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Comment by erenyeager | Hacker News Reader

I remember there was a piece about universities in the Uk and collaboration with Mossad agents to suppress pro-Palestine student movements. Additionally, if you’ve heard of the “canary list” it’s a website dedicated to dragging students and activists in the mud by associating them with horrible things.

I remember a professor at my university about whom a fake website claiming he sexually harassed a student was created. Of course the claims were false but because he was an advisor for the Palestine club his name was dragged through mud.

Since a previous comment chain with sources has disappeared for some reason, I’ve posted sources for further reading here:

https://www.aljazeera.com/amp/news/2017/1/11/exclusive-israe...

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20210602-bbc-sparks-outrag...

Also see the US anti-boycott laws:

https://www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org/2018/07/take-action-stop...

https://www.salon.com/2022/02/02/anti-bds-law-in-texas-free-...

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My Red Hat contract specifically stated I wasn't allowed to boycott Israel, as a Kiwi, that was freaking bizarre.

I remember seeing that canary list online in the 2012-13 era. It was frightening.

Haven't heard the canary list mentioned in a while. It was a wild time, I had a few friends' relatives affected

Can you cite this as it sounds horrible.

I believe he is referring to this

https://canarymission.org/

Yes, I’ve sourced some in another comment under my thread but here is some reading on the canary list:

https://theintercept.com/2018/11/22/israel-boycott-canary-mi...

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2018-10-04/ty-article/.p...

This happens on both sides of the political spectrum. People who identify as Zionists are banned, ridiculed, haraassed and in extreme cases (but not that rare) physically assaulted everywhere they go.

Wonder if the same thing happened to Afrikaners?

Have no idea. Being a Zionist is comparable to being an Afrikaner now? I'll let Bernie Sanders know.

Israel isn't an apartheid state?

Being a Zionist doesn't necessarily mean you support Israel's policy in the West Bank anymore than being Pro Palestinian means you're pro Hamas. Being a Zionist means you support Israel's right to exist. I am a Zionist and also pro Palestinian in the sense that I support an independent Palestinian state along side (not instead of) Israel.

As for the apartheid analogy, there's some truth to it and also many differences from what happened in South Africa. The big elephant in the room is that no Palestinian leadership, ever, in the last 100 years actually accepted Zionism / a Jewish state in any kind of borders. And many kinds of partitions were discussed throughout history. So settlements or no settlements we are left with a security control / martial law that Israel will have to keep over the Palestinians for its survival as long as this continues since the denial of Zionism is often violent. Is that apartheid? Not in my eyes no. But the settlements are (and are very controversial within Israel btw, and some of them were dismantled). Is this reason enough for anyone who identifies as a Zionist to be attacked/harassed automatically without even hearing what he has to say? For you it seems like it is. Shouldn't then Americans be spat at as soon as they open their mouths over what happened in Iraq? I mean some people say Americans murdered one million people for no good reason why does this get a pass? The Israeli Palestinian conflict is peanuts compared to some of the adventures the U.S had and Israel at least has a good reason to fight, what's the U.S excuse? Yet its beyond the pale for Americans to be boycotted/harassed simply for being Americans - not now and not when the war was going on.

The situation in Israel is tragic and complex and needs real solutions, but the anti Zionist crowd that sees everything as good or evil (Israel of course is evil, the Palestinians good) has it all figured out.

You are projecting a bunch, like a lot of Israeli people I talk to about this. I never attacked you.

Israel is, and will always be, internationally on the nose for what happened in that region and after the war. Even to people like me who are sympathetic to the historical persecution, brute forcing yourself onto a land you feel your people have a spiritual connection to and forming an ethnic state is regrettable.

I love Jewish people. I've met lots of amazing Israelis and understand the a fair bit about issues, but settling in that region was fucking silly and always going to yield this unending conflict and the dismay of the world.

Anyway, I don't have the inclination to engage in heated online discussions. I may read if you reply but will not respond.

> Anyway, I don't have the inclination to engage in heated online discussions

Really? That's surprising actually. Have a good one!

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