Students at Jewish school in Belgium have graduation cancelled "in solidarity with Palestine"

[Kahane's Grave Is A Gender-Neutral Bathroom]

https://twitter.com/Vandalay_Inc/status/1802178959615967311

Curious what Laki has to say about this, considering that he said anti-semitism wasn't a big problem.

[Stand With Israel. Crush Hamas]

This should be a massive diplomatic incident with Israel.

[CumbrianLefty]

This is indeed rather unhelpful.

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

Strongly reminiscent of some stories from here. Jewish events being cancelled for fear of controversy or unwelcome uncomfortableness.

[AtorBoltox]

This is indeed rather unhelpful.

Your main objection is not that its horrific racism but that it's 'unhelpful' for your sides propaganda?

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

This is indeed rather unhelpful.

Your main objection is not that its horrific racism but that it's 'unhelpful' for your sides propaganda?

Come on now, that's not what he meant and you know it.

[No War, but the War on Christmas]

This should be a massive diplomatic incident with Israel.

You have literally said Israel should simultaneously plant sleeper agents in other countries, ready to strike at a moment's notice w/o the home countries permission.

Lmao @ you thinking Israel should now make a diplomatic incident over a canceled reservation.

(Still think this was uncalled for, btw.)

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

This should be a massive diplomatic incident with Israel.

You have literally said Israel should simultaneously plant sleeper agents in other countries, ready to strike at a moment's notice w/o the home countries permission.

Lmao @ you thinking Israel should now make a diplomatic incident over a canceled reservation.

(Still think this was uncalled for, btw.)

To be fair, what he said was that he thought they should have agents ready in case there was a mass slaughter attempt to wipe out the Jewish population of the country in question. 

[No War, but the War on Christmas]

This should be a massive diplomatic incident with Israel.

You have literally said Israel should simultaneously plant sleeper agents in other countries, ready to strike at a moment's notice w/o the home countries permission.

Lmao @ you thinking Israel should now make a diplomatic incident over a canceled reservation.

(Still think this was uncalled for, btw.)

To be fair, what he said was that he thought they should have agents ready in case there was a mass slaughter attempt to wipe out the Jewish population of the country in question. 

'Mass slaughter attempt to wipe out the population' From what I recall, and we can go back and double-check if you really want, it was more along the lines of Israel having agents ready to go when they believed there might be an Anti-Zionist or Anti-Semitic attack taking place in a foreign country. I don't recall any allusions to the total elimination of Jewish people like you're saying, and would that not require a literal army? Not just a few agents. And considering Ray has already stated there are pogroms that have occurred in the US and NY since Oct 7th, well...

My point remains that Ray has absolutely zero perspective on this topic.

[axiomsofdominion]

This is indeed rather unhelpful.

Your main objection is not that its horrific racism but that it's 'unhelpful' for your sides propaganda?

Come on now, that's not what he meant and you know it.

Pretty sure it is what he meant. Really hard to continue to claim that the existence of Israel and the Muslim anger about it isn't related to Jew hatred when people are cancelling 6 grade graduations in a country that has nothing to do with Israel.

[lfromnj]

Funny how the Palestinian movement abroad pushes Jews to move to Israel.
Obviously Europe is safer from a purely numbers perspective than Israel but events like this can obviously still make Jews believe the opposite for somewhat justifiable reasons.

[Stand With Israel. Crush Hamas]

This should be a massive diplomatic incident with Israel.

You have literally said Israel should simultaneously plant sleeper agents in other countries, ready to strike at a moment's notice w/o the home countries permission.

Lmao @ you thinking Israel should now make a diplomatic incident over a canceled reservation.

(Still think this was uncalled for, btw.)

To be fair, what he said was that he thought they should have agents ready in case there was a mass slaughter attempt to wipe out the Jewish population of the country in question. 

Yeah, to be more specific, I was referring to the fact that the pogromists seem to be rapidly escalating, and major cities seem to either be unable to or unwilling to rise to the challenge. I absolutely do support Israel defending the global Jewish population by any means necessary, even if I think this is deeply unlikely to happen because Netanyahu doesn't care at best and might think antisemitism is useful to help him hold on to power at worst.

[dead0man]

Funny how the Palestinian movement abroad pushes Jews to move to Israel.

anti-Semites outside the middle east want Jews to move back to the middle east, anti-Semites in the middle east want Jews to move back to wherever they came from

[Kahane's Grave Is A Gender-Neutral Bathroom]

Funny how the Palestinian movement abroad pushes Jews to move to Israel.

anti-Semites outside the middle east want Jews to move back to the middle east, anti-Semites in the middle east want Jews to move back to wherever they came from

It's almost as if people who don't like Jews are being completely disingenuous when they say that because they hate us and want us out of wherever they live...

[rc18]

This is indeed rather unhelpful.

Your main objection is not that its horrific racism but that it's 'unhelpful' for your sides propaganda?

Come on now, that's not what he meant and you know it.

It's exactly what he meant, he has form.

Funny how the Palestinian movement abroad pushes Jews to move to Israel.
Obviously Europe is safer from a purely numbers perspective than Israel but events like this can obviously still make Jews believe the opposite for somewhat justifiable reasons.

Not really, no. There is a reason Europe now only accounts for a tiny fraction of world jewry, and no, it isn't just because of what happened 85-odd years ago.

[jojoju1998]

This is weird.

[axiomsofdominion]

This is indeed rather unhelpful.

Your main objection is not that its horrific racism but that it's 'unhelpful' for your sides propaganda?

Come on now, that's not what he meant and you know it.

It's exactly what he meant, he has form.

Funny how the Palestinian movement abroad pushes Jews to move to Israel.
Obviously Europe is safer from a purely numbers perspective than Israel but events like this can obviously still make Jews believe the opposite for somewhat justifiable reasons.

Not really, no. There is a reason Europe now only accounts for a tiny fraction of world jewry, and no, it isn't just because of what happened 85-odd years ago.

Hey now, Poland still has 3 million undocumented Jews. Shame about their position on the Z-axis, though.

[CumbrianLefty]

This is indeed rather unhelpful.

Your main objection is not that its horrific racism but that it's 'unhelpful' for your sides propaganda?

Come on now, that's not what he meant and you know it.

It's exactly what he meant, he has form.

It isn't, and "he" doesn't. I know you are salty because you were once forced to retract calling me a Jew-hating terrorist lover on precisely zero evidence, but come on.

[LAKISYLVANIA]

Curious what Laki has to say about this, considering that he said anti-semitism wasn't a big problem.

I don't think i've said that. Can you link that before?

As far as I know, i think i've said that I disapprove of antisemitism and that I support actions to better support & guarantee the safety of the Jewish minority in Belgium.

Also weird how something like this is something I first read about... on Atlas as opposed to Belgian media. That seems very sus to me, and i'll look for a reliable source, since Twitter or The Times of Israël I don't consider reliable. And apparently all of Atlas already has an opinion on this on something where i'm not even sure if the antisemitism accusation applies as it's not specified why the graduation was cancelled and by who.

[CumbrianLefty]

This is indeed rather unhelpful.

Your main objection is not that its horrific racism but that it's 'unhelpful' for your sides propaganda?

Come on now, that's not what he meant and you know it.

It's exactly what he meant, he has form.

Funny how the Palestinian movement abroad pushes Jews to move to Israel.
Obviously Europe is safer from a purely numbers perspective than Israel but events like this can obviously still make Jews believe the opposite for somewhat justifiable reasons.

Not really, no. There is a reason Europe now only accounts for a tiny fraction of world jewry, and no, it isn't just because of what happened 85-odd years ago.

Hey now, Poland still has 3 million undocumented Jews. Shame about their position on the Z-axis, though.

Western Europe is *mostly* safe for Jews, this is simply an objective fact. Less so further east alas.

[LAKISYLVANIA]

Ok, a bit more context since adding nuance isn't really what Atlas excels in, especially when it comes to this conflict.

Have only been able to find two dutch-speaking sources on our main tabloids in the section local news. But anything is being done to frame everyone as antisemitist in hyperbolic fashion. The notion to even suggest this should be an international incident is simply ridicilous and laughable and part of the propaganda war to claim anyone who criticizes Israël is an antisemitist, something I obviously do not agree with (and neither most of Europe).

A few things of note

1. The graduation wasn't cancelled. It's just the location of where the graduation was held rejected the request for graduation to be held there (which was an arts center)
2. The director of the arts center has admitted she has made a mistake, based on wrong assumptions, has apologized and has said that the school is welcome to hold the graduation there after all
3. The school can also still opt to hold their graduation at another place, this is just one place where the graduation could have been held.
4. The appeal was not rejected because of "solidarity with Palestine" but because the board believed there were ties with the Israeli state and affiliated organizations which is something the arts center does not want to cooperate with, something more common in Belgium, in particular arts center or organizations in cities. -> This was a mistake the director said, the mistakes has been acknowledged and apologies have been offered.

Translated:

“We cannot respond to your rental request at this time, because we see links between your organization and present-day Israel.” This was stated in an email from the Antwerp arts center Monty to a Jewish primary and secondary school that wanted to rent a hall for an activity. “We watch the genocide in Gaza with horror, and we also work closely with Palestinian artists who are suffering from the occupation.”

When the school reacted with shock, the management retraced its steps. They apologized for the decision, which "lost all nuance in the heated conflict." The European Jewish Association (EJA), however, speaks of “discrimination and anti-Semitism.” They are asking for the resignation of director Lana Willems and a suspension of Flemish subsidies to the arts center. “It is pure discrimination based on a conflict thousands of miles away against the most innocent of all: Jewish schoolchildren.”

Willems confirms the incident to De Standaard. “We have created a false link between the Jewish school and the Israeli government. When the school reacted with shock, I immediately realized that we had made a mistake,” says Willems. “The conflict is heating up emotions - we also see this at universities. In that heated atmosphere we have lost the nuance. I realize that the email hurt and left wounds in the school – and by extension the Jewish community.”

The school has not yet responded to Willems' apology. “We understand that they are dropping it for a while, but hope that we can find each other again in the future. Monty wants to be an open house: a safe place for people from all communities.”

Title is also misleading, since that's not what happened (both what happened and the reason why).

[Silent Hunter]

How did they even come to that conclusion in the first place though?

[Filuwaúrdjan]

How did they even come to that conclusion in the first place though?

Antisemitism.

[Kahane's Grave Is A Gender-Neutral Bathroom]

Ok, a bit more context since adding nuance isn't really what Atlas excels in, especially when it comes to this conflict.

There's no nuance to anti-Semitism. Period stop.

Have only been able to find two dutch-speaking sources on our main tabloids in the section local news. But anything is being done to frame everyone as antisemitist in hyperbolic fashion. The notion to even suggest this should be an international incident is simply ridicilous and laughable and part of the propaganda war to claim anyone who criticizes Israël is an antisemitist, something I obviously do not agree with (and neither most of Europe).

I'm a frequent critic of Israel lmao, that's not what this is about. If the school was some Kahanist yeshiva (those exist) I wouldn't really care and I would support the decision.

1. The graduation wasn't cancelled. It's just the location of where the graduation was held rejected the request for graduation to be held there (which was an arts center)
2. The director of the arts center has admitted she has made a mistake, based on wrong assumptions, has apologized and has said that the school is welcome to hold the graduation there after all

This is the most absurd case of double-think I've ever seen. You justify it with "the center rejected the request" but then admit "they made a mistake", and that the school can hold the graduation after all, proving that the rejection was because of certain (((reasons)))

3. The school can also still opt to hold their graduation at another place, this is just one place where the graduation could have been held.

"Why are civil rights activists doing sit-ins? there are plenty of Black establishments"

4. The appeal was not rejected because of "solidarity with Palestine" but because the board believed there were ties with the Israeli state and affiliated organizations which is something the arts center does not want to cooperate with, something more common in Belgium, in particular arts center or organizations in cities. -> This was a mistake the director said, the mistakes has been acknowledged and apologies have been offered.

Yeah, but why did they assume this? There weren't any, and they wouldn't do the same in any other case.

Willems said: "“I established falsely and prematurely a connection between the school and the Israeli government, with which we do not want to cooperate, or any organization associated with it"

What reason did she have to prematurely assume that?

[Kahane's Grave Is A Gender-Neutral Bathroom]

lmao that bitch director's response, which Laki apparently thinks is adequate:

"Willems added that she had invited the school to schedule an alternative date, adding: “We will take into account the needs of the students and the Palestinian artists” at Monty Hall. She did not reply to follow-up questions on what those needs might be."