Polish MP Waves Israeli Flag With Swastika On It In Parliament!

 

Jimmy and Americans’ Comedian Kurt Metzger discuss Polish MP Konrad Berkowicz who displayed in parliament an Israeli flag altered to feature a swastika and called Israel the "new Third Reich" for committing genocide in Gaza. Jimmy supports Berkowicz's actions, dismissing Israeli condemnations as "crying wolf" and arguing that Zionists weaponize accusations of antisemitism. 

A clip of former Israeli minister Shulamit Aloni is played, in which she admits that Israel leverages the Holocaust and accusations of antisemitism as a "trick" to justify its actions against Palestinians. The segment concludes by praising Berkowicz for speaking his genuine opinion rather than reading from an approved script.

Why do French politicians have a problem with Muslims?

Dane who wants to deport Muslims, ban Islam to run in election

Last year, Christian Hansen's 10-year-old son returned from school asking who Rasmus Paludan was.

"He told me that the pupils had been playing the 'Paludan-game' in the schoolyard, dividing each other into Christians, Jews and Muslims. The Christians then had to catch the Jews and Muslims and put them in [imaginative] cages and insult them," said Hansen, a 42-year-old software company owner in southern Denmark.

Hansen was frightened that Paludan's message had reached his son through social media.

"This is extremely dangerous," he said, "because his hateful views become a part of these children's early understanding of minorities."

Since founding his party in July 2017, far-right politician Rasmus Paludan, a Danish lawyer, has risen to virtual stardom for his Quran-burning demonstrations in Muslim-majority neighbourhoods - stunts which have been triggering counterprotests.

Paludan - who did not respond to Al Jazeera's request for comment - tells his supporters that Denmark is for "ethnic Danes", that he wants to deport the country's more than 300,000 Muslims and ban Islam, as he warns that "civil war is coming".

With the rise of these new anti-Muslim players, I think a lot of Muslims have considered whether it's worth staying here.

While few took him seriously weeks ago, Paludan's Hard Line (Stram Kurs) party is now running for office in the June 5 general election having gathered the roughly 20,000 voter signatures needed to contest the poll.

Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen has condemned the Quran-burning sessions, writing on Twitter that they are "meaningless provocations with no other purpose than causing division".

Observers say that the emergence of two new far-right parties in the country - Hard Line and The New Right (Nye Borgerlige) - could harm Rasmussen's chances for re-election with a centre-right alliance.

Against the backdrop of Denmark's cartoon controversy, senior politicians have warned that scenes of a Danish politician burning the Quran could be used to stir hatred against the country.

At a demonstration in October 2016, Paludan echoed the "rivers of blood" phrase by Britain's Enoch Powell, a Conservative politician who rallied against immigration 50 years ago.

"Our streets and straits will be turned into rivers of blood," Paludan said, "and the foreign enemy's blood will end up in the sewer, where the foreign enemies belong."

In a video from December 2018, he says: "The best thing would be if there were not a single Muslim left on this earth. I hope that will happen someday. Then we would have reached our final goal".

We have seen a process of normalisation in the negative discourse about Muslims since 2001. There is a focus on Islam, even among mainstream politicians, as being something negative and non-Danish.

His popularity had been limited to young people who follow his YouTube and Snapchat accounts, but in recent weeks his fame has grown.

Danes of all ages have taken selfies with the party leader while flashing the V-sign.

"We have seen tightening of policies and rhetoric around Muslims since leader of Danish People's Party Pia Kjaersgaard [now speaker of parliament] declared war on Islam in 2001," said Tarek Ghanoum, a 27-year-old Danish Muslim political commentator.

"With the rise of these new anti-Muslim players, I think a lot of Muslims have considered whether it's worth staying here … if this development continues.

"Hard Line and The New Right are parties which have formed their identities solely around attacking Muslims. Forget about climate, economy and eldercare, these are all minor issues for them. It is all about Muslims, immigrants and their descendants."

On April 14 this year, Paludan - convicted earlier in the same month of racism for suggesting that Africans are less intelligent - held a "Quran-throwing" demonstration in the heart of Blagards Plads, an area home to many Muslims.

He threw the Quran into the air, letting it fall to the ground. On other occasions, he has set Islam's holy book on fire and smeared it with bacon. In Norrebro that day, dozens of residents protested against him.

Cars, tyres and waste containers were burned on the streets, one person was wounded and 23 were arrested.

Police fought off protesters with clubs and tear gas and Paludan was evacuated.

Paludan's fame surged after the incident and, in a short time, he managed to gather the support needed to run in the election.

"We have seen a process of normalisation in the negative discourse about Muslims since 2001. There is a focus on Islam, even among mainstream politicians, as being something negative and non-Danish. To a certain extent, Paludan is a continuation of this trend," said Garbi Schmidt, a professor at Roskilde University.

In recent years, the centre-right government, with support from the right-wing Danish People's Party, has introduced a series of measures that affect Muslims, who make up around 5.5 percent of the population.

On April 15 in Copenhagen, about two dozen people were arrested in connection with riots during counterprotests to Paludan [File: Mads Claus Rasmussen/EPA]
Last May, Denmark joined several other European countries in banning the full-face veil in public spaces.

In July last year, the government established stricter criminal laws for people living in so-called "ghettos" - poorer districts in Denmark - and imposed Danish classes on children there, in which they were taught Danish "values".

In December, the government approved a plan to send unwanted migrants to an island.

"There has been a significant turn to the right in a large segment of the Danish public. Thus the debate about 'foreigners' has been an easy way for politicians to gain popularity. Instead of discussing complex issues such as inequality, welfare and public health, many mainstream parties have chosen the easiest solution," said Schmidt. 

According to a recent poll, Paludan's party is set to secure six seats in parliament with 3.3 percent of the votes. The New Right could be elected with five seats.

In the meantime, Paludan continues to provoke.

At a demonstration on May 1, he was protected by dozens of police officers. A large crowd of supporters and counterprotesters had shown up.

"Not all perkere (derogatory slang for immigrants) are bad, but I agree that most of them should be expelled," said Sofus Andersen, a 20-year-old unemployed supporter of Hard Line.

An elderly Jewish man, meanwhile, looked on with concern.

"I used to be Paludan's barber for many years. He is a very intelligent young man and we had many political discussions, but I'm shocked that he ended up becoming so radical," said the man, who requested anonymity. "This is how the rise of fascism begins."

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Thousands Of Israelis Take To The Streets Calling For Palestinian Genocide

Massive rallies and Facebook campaigns calling for Palestinian genocide are ignored by Western mainstream media and Facebook despite concerns and collaborations aimed at stopping “calls to violence”.

Since last October, the Israeli government has accused Palestinians and their allies of “inciting violence” against Israelis, despite the fact that only 34 Israelis have died in that time frame compared to 230 Palestinians. The uptick in violence has been attributed to an internationally condemned Israeli encroachment of Palestinian lands in the contested West Bank.

Israeli government concern over recent violence has led them to arrest Palestinians for social media content that could potentially lead to crimes. So far, 145 Palestinians have been arrested this year for “pre-crime” via social media “incitement.” This practice eventually led to a collaboration between Facebook and the Israeli government, whose joint effort to curb social media “incitement” has led to the banning of several Facebook accounts of Palestinian journalists and news agencies.

However, social media, as well as mainstream Western media, have failed to condemn Israeli “incitement” against Palestinians, a practice that is surprisingly common considering the little to no attention it receives. Often these anti-Palestinian posts, pictures, and rallies are rife with calls for genocide, with cries of “Death to the whole Arab nation” and “Kill them all” surprisingly common.

Even the Times of Israel ran an op-ed article about “When Genocide is Permissible” in reference to Israel’s treatment of Palestinians. Though the post was eventually taken down, it points to an all-too-common and dangerous mentality that social media, the Israeli government, and Western media “conveniently” ignore.
An Israeli news agency even put the then-suspected preferential treatment to the test and found that Facebook and the Israeli authorities treated calls for revenge from Palestinians and Israelis very differently.

Even massive rallies calling for Palestinian genocide have been ignored entirely by social media and the corporate press. Earlier this year in April, a massive anti-Palestinian rally took place in Tel Aviv where thousands called for the death of all Arabs. The rally was organized to support an Israeli soldier who killed an already-wounded Palestinian by shooting him execution-style in the head.

The soldier, Elor Azaria, was charged with manslaughter for the killing, which occurred deep within Palestinian sovereign territory in the city of Hebron. Hebron contains an illegal Jewish settlement, but despite its illegality is protected by Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) all the same. This has led to frequent clashes between Israelis and Palestinians in the area.

The Tel-Aviv rally was attended by an estimated 2,000 people and several Israeli pop icons entertained attendees including singer Maor Edri, Moshik Afia, and Amos Elgali, along with rapper Subliminal. Chants of “Elor [the soldier] is a hero” and calls to release the soldier were common. One woman was photographed holding a sign reading “Kill them all.”
A Jewish reporter at the scene remarked that it seemed “more like a celebration of murder than anything.” Despite the obvious animosity and incitement made evident at the rally, it isn’t difficult to imagine what the response would have been if this has been a pro-Palestinian rally calling for the deaths of Jews. The stark divide between what is permissible for Palestinians and what is permissible for Israelis should concern us all as the widespread bias of social media, the press, and many governments threaten to blind us from the realities of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
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Hitler: Inspiring Hindu Nationalists to Kill Muslims.

Earlier this week, Human Rights Watch released its annual review of human rights around the world. In its report, the international NGO claims India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is proactively promoting Hindu supremacy at the expense of fundamental human rights for minorities, specifically Muslims.

In 2017, there were nearly 40 attacks carried out against Muslims and other minority communities, with many of the attacks perpetrated by Hindu extremist groups affiliated with BJP. In the years 2010 to 2017, Muslims were the targets of 51% of terrorism attacks, and comprised 86% of terrorism related fatalities. Significantly, 97% of these attacks have taken place in the years since Modi’s right wing government came to power in 2014.

Mob lynching, attacks carried out by anti-Muslim vigilante groups, and gang rape now characterize the reality for India’s 130 million Muslims.

“Indian authorities have proven themselves unwilling to protect minority religious communities and other vulnerable groups from frequent attack,” says Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “There needs to be a serious effort to prevent future attacks and to prosecute all those responsible for the violence.”

But India is doing the exact opposite of that! In fact, when Muslims report their attack to Indian authorities, the Muslim victim is often charged with inciting the violence, while his/her Hindu attacker is exonerated of all wrongdoing.

It begets the question: what the hell is going on in India, the world’s largest democracy?

India, like the rest of the planet, seemingly, is being swept up in the rise of ultranationalist fervour, opportunistically mobilized by far-right parties for easy political gain.

But what is nationalism? While the term lacks an adequate working definition, it is understood best when juxtaposed against patriotism, whereby the latter is defined as love of country, while nationalism is “love of country combined with dislike of other countries, their peoples, or their cultures,” according to Alex Nowrasteh.

Nationalist driven ideals lead towards policy that restrict immigration, harrass minority communities, and pivot around the notion of defending the country from external threats, or, rather, from “imaginary harms.”

Hindu nationalism, however, is the dislike of other countries, peoples and their cultures, but on anabolic steroids. And by performance enhancing drugs I mean the memory and uncompromisingly hideous legacy of Adolf Hitler.

“Admiration for Nazism — often reframed with a genocidal hatred for Muslims — is rampant in the Hindu nationalist camp, which has never been as mainstream as it is now,” says Shrenik Rao, the famous Indian filmmaker.

Rao’s claim is not some kind of frivolous invocation of Godwin’s Law, nor is it commentary made in the abstract. The popularity of Hitler and Nazism within Hindu nationalist culture is both measurable and observable, and in terrifyingly more ways than you might think.

Hitler’s Cross restaurant in Mumbai:

Full article 

Ayaan Hirsi Ali and the Double-Bind of Muslim Women’s Rights

 Great artice by Rochelle Terman.

To be clear: There are plenty of great reasons to reject Hirsi Ali for an honorary degree besides the fact that she represents one extreme of the double-bind. Contrary to the claims by right-wing pundits, Hirsi Ali was rejected for an honorary degree at Brandeis University because she espouses deplorable positions, not because she’s a “critic of Islam.” And we need not invalidate or belittle her personal experience with gender violence to find her political positions and actions deplorable.

Take, for instance, her bigotry (She calls Islam “a destructive, nihilistic cult of death” and called Islamophobia a “myth”); or her militarism (“we are at war with Islam” and must “crush” the enemy with force); of course, her paranoia and fear-mongering (“there is infiltration of Islam in the schools and universities of the West”) is also illustrate of her unworthiness.  There is also her hypocrisy (she’s a self-purported advocate for free speech but advocates the abolition of Muslim schools, saying “All Muslim schools. Close them down.”) And her apologetic stance towards right-wing terrorism, extremism, and fascism (she said Norwegian terrorist Anders Breivik’s views were “censored” and that  “he had no other choice but to use violence”) is yet another indicator of her views and politics.

These are the legitimate grounds upholding the reversal of Hirsi Ali’s honorary degree, not airing our dirty laundry. The real issue in the Brandeis debate is (or should be) her and not how people might interpret her.

Full article.