Photo credit: Credit: antisemitism.uk

So, pointing out Zionist war crimes is anti-Semitism now, evidently? The Campaign Against Antisemitism is mobilizing in the UK to combat the vicious, racist hatred of pointing out things like illegal settlements, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2018/01/08/a-cruel-harvest-of-the-poor-israeli-allegedly-behind-human-organ-black-market-arrested-in-cyprus/">illegal organ harvesting and other gruesome and callous horrors. The CAA is based in the United Kingdom, which in 2016 became the first nation to formally adopt "the International Definition of Antisemitism."

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">PHOTO: Israeli Apartheid Week starts in London today. For Palestinians, it's an everyday reality.<br><br>[Art & Photo by <a href="https://twitter.com/protestencil?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@protestencil</a>] <a href="https://t.co/Y06NeNPd3j">pic.twitter.com/Y06NeNPd3j</a></p>— The IMEU (@theIMEU) <a href="https://twitter.com/theIMEU/status/965666115555913728?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 19, 2018</a></blockquote>

<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

As a result, certain universities such as the University of Exeter and the University of Central Lancashire have banned "Israeli Apartheid Week" outright. The CAA managed to shut down several events last year involving videos documenting the Geneva Code Violations and other war crimes that are inherent in the illegal settlements and treatment of the displaced Palestinian people in blockaded Gaza. They hope for "similar successes in stopping extremist, antisemitic or abusive events this year" as well.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">"Jewish racism is ‘a thing’." - A call to Jewish students for Israeli Apartheid Week from Robert Cohen<a href="https://t.co/WXUczQUMTy">https://t.co/WXUczQUMTy</a><a href="https://twitter.com/apartheidweek?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@apartheidweek</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Palestine?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Palestine</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Israel?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Israel</a> <a href="https://t.co/ftIbgq1N4Q">pic.twitter.com/ftIbgq1N4Q</a></p>— Mondoweiss (@Mondoweiss) <a href="https://twitter.com/Mondoweiss/status/965768011423666177?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 20, 2018</a></blockquote>

<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

CAA claims that they have no objection to "robust political discourse about Israel." A refreshing sentiment, but considering some laws passed in the US and abroad that severely limit the right to point out excesses of the Zionist state, one wonders how earnest it may be. For instance, Hurricane victims in Texas had to sign a pledge to never engage in any activism against Israel in order to receive aid, and anti-BDS laws are more the rule than the exception. There are just over a dozen states that don't have <a href="http://thegoldwater.com/news/10255-Texas-Hurricane-Victims-Must-Support-Israel-to-Receive-Aid">some sort of law or resolution against boycotting Israel</a>.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Imagine your child in this inhuman situation … 😢 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Israel?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Israel</a> forces using dogs to interrogate & torture Palestinian children.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IsraelCrimes?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IsraelCrimes</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IsraelNaked?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IsraelNaked</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BDS?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BDS</a> <a href="https://t.co/r6WTm6sXnK">pic.twitter.com/r6WTm6sXnK</a></p>— Dr. Basem Naim (@basemn63) <a href="https://twitter.com/basemn63/status/965247975281786880?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2018</a></blockquote>

<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<blockquote>BDS activism (boycott, divestion and sanctions) against Israel is already criminalized in Israel. The move to make any opinions or actions opposing Israel illegal is gaining steam statewide and even federal laws are in the works. A teacher in Kansas had to sign a pledge that she would not boycott Israel in order to receive aid. Just yesterday in Baltimore, Governor Larry Hogan signed an order ruling all firms that receive any government contract may not boycott Israel.</blockquote>

Meanwhile, South Carolina wants to pass <a href="http://www.jpost.com/Diaspora/Antisemitism/Delegitimizing-Israel-soon-to-be-illegal-in-South-Carolina-533515">a bill that would make "delegitimizing Israel" a criminal offense</a>. Keep in mind that the UN Security Council, UN General Assembly, International Court of Justice and the International Red Cross are of the opinion that Israel is in violation of the Geneva Convention. South Carolina already has legislation on the books that prevents the state from doing business with any companies that boycott Israel. The bill became a model for legislation that has passed in 23 other states since. In fact, the trend (as noted by the UK source at CAA) is going global in "countries that have Israel Allies Caucuses in their parliaments."

Despite outcry from the global community regarding the state of Apartheid in Israel and the UN and other governing bodies maintaining that expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank violate international law, attempting to do something as simple as boycott Israel for their part could even become a federal crime in the US. 43 Senators from a bipartisan coalition have been working on a bill that <a href="

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2017/07/senate-bill-would-make-it-a-federal-crime-to-boycott-israel.html">would make boycotting Israel a felony</a>. Punishment could include minimum fines of up to $250,000 and maximum criminal penalty of $1 million and 20 years in prison. Canada has even <a href="

https://www.haaretz.com/canada-may-fight-bds-with-hate-charges-1.5360915">considered making boycotting Israel a "hate crime."</a>

https://thegoldwater.com/news/8107-Neo-Nazi-Defends-Israeli-Netanyahu-for-Anti-Semitic-Memes

The voice of the global community seems to be falling on deaf ears as a UN General Assembly vote resulted in an astounding 138 for allowing Palestine nonmember status in the UN with only 9 nations in support of keeping Palestinian delegates from even auditing proceedings. In addition to the Israel and Canada, Panama, Palau, the Marshall Islands, Nauru, Czech Republic and Micronesia all voted against allowing Palestine to even have a symbolic seat as a non-voting delegate.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">South Africa to cut diplomatic ties with Israel <a href="https://t.co/ag4lOi1rK8">https://t.co/ag4lOi1rK8</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Palestine?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Palestine</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BDS?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BDS</a> <a href="https://t.co/KI3IudPp6q">pic.twitter.com/KI3IudPp6q</a></p>— Middle East Monitor (@MiddleEastMnt) <a href="https://twitter.com/MiddleEastMnt/status/966209854904979456?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2018</a></blockquote>

<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

With so much criticism from so many angles of "white supremacy" and calls for a "white ethnostate" being denounced as racist and evil, it's ironic to consider that Israel (a Jewish ethnostate in part based on fundamentals from the Torah and Talmud that set apart the Jewish race as not only "chosen" but religiously, morally, intellectually and/or genetically superior is not seen as something of a double standard.

https://thegoldwater.com/news/6830-Richard-Spencer-to-Israel-I-m-a-White-Zionist

Despite the outcry of CAA and legislators from around the globe, opposition to Israeli war crimes will continue. Making criticism and activism illegal is likely to increase the determination of those who oppose the Apartheid. Israeli Apartheid Week is set actually slated to run several weeks, from February 19 to April 17. We here at the Goldwater will keep updated on the proceedings as IAW is underway.