Freedom of Expression/Speech

The following is  the index  I submitted to the British Columbia Supreme Court in relation to Arthur Topham’s trial. This text may help activists and anti imperialist commentators in their future  battles with Israel’s supporters,  Hasbara merchants and  Sayanim in general.
        Jewish Symbols
        Zionism
        Semitism
        The Holocaust
        Germany Must Perish/Israel Must Perish
        The Protocols of the Elders of Zion
        The Jewish Religion: Its Influence Today

Five security guards, members of the RCMP, two in bulletproof vests, all entrants pass through metal detectors, undergo a wand search, check all electronics including cell phones and have their bags meticulously scrutinized. Why all the security? The crown was presenting its criminal case against Arthur Topham, for the crime of “hate.’
The Law

Some neighbors in our predominantly white western rural Massachusetts town of Williamsburg have hoisted the confederate battle flag up their flag pole and displayed it on the wall of their business.  Why would some Yankee from rural western Massachusetts choose to fly this symbol of divisiveness and hatred?  And why now, after it has been further tarnished by the egregious hate crimes committed in South Carolina and the resurgence of church burnings in the southern United States?

Somewhere in Washington, D.C. in the labyrinth of congressional offices there lurks a nearly unknown congressman.  Unknown because he carefully avoids high profile or controversial issues.  A veritable deaf-mute when it comes to voicing his opinion on vital matters.  Considering the herd of loud-mouth miscreants with whom he shares those hallowed halls, you might even call him a breath of fresh air.  And his name shall remain unspoken here, for this isn’t about him.  When it all comes down to dust this public servant who appears to possess few personal opinions will be remembered for one se

Let’s get a few things straight. Australia, thin-lipped conformist society that it is, possesses minimal freedoms on that marked concept of liberal democracy called freedom of speech. For those who laud the Racial Discrimination Act, free speech is more than a racial matter. For those who think there is some implied right to communicate on political matters, free speech is more than politics. At its core is the value, not of tolerance, but tolerating intolerance. At best, Australian free speech is an bite size entrée dressed up as a weighty main meal.

Give me the liberty to know, to utter, and to argue freely according to conscience, above all liberties.
–John Milton, Areopagitica, 1644

The year 2015 marks the 400th anniversary of the publication of the first comical novel in the Western world, Miguel de Cervantes’s Don Quixote de la Mancha.  The first part of the irreverent work, published in Madrid in 1605, introduced the world to the characters of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza, and its definitive sequel of 1615 furthered their misbegotten quest to reactivate knight errantry while doubling down on the pranks and misfortunes they suffered at the hands of fellow Spaniards eager for a laugh.  It was doubtless the humorous quality of these pranks and misfortunes that

In what appears to be another attempt to suppress criticism of Israel, the Canadian government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Israel which makes the claim that “the selective targeting of Israel is the new face of anti-Semitism” and declares that Canada will oppose those who support the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.

Hate, disgrace, and pitiful editorial standards.  Are these the terms to be ascribed to The Lancet, which, bar a few blemishes, has shown a distinguished pedigree in the world of medical research?  Stroppy academics have made an argument that an open letter published within its pages last year be denounced and withdrawn. “An Open letter to the people of Gaza” triggered a furious reaction within the magazine, with complainants suggesting that the publication has sided with the forces of “anti-Jewish bigotry”.

The sudden cancellation of an academic conference on Israel, as well as the lack of outcry from ‘mainstream’ media, demonstrates once again the skewed limits to ‘free speech’ in ‘advanced’ Western democracies. “Je suis Charlie” already feels like ancient history. It certainly does not apply when it comes to scrutiny of the state of Israel.