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RE: Martin Luther King, Jr. and Non-Violence Movements of Today
Frankly, I'm a little uncomfortable with BDS, primarily for two reasons. First, we live in a world that is full of injustice, but when disparate groups unite against a perceived injustice they happen to unite against the only Jewish country? Coincidence? If BDS were broad, perhaps also addressing other injustices in the region, it would seem a little less suspicious. Second, Israel faces enemies that want nothing short of the "extermination of all Jews." I'm very uncomfortable taking a position that is parallel to Iran, Hezbollah, and ISIS. (These groups would bleed me, hang me, or stone me given the oppertunity.) I'm hopeful that Dr. King would have similar discomfort, although we'll never know.
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I think you’re starting with a false premise, that putting pressure on Israel to end its human rights abuses means not doing the same with anyone else. Quite the contrary. The same people decrying Israel’s abuses often do the same over Saudi Arabia and numerous other countries. It’s more a question of why only Israel is given a pass by the most powerful nation which is usually the first to apply sanctions to try to coerce behavior.
But even with that, you know, when I was in college I was active in the divestment movement only related to apartheid in South Africa. I’m sure there were abuses going on elsewhere at the time too. I don’t think having a focus on only one government’s abuses at a time makes the activity useless. Apartheid in SA did end, after all. If we wait to attempt to change any of the world until we can change all of the world, there will be no progress whatsoever.
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