The Olive Tree Initiative (OTI): George Rishmawi and the Siraj Center Raise Concerns

He said that Peace Now claimed that 83% of settlements are on confiscated Palestinian land when in fact they had claimed the number was 40% and much of their data had proved to be based on incomplete records and was incorrect.
...and the Jewish Federation of Orange County is involved with these haters.

George Rishmawi may no longer be formally with ISM, but his perspective and approach are not likely to improve the understanding of Olive Tree Initiative (OTI) students, help them develop conflict resolution skills, or help pave the way to conciliation and peace either on the UCI campus or in the Middle East. That Rishmawi and his group are so integral to OTI’s programming casts doubt on the value of OTI itself. Speaking at UC Irvine on Nov. 22, 2010, Rishmawi said he broke with ISM several years ago over personal differences with co-founders Adam Shapiro and Huwaida Arraf, but his current goals are quite similar to those of ISM when it was originally founded: bring young “internationals” to the West Bank on tours and to live with selected Palestinian families, encourage them to become “ambassadors” who will repeat the narrative Rishmawi orchestrates, and inspire them to participate in “non-violent” actions like protesting the security fence in Bil’in. more via Roberta P. Seid, PhD 

George Rishmawi co-founded the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) along with Adam Shapiro, Huwaida Arraf, and Ghassan Andoni. Led by Palestinians working closely with American recruiters, the ISM invites individuals from the West to come to the Gaza Strip and the West Bank and disrupt the counter-terrorism efforts of the Israeli Defense Force. Rishmawi directs the activities of ISM volunteers on the ground.

Rishmawi is also a director of Alternative Tourism, a group that was formed in 1995 to act as a propaganda organ for Palestinian terrorist elements that have no interest in peace – portraying Palestinians as victims of unyielding Israeli oppression and brutality. Alternative Tourism was established to greet and aid ISM volunteers who come to Israel. In April 2003, two Pakistani Muslims from Great Britain entered Israel through Jordan as clients of Alternative Tourism; they met with ISM leaders for an entire day in Gaza before proceeding on to Tel Aviv, where they bombed a popular beach bar, Mike’s Place, killing three people.  image via a non reputable source: Bob May

UC Irvine upholds suspension of Muslim Student Union for shout-down of Israeli ambassador

Jihad Watch
An update on this story. "UC Irvine upholds suspension of Muslim group, bans it for one quarter," by Raja Abdulrahim for the Los Angeles Times, September 4:
The suspension of a Muslim student group at UC Irvine was upheld by university officials, but the recommended yearlong ban was reduced to one academic quarter, a move that could allow the group to begin participating in campus activities in January.
The Muslim Student Union was appealing the campus ban that was handed down earlier this summer after a protest by several students during a February speech by Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren.

Maintaining denials in the face of evidence (funny how that keeps happening):
The group has maintained that it did not organize the protest, though several of its officers and members participated in the protest, in which Oren was repeatedly interrupted as he spoke.
In maintaining the suspension, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Manuel Gomez focused mostly on the participation of members of the organization in the protest rather than a lengthy set of e-mails that was used as evidence in the initial investigation by the university's director of student housing.
The e-mails, which the school said it obtained anonymously, showed that the Muslim Student Union "planned, orchestrated and coordinated" the protest, school administrators had said in the previous suspension letter.
"The public actions of [blacked out] give the appearance of MSU sponsorship to these serious violations of campus policies and First Amendment protections," Gomez wrote this week in his letter to the group. "And because the violations occurred on campus ... the perception of MSU endorsement is especially difficult to overcome."
The group must complete 100 hours of community service before it can apply for reinstatement late this year. Once that has been granted, the union will be on probation for two years.
No situation is ever too absurd to play the victim card:
During a news conference Friday, representatives of the organization continued to maintain that the suspension amounts to collective punishment. Incoming union Vice President Hadeer Soliman said members have received hate mail and endured personal attacks during this time.
Given what she described as a rising tide of anti-Muslim hate in the country, Soliman said the suspension sends "the wrong message at the wrong time."...

What, to demand civil (and indeed, civilized) behavior according to a consistent standard to which all students are subject? Yeah, totally the wrong message.

And it couldn't possibly be motivated by anything but sheer, seething, bilious hate, could it?
Of course, this is another case of a Muslim group demanding a pass on its bad behavior because it feels somehow less well liked due to that same behavior (see, for example: CAIR's Hamas links, and the funding of the Ground Zero mosque).

via docstalk.blogspot.com

noahdavidsimon's posterous