As a signatory of a N.Y. Times published  petition letter on 08/23/14 titled “Jewish Survivors and Descendants of Survivors and Victims of Nazi Genocide Unequivocally Condemn the Massacre of Palestinians in Gaza ” and as a son of parents who survived the said genocide, I along countless other Jews nationally and globally,  unequivocally and validly condemn the utterly false epithet thrown at those of us who correctly and categorically condemn the Trump-Netanyahu alliance’s nefariously toxic  and downright criminal policies and activities accusing us of being  “guilty” of  “anti-Zionism”  (or criticism of Israel’s power structure)  which they  then conflate with  the insulting and specious slanderous accusations of “anti-Semitism“.

The conflation of anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism has been not operable for decades, in fact even going back to the origins of Zionism at the turn of the 19th century when the vast majority  of Jews repudiated the notion that the Jewish religion should or could be nationalized.

So, point in case of this article is that at the end of April, 2019 the N.Y. Times issued an apology for and excellent cartoon it published of a blind Trump being taken by a misleading service-dog depicted as Netanyahu, into a criminal activity realm.

Initially this cartoon drew no criticism since it was first published on Thursday April 25th, 2019,  yet on Saturday April 29th, 2019 when it was published in the domestic edition, criticism of the cartoon gained momentum to the point that the N.Y. Times removed the said cartoon and, as The Washington Post reported,  it was removed in an article titled  “N.Y. Times is ‘Deeply Sorry‘ for the Cartoon“.

This bizarre apology is preposterously outrageous given that this cartoon is not and cannot in any way be interpreted to be based on anything in it which which should or can be offensive to Judaism.

In fact the destructively nefarious, extremist, demagogic, dishonest, exploitive, ideology/movement of the particularly post -1967  war of occupation kind of Zionism ideology/movement based now on the nationalist, Apartheid “Nation-State” supremacist, racist, violent, national and international law, United Nations resolutions,  and treaties and conventions,  violating nature, has meted out enormous damage on global Judaism which is a faith, a culture, a set of Torah abiding universalist noble and humanist values.

What is remarkable is that in contrast to the decision of the N.Y. Times, the progressive and prestigious Jewish social justice publication “Tikun Olam” published an excellent article on April 27, 2019 by Richard Silverstein titled ” New York Times Caves to Anti-Semitism Police, Censors Cartoon.”

Tikkun Olam means “Repairing the World”.  This publication was founded by the legendary, scholarly, noble Rabbi Michael Lerner.

The apology by the N.Y. Times was particularly utterly unnecessary, inappropriate, and downright bizarre as it is the result of such a prestigious newspaper caving in to the misleading, right-wing propagandist Israel lobby AIPAC which has failed to register to the Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA) and by its undue influence, dishonestly, egregiously and hyperbolically  disinforms the American public about historical reality dating back to the turn of the 19th century,  and thusly gets away with fanning the flames of hate and fear, something which contributes under the present inchoate fascist regime of  our misleader Donald Trump to a potentially catastrophic war on Iran on the basis of brazen falsehoods.

What we have in effect in this brilliant cartoon is a not-so-“blind ” but an hegemony, malevolence, and greed obsessively driven, Donald Trump who is about to be most probably, and hopefully, impeached for his assaults on national and international law, for assisting the murderous terrorism state actor of Saudi Arabia, under the misleading leadership of dictator Bin Salman, in its bombing demolition and massacre of the poorest nation in the Middle East, namely Yemen,   as well as for assaulting our Constitutional democracy,  being misled by a service-dog representing the the sociopathic Netanyahu who is equally facing indictment for corruption crimes in Israel, as he is under the investigation as well by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against the humanity of the people of Palestine,  and who eventually will be held accountable by the said ICC for crimes.

On average one person is executed in Saudi Arabia every other day, most often for the “crime” of advocating democracy.   A case in point as regards to to the reckless frivolity of the Saudi power structure when it comes to innocent human lives is the Washington Post U.S.- based, highly principled, and professional journalist Jamal Khashoggi who was recently assassinated by orders of Bin Salman (as the CIA has confirmed) for not being compliant with the status quo of Saudi Arabia’s decadent elite,  and therefore for having emigrated and having dared to exercise his free-speech right to critique the energumenic power structure.

From the turn of the 19th century to the present, the violent supremacist nationalist ideology calling for the nationalization of the Judaic faith was never supported by a majority of Jews, most particularly because Judaism is a noble faith based on universalist Torah values, and as well an interesting and rich culture, but it is not a race.

Only the Nazis proclaim such non-sensical and preposterous notion of racial supremacy.    But “Zionism” which is an ideology which has done tremendous to damage to Judaism, is an ideology which has absorbed lots of elements of the supremacist, racist ideology and tactics and strategies espoused by the Nazis which led Germany and Europe to its destruction during WWII.

As the NYTimes petition letter says at its end: NEVER AGAIN FOR ANYONE !

                                 EXTENSION OF ARTICLE 

This article is extended to cover an illustrative additional outrageous attempt to censor a presentation of a Pro-Palestine event at UMass at Amherz which was first opposed by protestors who wanted it banned on the dishonest allegations that it was “Anti-Semitic” but failed to block via court action.

The event was by the Tricontinental Institute Director Vijay Prashad moderating at podium, Nation magazine journalist Dave Zirin, musician Roger Waters, MPower Change co-founder Linda Sarsour speak at the University of Massachusetts Fines Arts Center on May 4, 2019.

Two thousand people attended the event.

A link is here provided for a complete report on the event.

What is provided in this extension is a very short video clip of Dave Zirin making a relevant and revealing announcement at the beginning of the event.  Dave Zirin a vibrant, bright, and inspiring Nation magazine journalist who was a member of the panel.

So, here is the link for Dave Zirin’s articulate announcement to yet another event which had no business being opposed by anyone other than those with ulterior silencing free speech interest motives.