bunch of grinners, still they'll be successful in creating the impression that they are the peacefully suffering victims of your violence.
Sounds somehow like a small-scall mirror of the whole picture.
Wait till the first lazy and bored newspaper man reports "Again, police had to be called by women demonstrating against ..."
BoTh, perhaps the local WiBs are a little odd. I went to school with the daughter of the founder of WiB, and have taken part in their demos against the war in Iraq. The ones I know, including the ones in Israel, are pro-Israel, anti-war, anti-violence. This is an international group with local chapters, which may or may not be full of wacko locals.
Tzipporah, it might be primarily the wibbies here (though I will not excuse any of the other branches, some of whom make even Hamas look moderate).
Their signs say such things as “end support for Israel”, “no more aid to Israel”, “end the occupation of Palestine”, and similar things. Their opposition to the Iraq mess is not the issue, their using the Iraq quaggem as a vehicle for advocating the destruction of Israel is.
They have been part of demonstrations where the vocal elements (wibs by and large are mute) have screamed hatred of Israel, have spoken about Zionist controlled media, and have chanted slogans such as ‘Palestine shall be free, from the river to the sea”, and “down, down Israel”.
We have seen their members at anti-Israel demonstrations. And their own gatherings are not hotbeds of Israelophilia either. Just last month they enthusiastically applauded a speaker who advocated the destruction of Israel. Some of their sponsored speakers have, shall we say, questionable connections. Their own spokespersons have endorsed certain ‘direct actions’ and spoken approvingly of acknowledged terrorists.
These women, by the way, are not shy of calling us murderers – I’m still amused by the vibrating dumptruck who accused me of being a killer and a criminal.
[Me, a killer? As the mobster in the commercial says when asked about hitting Vinnie in the head with a shovel, “I do not recall that”.]
Most appallingly to me, their members were present when other protestors chanted “falastin baladna w’al Yahud qalabna” (‘Palestine is OUR land, and the Jews are our dogs’) as well as “al maut al Yahud” (‘death to the Jews’). They knew what the slogans meant. They may not have known that those phrases was screamed during progroms in Hebron and Jerusalem. But they knew the meanings, and they approved of the chanting.
By their presence at those protests they endorsed those sentiments.
was screamed
Should be "were screamed".
wow. doesn't sound like WiB at all - but the ones I know are Jewish and/or Israeli.
Their signs say such things as “end support for Israel”, “no more aid to Israel”, “end the occupation of Palestine”,
OK, sorry, I take that back - "End the Occupation" is definitely a WiB slogan, since it's part of the original group's mission (which I support). But it's completely antitethetical to the other phrases in quotes, above, since these are women who think the occupation, itself, is destroying Israel.
Here's the thing - WiB is not a centrally organized thing which can give or withold approval from any group which uses the name. They don't even know how many WiB groups there are.
So it sounds like people who either radically misunderstand the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, or are strongly anti-semitic, have taken up that name in your locale and are using it to promote or endorse violence. Which is pretty despicable. But I'd advise you to check out what WiB actually stands for before tarring the whole idea with this tainted brush.
“end the occupation of Palestine” means end the existence of Israel. Unless your idea of "Palestine" is radically different than that of the Palestinians
Well if the WIB ARE in fact Jewish, and they are so threatened by a Rabbi leading his congregation in songs of peace on Shabbos, that they call the police, then they must go to shul at Beth Yetzer Horah.
R
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