MP Libby Davies under attack

Today, the House of Commons formed a virtual lynch mob demanding the resignation of NDP MP Libby Davies for saying that the Israeli occupation began in 1948. She was punked by a phoney blogger who was trying to trap her into saying something unacceptable. Libby has been an outspoken critic of Israel since she visited Gaza and saw the horrors that Israeli is inflicting on the people there. In her usual quiet courageous way, Libby is one of the few members of Parliament speaking for Palestinian rights and representing the thousands of Canadians who believe that Israel does not deserve the support of Canada.

It is a matter of debate whether the occupation started in 1948 or 1967. If you are of the view that the expulsion of the Palestinians from their homes when Israel was founded was unacceptable than the occupation began there. If you agree with the foundation of state of Israel whatever the costs to the Palestinian people then you think the occupation started in 1967. Believing that the foundation of the state of Israel was unjust does not mean that you think the state of Israel should not continue to exist. I believe that the foundation of Canada was unjust but I don't call for the dissolution of Canada; although I am starting to consider it.

I am Jewish and have always opposed Zionism. It was a debate among Jews. It is a legitimate debate. Libby however is not of the view that the state of Israel should not have been founded in its current form. She made a mistake and that was clear on the video. [3] Yet she was publicly criticized by her leader Jack Layton, ferociously attacked by her colleague Thomas Mulcair and now under sustained attack in the House.

And for whom are they speaking? In a recent BBC poll [4], only 23 percent of Canadians had a positive attitude towards Israel and 52 percent had a negative view. Libby is speaking for the majority of Canadians on this issue.

Libby is one of the best Members of Parliament. She is firmly rooted in her community, one of the poorest in the countries. She stands up for what's important and in these days of the rightward slide of the NDP, she is usually on the right side of most issues. She is also a wonderful person and doesn't deserve this shit.

So why the lynch mob? There is a campaign against freedom of speech on Israel. Under McCarthyism, it wasn't only Communists who got attacked, it was friends, families and associates of Communiists, it was anyone who didn't think the capitalist system was the cat's meow. And it's the same with Israel. Anyone who proclaims their solidarity with the people of Palestine, is persona non grata with this government and now it seems with the Opposition as well.

Please write to laytoj@parl.gc.ca [5], ">Jack Layton and Michael Ignatieff [6] to tell them that you are outraged by their attacks on Libby Davies. Libby has spent decades speaking up in the House for the issues we all care about. Now it's time to speak up for her.

On June 17 a coalition of organizations are holding a press conference to raise their concern that democracy itself is threatened in Canada. The attack on Libby, the creation of a police state in Toronto in preparation for the G20, the cuts to funding for any group supportive of Israel, the embrace by our government of some of the worst human rights abuser in the world. All of these are signs of the erosion of our democratic rights.

Comments

Submitted by egerk on June 16, 2010 - 1:10am.

Hi! Does that mean you'll join us to stop the campaign against freedom of speech on University campuses - the attempt by the pro-choice movement to stamp out public debate and freedom of speech by those opposed to abortion?

Submitted by adharden on June 16, 2010 - 10:16am.

egerk, I would suggest you join in on the forum topics available to vent your rage against abortion - you will find plenty of people willing to debate with you, and though I vehemently disagree with your assertions and position, I don't think this particular article is the right venue for that discussion. Simply type 'abortion' in the search bar in the upper right corner of the rabble site and you'll find many forum topics you can weigh in on... In the meantime, you can check this blog piece out I wrote...

Submitted by M. Spector on June 16, 2010 - 11:55am.

egerk: As usual, adharden's advice is wrong. If you go to Babble and try to argue against women's right to choose whether to carry a fetus to term, you will get your ignorant ass banned in a hurry. And rightly so.

Stick to the right-wing commentaries in the Globe and Mail and CBC. You don't belong here.

Submitted by adharden on June 16, 2010 - 1:52pm.

More on topic, I thought folks might be interested in this piece I just penned... er, typed:

Earth to NDP: Get a moral backbone - recognize apartheid in Israel-Palestine, and help do something about it

-That link will take you to the piece. One of my first reactions to this incident was to start campaigning for NDP members to leave the party over this, but a good friend argued with me that it would be irresponsible to do the NDP the favour of encouraging critical folks within the party to leave... rather more pressure ought to be brought to bear on the party to bring critical perspectives to the table in an effective way - from Israel to climate change, to inequality to what Korten calls 'corporate libertarianism [11]', to women's and children's rights, unjust global debt and trade regimes, the vacuousness of 'economic growth' measures, justice for indigenous peoples...

Submitted by M. Spector on June 16, 2010 - 2:41pm.

The NDP leadership is pro-Zionist. They do not merely grovel before the Israeli ambassador while secretly supporting the Palestinian cause. Their support for Israel is 100% sincere. It's ideologically based in their acceptance of (and thus their refusal to stand up against) the worldwide neoliberal paradigm of globalized capitalism, or what David Korten calls "corporate libertarianism".

Trying to "pressure" them to take public positions contrary to their own solidly-held beliefs is a waste of effort. Yes, encouraging critical thinkers in the NDP to leave would be doing the party a big favour by removing an annoying irritant. It would also be a big favour to the critical thinkers themselves.