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Lost in the Blur of Slogans

[San Francisco Chronicle] Ishmael Khaldi - On American campuses, organizing committees are planning happenings for Israel Apartheid Week to once again castigate Israel as the lone responsible party for all that maligns the Middle East. Last year, at UC Berkeley, I had the opportunity to "dialogue" with some of the organizers of these events. My perspective is unique, both as the vice consul for Israel in San Francisco, and as a Bedouin and the highest-ranking Muslim representing Israel in the U.S. I began life as a shepherd, one of 11 children living in our family tent. I went on to serve in the Israeli border police, and later earned a master's degree in political science from Tel Aviv University before joining the Israel Foreign Ministry. If Israel were an apartheid state, I would not have been appointed. I am a proud Israeli - along with many other non-Jewish Israelis such as Druze, Bahai, Bedouin, Christians and Muslims, who live in one of the most culturally diversified societies and the only true democracy in the Middle East. By any yardstick you choose - educational opportunity, economic development, women and gay's rights, freedom of speech and assembly, legislative representation - Israel's minorities fare far better than any other country in the Middle East To the organizers of Israel Apartheid Week, I say: You are part of the problem, not part of the solution. Do Israel's Arab citizens suffer from disadvantage? You better believe it. Do African Americans 10 minutes from the Berkeley campus suffer from disadvantage - you better believe it, too. So should we launch a Berkeley Apartheid Week, or should we seek real ways to better our societies and make opportunity more available?
2009-03-06 06:00:00
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