This piece was written by Seth Greenwald and published in the Times of Israel. Seth Greenwald is a sophomore at Clark University and a strong pro-Israel advocate.
The Students for Justice in Palestine, an anti-Israel, allegedly pro-Palestinian student organization, have picked the wrong fight against Florida Atlantic University student Abraham Mercado. Mercado, a strong pro-Israel activist and outspoken critic of the organization, penned a letter on October 4th, 2013 condemning the actions of SJP for their alleged “Apartheid Wall” and mock barrier placed in the middle of campus, which prevented students from passing. SJP claimed that this was a representation of what the typical Palestinian faces when attempting to go about their day. What they failed to mention was the fact that the security barrier, their so called “Apartheid Wall” was solely built to prevent terrorist activities in those areas most well known by the Shin Bet (Israel’s equivalent to the FBI) to be easily accessed by known terrorists and suicide bombers. Shortly thereafter, after writing his first letter to the editor regarding the aforementioned event, on October 8th, 2013, Mercado penned his second piece, “Letter to the Editor: Response to the Headline “Free Pizza, Free Palestine”; immediately following this, Mercado came under attack by SJP. In his completely reasonable letter, Mercado described the headline, “Free Pizza, Free Palestine” as both appalling and insensitive. Mercado also made the argument that the yelling of “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” echoes the call of the Arab annihilation of Israel in 1948. Mr. Mercado then continued with a personal story, and went on to discuss what the headline means to pro-Israel students. By giving a voice to hate, the University Press created an environment in which anti-Israel rhetoric could thrive. By allowing for a catchy but unethical false headline, the University Press has given credibility to an organization that attacks, verbally and sometimes physically, pro-Israel or even Jewish students on many campuses, without taking into account how it affects those not in support of SJP.
Read more: SJP v. Mercado a “Fair” fight? | Seth Greenwald | Ops & Blogs | The Times of Israel http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/sjp-v-mercado-a-fair-fight/#ixzz33mnXl8nd
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Contributed by CAMERA intern Seth Greenwald, Sophomore at Clark University