Atlanta: Jewish leaders resign from Carter Center
According to AP:
Steve Berman, an Atlanta real estate developer among those who resigned, said members have “watched with great dismay” as Carter defended the book, especially as he implied that Americans might be afraid to discuss the conflict in fear of a powerful Jewish lobby.
Berman said the religious affiliation of the resigning members, which include some prominent Jewish leaders in the Atlanta area, didn’t influence their decision.
According to CNN:
The letters were signed by Alan Abrams, Steve Berman, Michael Coles, Jon Golden, Doug Hertz, Barbara Babbit Kaufman, Liane Levetan, Jeff Levy, Leon Novak, Ambassador William B. Schwartz Jr., William B. Schwartz III, Steve Selig, Cathey Steinberg, and Gail Solomon.
All of this reinforces Carter’s point that any honest discussion in this country of Israeli policies, of human rights abuses by Israel, and the state of apartheid it has imposed, is inevitably stifled.
Whether it’s about Rachel Corrie, who has has been subjected to an ugly smear campaign since she was killed by an Israeli bulldozer in the Gaza town of Rafah, while trying to prevent the demolition of the home of a Palestinian pharmacist and his family;
or the the play “My Name is Rachel Corrie” which was first cancelled in NYC due to Jewish pressure and has now been cancelled in Toronto due to Jewish pressure;
or Mearsheimer and Walt, who have been the objects of another intense smear campaign since they wrote an expose on the “lobby” and its effects on US foreign policy which was published in the London review of books;
or you are a former Israeli soldier who started the group “Breaking the Silence” as witnessed by Phil Weiss;
all honest discussion or criticism of Israel in the US must be suppressed.
But nothing compares to the campaign against Jimmy Carter. Fortunately, Carter is not so easy to stifle. And the attempt to do so has exposed the ugliness and the true motivations of blind Israel supporters in the US, which extend beyond the clown from Harvard to the New York Times to Nancy Pelosi to Amazon.com.
CNN will have a special report on the resignations shortly.