The Strasbourg Incident
No Border Plenum | 15.08.2002 12:38
During a demonstration in the course of the "No Border Camp" in Strasbourg, France (July 19-28), an incident occured at the local synagogue which has become the primal interest in most left-wing media coverage of the camp.
During a demonstration in the course of the "No Border Camp" in Strasbourg, France (July 19-28), an incident occured at the local synagogue which has become the primal interest in most left-wing media coverage of the camp.
We can not really clear up the event about which so many rumors go around now. How many demonstrators headed for the synagogue, if they "only" were out to get the surveillance cameras that were attached there or if they wanted to put a graffiti on the wall, if they did it out of thoughtlessness or, as reported by an eyewitness, if they were following their convictions of israel being "a fascist state" and the synagogue one of its branch offices, we do not know.
We do know that it came to a tense situation at the synagogue. Even for those of us who were there it remained unclear, and it seems to stand symbolically for the confused position of left-wing and social movements towards anti-semitism. The relief at the stepping in of some demonstrators, who had the presence of mind to prevent worse things, can not make forgotten that they had to intervene at all. That there has not been a detailed clearing up of the occurence nor consequences is a political failure of the camp, which had at that time fallen into hectic activism in response to french police repression.
At the same time we reject all reports saying the incident at the synagogue expresses the camp's true nature. An article in the "Jungle World" (left-wing weekly / the translator) for example, whose author was not there, described the camp as a crowd of esoteric enemies of civilization howling at the moon and shitting into holes, who could be thought capable of anything bad. Some indymedia articles are even more denouncing, talking about "latent ant-semitism" at the camp and taking the synagogue incident as a reason to declare the left in general anti-semitic.
All these reproaches of anti-semitism do a disservice to the struggle against anti-semitism and its variations within the left. Our experiences at the camp were different: two events about anti-semitism in France and in the left just at the beginning of the camp were really remarkable because they lacked the usual agitation against Israel. Even before the camp had started, a paper had been released in Freiburg talking about this year's anti-semitic violence in france evolving also from the banlieus, which were an important theme at the camp.
That these initiatives had not been enough to emphasize a clear distance to anti-semitism became obvious in a most bitter way by the events during the demonstration and the lack of common reflection afterwards. In the future, we will have to continue the dealing with anti-semitism, especially on an international level. Dumb condemnations of the camp will lead to nothing.
No Border Plenum,
Freiburg, Germany
August 8 2002
(translation: Andreas Liese
druesenfieber@gmx.de )
We can not really clear up the event about which so many rumors go around now. How many demonstrators headed for the synagogue, if they "only" were out to get the surveillance cameras that were attached there or if they wanted to put a graffiti on the wall, if they did it out of thoughtlessness or, as reported by an eyewitness, if they were following their convictions of israel being "a fascist state" and the synagogue one of its branch offices, we do not know.
We do know that it came to a tense situation at the synagogue. Even for those of us who were there it remained unclear, and it seems to stand symbolically for the confused position of left-wing and social movements towards anti-semitism. The relief at the stepping in of some demonstrators, who had the presence of mind to prevent worse things, can not make forgotten that they had to intervene at all. That there has not been a detailed clearing up of the occurence nor consequences is a political failure of the camp, which had at that time fallen into hectic activism in response to french police repression.
At the same time we reject all reports saying the incident at the synagogue expresses the camp's true nature. An article in the "Jungle World" (left-wing weekly / the translator) for example, whose author was not there, described the camp as a crowd of esoteric enemies of civilization howling at the moon and shitting into holes, who could be thought capable of anything bad. Some indymedia articles are even more denouncing, talking about "latent ant-semitism" at the camp and taking the synagogue incident as a reason to declare the left in general anti-semitic.
All these reproaches of anti-semitism do a disservice to the struggle against anti-semitism and its variations within the left. Our experiences at the camp were different: two events about anti-semitism in France and in the left just at the beginning of the camp were really remarkable because they lacked the usual agitation against Israel. Even before the camp had started, a paper had been released in Freiburg talking about this year's anti-semitic violence in france evolving also from the banlieus, which were an important theme at the camp.
That these initiatives had not been enough to emphasize a clear distance to anti-semitism became obvious in a most bitter way by the events during the demonstration and the lack of common reflection afterwards. In the future, we will have to continue the dealing with anti-semitism, especially on an international level. Dumb condemnations of the camp will lead to nothing.
No Border Plenum,
Freiburg, Germany
August 8 2002
(translation: Andreas Liese
druesenfieber@gmx.de )
No Border Plenum
e-mail:
noborder@umprowe-freiburg.de
Homepage:
http://www.indymedia.de/2002/08/27717.shtml
Comments
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big deal
15.08.2002 16:23
some genuine comrades wanted to have a go at the "local synagogue" in protest against Zionist Israel:
the local synagogue was a huge building clearly not the home to very many proletarian jews so what s the big deal:
there was a tense standoff which lasted like 5 minutes and then utterly dissolved as everyone moved on:
for me if people wanted to use the facade of the building to put up some anti zionist messages against the US and Israeli violence : I say go ahead:
the synagogue was really huge in an affluent part of affluent strasbourg and would of been a perfect place for some proletarian anti zionist anti border messages:
no borders
no nations
no problem
lutherblisset
clear politics needed
16.08.2002 05:08
One thing should be clear - Synagogues are NOT a legitimate target for any kind of anti-capitalist or pro-palestinian protest, and should never be!
Nazi's attack synagogues - We unite with Jews to defend their places of worship. That is the proud history of those who have fought fascism and capitalism in Europe.
NO PASSERAN! Remember Cable Street!
If you want to do somthing in support of the Palestinians - pick on Israeli government buildings or the insitutions of their US State backers.
If you protest outside a Synagogue you end up being a racist anti-semite and a nationalist, blaming ordinary people who follow the Jewish religion for the actions of a right wing Israeli military state.
You end up playing the nation-state game. Blame the Israeli state, not the Jewish people! I can't believe I am having to argue this here.
The Israeli public relations machine must love this! So its just a small minority of pseudo-revolutionary muddleheads acting on confused and dodgy impulses. It shows a lack of some basic politics. They smear the good name of the the no-borders camp.
Nothing could be a more potent propaganda symbol than an attempted 'petty-kristalnacht' by 'anti-capitalists'. It doen't take much 'spin' to do this.
If these elements did not exist Mossad and the CIA would have to invent them!
As for the last post under the well known activist psuedoname Luther Blisset - what the fuck are you trying to say??
So because some Jews are capitalists, then its alright for anti-capitalists to attack them as Jews?!
When racists attack an Asian or Muslim shopkeeper, do we join in because the shopkeper is petty-bourgeoise?
Get stuffed! In these situations in the past, as an anti-capitalist I have been proud to defend Asian shopkeepers against fascist attacks.
Read your history, fool! Realise the historic tactics of the far right! Hitlers party tried to hijack the anti-capitalist sentiment of the dispossed, and blame it on Jewish capitalists - thus letting the majority of capitalists off the hook. Fascism presented itself as a romantic, radical and reactionary anti-capitalism.
The right wing need scapegoats in the ruling class and every other class! Because Jews can be found amongst all classes - capitalists, managers, workers, peasants, the unemployed - they can be blamed for anything!
Hitler blamed both capitalism, and trades unionism/anarchism/communism on the Jews. There were undoubtedly Jewish capitalists, anarchists, trades unionists, communists - so he argued they must all work together - a 'conspiricy'!
For the small buisinessman, shattered by the great depression and trapped between big buisiness and the unions, this shit started to make sense.
It has a long and weary history - and used to be called 'The Socialism of Fools'!
We will have none of it!
And don't come back with any crap about attacking the places of worship of minority groupa as being in line with atheism and rejection of religious oppression.
I am an Atheist, Anti-capitalist and Anti-Zionist and Anti-Fascist - I am a revolutionary. And I'm gonna stand up and defend Jews, Muslims and all other minorities against bigotry and violence.
One day, (its starting now), the oppressed and exploited are going to rise up. We are going to get together accross all divisions of race, religion, national borders, sexuality and sex. Then we will win the global class war.
khutspe! Intifada! Shalom! Salaam!
No Borders! No Nations! End the Occupation!
Re-sista