Solomonia: ADL Pokes CAIR Again

Thursday, August 23, 2007

A few days back, I posted about CAIR's attack on ADL, which was apparently a response to an ADL press release (see: CAIR Goes After ADL). Here's the release: Coalition Backing Holy Land Foundation Tainted By Radical Associations, Support For Terror

A coalition organized to support the embattled Holy Land Foundation (HLF) against federal charges of funding terrorism is "tainted" by the involvement of three organizations with a history of sympathizing with terrorist groups, according to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).

"Hungry for Justice," a coalition established to speak out in support of the HLF through a Web site and a series of planned public events, claims the federal charges and ongoing trial in Dallas are part of a "politically driven" anti-Muslim witch-hunt and an attempt to single out Muslim charitable organizations in this country. The coalition includes the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Muslim American Society (MAS) and the ANSWER Coalition.

"If you look at these three groups and their histories, it is ironic, but not surprising that they would come to the aid and defense of a charity accused of funneling funds to Hamas," said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director. "These groups are tainted by their own murky associations with radical organizations and individuals and, in some cases, expressions of solidarity with terrorist groups targeting Israelis."...

The press release carries links to profiles of the three groups which are refreshingly direct considering they were produced by a group (ADL) that, until recently, seemed to be spending an inordinate amount of time tracking and targeting dinosaur right-wing groups and conservative Christians. Here are the profiles: Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), Muslim American Society (MAS) and ANSWER (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism).

ADL struck directly at CAIR again two days ago with: ADL Troubled by National Islamic Civil Rights Organization's Failure to Condemn Terrorism by Name

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today said it was deeply troubled by the failure of the leadership of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) to address its past affiliation with groups such as the Islamic Association for Palestine and to clearly and unequivocally condemn terrorists by name.

"As an organization representing itself as America's largest Islamic civil liberties group with a mission to enhance understanding of Islam and encourage justice and mutual understanding, it is deeply troubling that CAIR simply refuses to issue a clear and unequivocal condemnation of terrorists and terrorism," said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director. "If CAIR truly repudiates acts of terror and murder, we would welcome a simple declaratory statement that no cause, no matter how just it may be, justifies the use of suicide killers, rockets or other means to target civilians."...

Posted by Solomon at 4:44 PM on Thursday, Aug 23, 2007 | Comments (3)
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#1 Joachim Martillo | August 24, 2007 3:24 AM

Is the Israel Lobby Just another Lobby?

A Brief Thought on the Current Discussion of the Israel Lobby
by Joachim Martillo ( ThorsProvoni@aol.com )

On page 16 of "The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy" ( http://ksgnotes1.harvard.edu/Research/wpaper.nsf/rwp/RWP06-011/$File/rwp_06_011_walt.pdf ), Professors Walt and Mearsheimer make a demonstrably false statement, "For the most part, the individuals and groups that comprise the Lobby are doing what other special interest groups do, just much better."

Cecile Surasky analyses the behavior of the ADL in "Islamic rights group CAIR says "ADL Seeks to Hinder Legal Rights of U.S. Muslims"" ( http://www.muzzlewatch.com/?p=232 ) and points out:

The ADL's deliberate conflation of criticism of Israel, and anti-Semitism, validates CAIR's charges that this is not a civil rights issue but a political one.
The ADL won't get very far saying "We hate CAIR because we disagree with their political analysis," but they will get far using the ultimate weapon at their disposal: calling them terrorists.

And this is terrible for everyone, when people of all faiths and ethnicities should be working together to root out all forms of brutal killing of civilians, whether by individuals, groups or states.

To be sure the United States is at war and sensitivities are justifiably high in the post 9/11 era. And, it is a war we have in large part exacerbated through bringing chaos to Iraq, and our tendency to demonize Muslims, who comprise some 1.5 billion people throughout the world.

The desire to create a false consensus on Israeli policy has led to numerous efforts to silence dissentâ€“we at Jewish Voice for Peace know this because it has happened to us repeatedly, and in ways we never imagined.

But efforts to silence Muslims and people of Arab descent who refuse to toe the party line reach an order of a completely different magnitude: they are not just silenced, but criminalized. At stake is not just free speech, but actual lives and livelihoods.

The Agricultural lobby simple does not threaten any segment of the US citizenry in the way that the Israel Lobby does.

Since slavery there has been no US lobby like the Israel Lobby. The Israel Lobby demonizes Arabs and Muslims the way John C. Calhoun dehumanized African slaves.

Obviously Calhoun did not want the slaves to be freed. The Israel lobby does not want Arab and Muslim Americans to be free to exercise their rights to participate fully in American society and politics.

The US congress criminalized this sort of conspiracy against rights, but the Israel Lobby is perpetrating something far more sinister than simple civil rights violations or even threats against life and livelihood.

Using a state of war to subvert the US government clandestinely to serve a foreign government's interests and to negate the constitutional rights of American citizens is getting real close to an attempt to put down the US government. It is time to research the case law, for the Israel Lobby is treading very close to a violation of Title 18.2384 Seditious Conspiracy.

It has to be high crimes and misdemeanors for a sitting president to surround himself with advisors that are engaged in conspiracy against rights and very close to seditious conspiracy.

#2 JSinger | August 24, 2007 11:11 AM

I think Foxman has already done quite enough for one week, between generating a conflict between Israel and Turkey and firing someone for saying what he then turned around and supported two days later.

#3 Esther Rozen | August 24, 2007 2:10 PM

The ADL has become the biggest embarrassment imaginable. I had no idea an organization I supported and always gave to was involved in genocide denial and bearing false witness.

Denying the Armenian genocide is the no different than denying the Holocaust.