Skip to content or view screen version

an open letter by Gerry Gable, publisher Searchlight

Terry Fitzpatrick | 29.04.2003 10:02

We the undersigned call upon the Israeli government to immediately
refrain from the torture and murder of innocent Palestinian men, women
and children, and to institute immediate negotiations with the Palestinians for a just and lasting peace for the people of Israel.

Enough Is Enough - The Israeli and Palestinian Genocide Must
Stop:

an open letter by Gerry Gable, publisher Searchlight magazine

In recent weeks even the American public, shackled as it is by the
chains of a racist media, has woken up to the reality of the Israeli government's campaign against the Palestinian people. In Britain as in the United States, we Jews have been too afraid to speak out lest we too be smeared by the same powerful racist interests, but now we at Britain's leading Jewish anti-racist magazine have decided that enough is enough.

Searchlight magazine was founded in 1975 by the late Maurice Ludmer, a
dedicated and lifelong Jewish anti-racist and anti-fascist. When he
died in 1981, Maurice left Searchlight as his legacy not just to us Jews,not just to Britain, but to the world. Maurice, like the rest of us, was committed to a world free from hatred, racial bigotry and intolerance.

That is why we have opposed tooth and claw any platform for the Nazis
of the National Front and the BNP here in Britain. That is why like so
many of our fellow Jews we have striven to encourage multi-racialism and
assimilation. That is why we have never given up and never will give
up.

And that is why it saddens us to see the good name of the Jewish
people tainted and dragged through the mud by naked anti-semitism masquerading as anti-Zionism.

We deplore the suicide bombings, the terrible slaughter of both
innocent Israeli citizens and the horrendous self-destruction of young
Palestinian zealots. But much as we deplore, we understand. We
understand why Palestinians have become hated in Israel, and indeed throughout the Arab world itself.

We the undersigned call upon the Israeli government to immediately
refrain from the torture and murder of innocent Palestinian men, women
and children, and to institute immediate negotiations with the Palestinians for a just and lasting peace for the people of Israel.


signed


Gerry Gable, publisher
Mrs Sonia Gable
Steve Silver, co-editor
Nick Lowles, co-editor
Michael Cohen, photographer

Subscribe to Searchlight, Britain and Europe's leading Jewish anti-
racist and anti-fascist magazine:

fax: 020 7681 8650
direct e-mail:  community@s-light.demon.co.uk

Terry Fitzpatrick
- e-mail: terry@terryfitz.net

Comments

Hide the following 12 comments

Ahem

29.04.2003 11:01

Thi key problem with this statement is that it assumes there is some equivalence between Palestinian violence and Israeli violence. In reality, the Palestinians are an oppressed people, while Israel is an oppressor state and an extremely heavily armed one at that.
In my view, the left should stay away from Searchlight. The magazine has made no bones about sharing info and cooperating with the British state and intelligence services when it comes to investigating fascists, but it the very same state apparatus that also investigates Marxists and anarchists. I think if you want to sup with Searchlight, you definitely need a long spoon.

The Crimson Expat


GOOD 2 SEE

29.04.2003 11:21

It's good to see jewish people standing up against Israel.

ich


I'm sorry but ...

29.04.2003 12:10

... as much as I commend all who fight against facism and racial division, I don't think Gary's statement goes far enough by half in addressing the fundamental problems of Palestine/Israel.

"And that is why it saddens us to see the good name of the Jewish people tainted and dragged through the mud by naked anti-semitism masquerading as anti-Zionism."

This is a ridiculous and offensive statement. To equate the valid criticism of certain attitudes within israeli society as 'naked anti-semitism' is just another version of 'we are totally innocent and have never done anything wrong'.

The fact that an increasingly large minority of israelis hold the veiw that the Palestinians are animals to be removed from their dwellings, that any way of doing this is valid, that 'god' gave the jews the land, and that criticism of this can be equated to a deep and unconscious hatred of jews (the standard definition of anti-semitism) has eroded any illusion that zionist thinking can be rescued from the trap set it by its more fanatical proponants.

"We deplore the suicide bombings, the terrible slaughter of both innocent Israeli citizens and the horrendous self-destruction of young Palestinian zealots. But much as we deplore, we understand. We understand why Palestinians have become hated in Israel, and indeed throughout the Arab world itself."

What on earth are you on?

You deplore the terrible slaughter of innocent israelis?

But you understand why the Palestinians are hated?

I think you deplore and understand less than you imagine the rest of the world does. Where is the disgust at children targeted by highly trained snipers? Where is the understanding that bulldozing unarmed young women opens peoples eyes to the hatred pouring out from israeli equivalents to nazies - the zionazies as they are increasingly called (and correctly so in this authors H.O.)?

I applaud the attempt to redress the scandalous media vacumn in relation to the unfolding GENOCIDAL agenda in the bizzarly named 'holy land' ... but D minus for effort.

jackslucid
mail e-mail: jackslucid@hotmail.com


It's a start

29.04.2003 14:35

Usually, any criticism of Israeli policies and actions (read - war crimes) is dismissed by the Searchlight / ANL crowd as 'anti-semitism'.

At least this is a start - a hesitant start, but a start nonetheless.

Some harsher criticism than 'it makes the rest of us Jews feel uncomfortable' would be welcome, but I guess we can't ask for miracles...

Bri.

Brian


hoax alert!

29.04.2003 16:15

I've checked with Searchlight and this is a hoax.


Always remember, the newswire is open-source, anyone can post anything in any name. Any post could be a hoax.

kurious oranj


Kurious?

29.04.2003 21:36

Damn - you mean they're still hard line Zionists, and not truly anti-fascist yet?

Bummer - I really hoped they'd seen sense at last.

Too much to hope for, I guess....

Brian


Searchlight

30.04.2003 03:11

Searchlight Magazine is a useful source of anti-racist content:

 http://www.searchlightmagazine.com/default.asp

If you are looking for articles claiming that Jew control the media, Israelis torture children and that self-defense is genocide, I suggest [taken off. fuck off, nazi!]

Ogburn


explain please...

30.04.2003 05:31

Could you clarify what you mean by hoax? Do you mean that Mr Gable never wrote this letter or just that he never intended it to be published on IMC?

natsocnet


Ogbum

30.04.2003 07:25

'self defence is genocide'?

You mean self defence in the sense of stealing peoples land, bulldozing their homes, allowing hooligans to terrorise residents, blowing up occupied houses, collective punishment, firing air-to-surface missiles at tower blocks?

Fuck you and your self-defence.

You are supportig a morally bankrupt terrorist state - they reap as they sow, and I have no sympathy for them at all.

I don't call Israeli 'self defence' genocide - it's just war crimes, pure and simple.

It's fuckers like you that make fuckers like me feel anti-semitic, rather than anti-Zionist.

Where have the good Jews gone?

Bastard.

Bri.

Brian


Searchlies

30.04.2003 11:38

Searchlight is a state-run organisation that spies on Leftists as well as fash, it's also linked to the security services....

antifa


above

30.04.2003 15:07

Re: above hoax - course there's things I disagree with in it, but as it ain't put out by them, I won't comment on it. Michael Cohen (who apparently signed the statement) is dead - 'Mr Terry Fitzpatrick' is offensive in this at least!

Searchlight is a good source of info - if you're going to act on it, check out the info with other sources first. No-one's asking you to get into bed with it, or give it a gold star!

This is not to say that there aren't deep problems with the mag; however, unless you're a hermit, you'll probably interact with many organisations who work with the state, on a daily basis!

When I was researching the truth behind all the stuff about Searchlight, the websites that came up with info on it were 90something % fascist....

There are criticisms of Israel which are fully justified and not anti-semitic. There are also other criticisms which are anti-semitic. The term Zionazi is at very least offensive and muddies the water, rather than helping solve the situation out there.

Many of the comments you've all made about Israelis and Palestinians don't sound like they're based on having been over there, but are what you see that justifies the view you already hold. I have been out there, but how many people did I meet? Not enough to start making generalised statements about what is what, or who thinks what.

As long as people go on talking about 'the Palestinians' or 'the Israelis' as two distinct and largely coherent sides, you are continuing the occupation and hindering peace.

Using other people's anger to justify yours, and saying that is what makes you feel anti-semitic rather than just anti-Zionist is supremely dodgy. Watch it mate.

Anyway, this so-called debate could (& will) go on and on in countless different posts. Lets all just get out there (in the street, or in Palestine & Israel) and do something to make the situation progress, rather than seeking refuge in posting to Indymedia.

ISMer


Stop splitting hairs

30.04.2003 23:49

Stop splitting hairs
Stop splitting hairs

I doubt whether it is possible to be anti-Zionist without to some extent also being anti-semitic. Zionists are afterall, all Jews themselves. What is anti-Zionism and what is anti-semitism is simply a question of degree.

If I say; "Juden Raus!" then that is an unmistakably anti-semitic statement. If someone else says " Kick out all Zionists!" this is an unintentionally anti-semitic statement.

One statement is intentionally anti-semitic, the other is anti-semitic IN ITS EFFECTS!

It is for this reason that anyone who wishes to defend the Palestinians must be prepared to be labelled as anti-semitic. Nothing less will do the trick.

natsocnet