WASHINGTON
SCENE:
M U S L
I M S T U D E N T S
Sincere
But So Naive and Badly Mislead, Part 1
They called MER on a Saturday morning
in May -- at the last moment, oh so typical!
"I am calling for the Muslim Student
Association in Washington. We need your help tomorrow to protest Shimon
Peres at American University tomorrow. We want you to hold a joint press
conference with us. We have invited all the Arab and Middle East press
to come and we are sure they will be there."
"Gee...you are sure right that something
to protest Peres' being honored at American University is a good idea,
but why are you calling at the last moment like this? MER in fact published
information about Peres' visit, about his jaded past including his role
in the terrible Qana massacre of 1996, and about the need to protest his
A.U. speech and honorary degree, about a week ago; didn't you read it?"
"Yes, but just recently, someone just
forwarded it to us. So, please come. We need you to help."
"Gee...this is a little bit ironic.
Here you are calling from the Muslim Student Association in Washington
and yet your own organization, MSANEWS, has recently started censoring
MER articles because of pressures from some of the co-opted Arab groups.
So no wonder you didn't read about this before when you should have. And
isn't it even more interesting that MSANEWS does publish all those self-serving
and terribly misleading press releases from Zionist "peace groups" and
from Arab and Muslim organizations in Washington that work so closely with
various Arab regimes. In fact, why don't you call them and get help from
them?"
"Well, we did...but not even one of
them agreed to help us. Please we need your help and we need you to hold
a joint press conference with us."
A discussion ensued about what is wrong
in Washington and why this last minute stuff is just more of the same giving
everyone involved a bad reputation.
"Yes, I personally agree 99% percent
with what you are saying...", the caller concluded.
So we emailed over a few things MSANEWS
had censored -- mostly about what's really going on in Washington especially
with the Arab and Muslim organizations -- and we outlined a few quick conditions
under which we might consider trying to help out, even at the last minute.
Nothing further that Saturday, by email
or phone, as had been promised. But sure enough, Sunday morning, another
Muslim Student Association caller: "My friend spoke to you yesterday right?
You are coming to hold a joint press conference with us today, right? The
press will be there to cover our important protest."
Right! Stay tuned for the conclusion
to this typical sorry saga.
