Leader of 14 Friends of Palestine Endorses Greta Berlin's Anti-Semitism

Anyone reading this post is likely already familiar with the sordid story of Greta Berlin, the co-founder of the Free Gaza Movement, whose ships of fools have brought extensive amounts of humanitarian supplies such as expired medications and used shoes in PR stunts to support the Hamas regime in Gaza.  If not, the short of it is that Berlin has been outed for tweeting a link to a video by the late, unlamented British Holocaust denier Eustace Mullins which claimed that the Zionists were the ones responsible for murdering millions of their fellow Jews in Europe. And if that wasn't enough, posting a 1943 Nazi propaganda film to her Facebook page. And if that wasn't enough, coming up with multiple different explanations for what she did, none of which held up under further examination.  All of these contortions have been extensive documented by Avi Mayer in a first post and then in a followup (readers should continue to hit "read next page" as they scroll to the bottom of his posts).

Once Berlin had provided an irrefutable example of the darkness of anti-Semitism that exists in the core of the anti-Israel movement, others in the movement faced a choice. They could support Berlin, a tireless supporter of the right of Palestinians to try to destroy the Jewish state by any means necessary; or they could denounce her anti-Semitism either on politically expedient grounds or because they were truly disgusted by her overt Jew-hatred.  (Of course, the fact is that it is indeed anti-Semitic to oppose the right of the Jewish people-- and only the Jewish people-- to their own national self-determination, and and to deploy lies equating Israel with Nazi Germany and apartheid South Africa.)

The breakdown of the actors in this drama is interesting:  leading the charge against Berlin was Ali Abunimah,  whose Electronic Intifada blog promotes a so-called "one state solution" which would turn Israel, the West Bank and Gaza into the 24th Arab nation.  Once Abunimah had discredited Berlin's lame explanation that she had posted the Nazi film as part of a Facebook discussion group (he documented that said group did not exist), then others fell in line behind him. Even Jewish Voice for Peace, just as they waited for Abunimah to denounce the ex-Israeli Gilad Atzmon before taking a position on Atzmon's anti-Semitic droppings, only issued a statement cutting ties with the FGM once Abunimah had given them tacit permission. 

As of this posting, one member of the FGM advisory board, Naomi Klein, has resigned because of this. The remaining board members of the Free Gaza Movement have been strangely silent other than a statement on the FGM website distancing themselves from the post.  Of note the advisory board includes Noam Chomsky and Jeff Halper, both of whom use their Jewish identification as credentials to denounce Israel.  

On the Dark Side, in what should be a surprise to nobody, one of Berlin's staunch defenders is Atzmon, who himself links to Holocaust deniers and has left a lengthy trail of anti-Semitism across the internet, including such statements as calling burning down a synagogue "a rational act".  Paul Larudee, another flotidiot who also leads the International Solidarity Movement in northern California, also supports Atzmon.  And in genteel Marin County, there's a homegrown group of PWHI (People Who Hate Israel) called 14 Friends of Palestine; their spokesperson is a grandmotherly British lady named Jane Jewell.  Jewell appears to be on familiar terms with Atzmon, as this post on his blog shows (Atzmon himself goes amusingly ballistic here, saying about Abunimah "Yet, one would expect that after his recent failed attack on myself and my work, Kosher Commissar Ali Abuminah, would think twice before he allies himself with the darkest Zionist and Israeli Hasbara forces around.")

So Jane Jewell, busy with helping Free Gaza Movement board member Ann Wright (silent on Berlin's anti-Semitism) finds the time both to send a letter to Jewish Voice for Peace (presumably condemning their rejection of Berlin) and to put a supportive post on Atzmon's site.

Now in Marin County, 14 FOP has hosted events at the First Presbyterian Church in San Anselmo.  Will the church now dissociate itself from an organization led by an open supporter of anti-Semitism?  Stay tuned.