Audrey Goldings introduces the program to 120 audience participants present for the presentation by Asaf Romirowsky, PhD (below)
On Sunday, January 6, 2019 Wall Street Journal and New Republic contributor and Middle East expert Asaf Romirowsky, PhD presented “The Boycott Against Israel: Myths and Facts.”
Dr. Romirowsky discussed the attempts by detractors of Israel to delegitimize, demonize, and use the propaganda of double standards to promote the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) “movement” against Israel.*
You can hear his interview on the Richard Eeds’ show on KTSR from January 2, 2019 here. You can view Asaf’s full presentation here. Many thanks to Ron Hart, Jewish Federation of NM President, and his wife Gloria Abella Ballen for their wonderful videography of this event!
What do you know about BDS? Who is behind it? What are its proponents’ true goals and demands? How effective has it been – has it substantially impacted Israel? Why is it bad for the Palestinians (even they admit it)? How does BDS vocal support normalize anti-Semitism in the US and throughout the world today?
Who is Asaf Romirowsky?
Dr. Romirowsky deals with BDS and other anti-Semitism issues daily at universities, with state governments, and throughout the country as Executive Director of Scholars for Peace in the Middle East (SPME), a fellow at the Middle East Forum, and an Affiliate Professor at the University of Haifa.
- Asaf was trained as an historian, obtaining his Ph.D. in Middle East and Mediterranean Studies from King’s College London, UK.
- Dr. Romirowsky has published widely on various aspects of the Arab Israeli conflict and American foreign policy in the Middle East, as well as on Israeli and Zionist history.
- He is co-author of Religion, Politics, and the Origins of Palestine Refugee Relief and a contributor to The Case Against Academic Boycotts of Israel.
- Besides contributing to the Wall Street Journal and the New Republic, our speaker has been featured in The National Interest, The American Interest , The Times of Israel, the Jerusalem Post, Ynet, and Tablet among other online and print media outlets.
Many thanks to our generous HOSTS for this event:
- Edward and Eva Borins
- Linda Cohen
- Robert & Jeanna Efroymson
- Halley & Ruth Anne Faust
- Doris Francis
- Robby Geller
- Audrey Goldings & Barry Schrager
- David and Brenda Jaffe
- Gary & Sue Katz
- Teresa and Gabriel Roybal
Host tickets helped to defray our costs for Dr. Romirowsky, and are helping to fund an initiative for 2019.
*In a now-famous Fall 2004 Jewish Political Studies Review article, former Soviet refusenik and Jewish Agency Chairman, Natan Sharansky outlines the 3-D test of the “new anti-Semitism:”
The first “D” is the test of demonization. When the Jewish state is being demonized; when Israel’s actions are blown out of all sensible proportion; when comparisons are made between Israelis and Nazis and between Palestinian refugee camps and Auschwitz – this is anti- Semitism, not legitimate criticism of Israel.
The second “D” is the test of double standards. When criticism of Israel is applied selectively; when Israel is singled out by the United Nations for human rights abuses while the behavior of known and major abusers, such as China, Iran, Cuba, and Syria, is ignored; when Israel’s Magen David Adom, alone among the world’s ambulance services, is denied admission to the International Red Cross – this is anti-Semitism.
The third “D” is the test of delegitimization: when Israel’s fundamental right to exist is denied – alone among all peoples in the world – this too is anti-Semitism.
Get more information about the facts and myths of the BDS “movement” by viewing this SFMEW webpage. Here are some additional resources on BDS:
- Letter from an Arab to a Jew who supports BDS
- BDS: The Global Campaign to Delegitimize Israel ( ADL)
- Explaining the BDS Movement (Stand with Us)
SFMEW is a beneficiary organization of the Jewish Federation of New Mexico.
