umkahlil

not that they're not trying . . .

Go West Young Man: The comments section has been hijacked by Zionist cyberterrorists, and Aboutreika's image in which he lifts his jersey to show a tee-shirt saying "Sympathy With Gaza," has been disappeared from Google and Yahoo search engines, but Scott MacLeod's story for Time Magazine Blog "The Arab Republic of Aboutreika" is a fine piece to expose western audiences to the Egyptian football superstar, who was essential to Egypt's winning the Africa Cup of Nations:

"The 29-year-old Aboutreika had a hand in every victory. But he captured the hearts of Egyptians and the rest of the Arab world with something more than fancy footwork. After he scored a goal in Egypt's 3-0 win over Sudan, he pulled up his No. 22 jersey to reveal a T-shirt emblazoned with the words, in Arabic and English, "Sympathize with Gaza." It was a declaration of political and humanitarian support for the Palestinians, who had just broken down the fence on the Egyptian border in defiance of an Israeli and Egyptian government blockade. Aboutreika was yellow-carded for unsportsmanlike conduct. Neither he nor Egyptian fans seemed to care."

Zionists Still Crazy After All These Years: Anne Selden Annab has written a letter to the Los Angeles Times regarding Zionist ideologues attempts to shut down an appearance of Sabeel, an organization of Palestinian Christians, at a local Episcopalean church.

Zip Your Lips: Alison Weir of "If Americans Knew," writes of a cancellation of her appearance at Greenwich Library

GROUP CHALLENGES GREENWICH LIBRARY CENSORSHIP
CONTACT: 202.631.4060

A group of local citizens is challenging the decision by some officials at the Greenwich Library to cancel two upcoming talks that had been in the works since January.

The presentations are entitled "Israel-Palestine: Beyond the Headlines," and were to be given by Alison Weir, a media critic and former journalist who has traveled throughout the West Bank and Gaza. Weir is executive director of If Americans Knew, a nonprofit organization that specializes in media analysis.

According to library officials, after an advertisement announcing the talks ran in local papers, the library received some phone calls and emails from people complaining. The library director, assistant director, and president of the board of trustees then decided to cancel it, determining that it would violate "public sensitivities." Officials refuse to say how many people contacted them, stating only "some were old friends."

"This is absolutely ridiculous," says event organizer John McGillion, of Hunting Ridge Road. "It is my right as a citizen of Greenwich to hold an event at the library. Allowing people to censor a program is outrageous and illegal. The whole point of a library is to promote open exchange of ideas."

McGillion states that "Ms. Weir has spoken all over the country – at Harvard Law School, the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Stanford, Vassar, you name it. She's given two briefings on Capitol Hill and spoken to various think tanks and international conferences. We're lucky to have her."

McGillion considers the decision "unethical, hasty and illogical." He says, "First of all, censoring a program violates their own professional ethics. The American Library Association Bill of Rights is absolutely clear on this. It says: 'Libraries which make exhibit spaces and meeting rooms available to the public they serve should make such facilities available on an equitable basis, regardless of the beliefs or affiliations of individuals or groups requesting their use.'

"Furthermore, even if it were permissible to screen out certain content, which it's not, how in the world did library officials think they had any idea what the 'public sensitivities' of Greenwich citizens are? Think about it logically: 99 percent of the people are probably happy or neutral that the program is going to take place. Only the one percent who oppose it would bother to pick up the phone."

As word has gotten out about the cancellation, the library has begun receiving numerous calls in favor of the talk being held as scheduled.

McGillion says that since the decision to cancel was made quickly, without consulting library trustees or the public, he considers it "temporary."

"As far as I'm concerned," he says, "the program will go on. We will be at the library Thursday and Saturday and Ms Weir will give the talk she was invited to Greenwich to give. Then the people of Fairfield County can evaluate the information for themselves, without a small number of partisans denying them this opportunity."

http://www.ifamericansknew.org/download/GreenwichAd.pdf

ADVERTISEMENT TEXT:

"Ms. Weir presents a powerful, well documented view of the Middle East today. She is intelligent, careful, and critical. American policy makers would benefit greatly from hearing her first-hand observations and attempting to answer the questions she poses. This is an intellectual, thought-provoking, and worthwhile presentation."

- Thomas Campbell, Former