Rawan Gabrielle Osman Speaks
Yesterday, I was safe. But Europe is not.
Let’s make this clear: the “free Palestine” protests are part of the anti-Israel movement. While they want Israel to disappear, they intimidate Jewish communities around the world, strengthening their bond with Israel, the only Jewish state on the planet which might be their only haven in the future. The strategy is counter productive.
Ahead of my visit, some pro-Palestine activists claimed that my lectures are “Zionist propaganda” justifying a genocide. I was invited to tell my personal story, as someone who lived in the Arab world and had an antisemitic upbringing. I was invited as an activist who raises awareness of rampant antisemitism in the Arab World that needs to be addressed if our Middle East was to know peace.
In Maastricht, the protests were so loud and violent, the mayor decided to stop the event and asked the police to evacuate me, as my safety is the top priority.
What about the safety of your Jewish students, dear Mayor? What about their rights? What about the Netherlands and Western values? Yesterday, I was surrounded by a security team and had two personal bodyguards. I was safe. But Europe is not. Instead of surrendering their power to thugs, Western politicians and decision makers must push against them and be consequential. Instead of aborting the event, the mayor of Maastricht had to send more police to form a separation wall between the protesters and the glass of our hall that they were trying to break.
When I was invited to speak in the Netherlands, I expected violent protests at all three venues, but only in Maastricht the Pro-Palestine mob could get enough people to prove us right: THEY behave like criminal zombies not because “they were provoked by Israeli football hooligans” in Amsterdam, but because they can behave that way and get away with it. THEY are exploiting the weaknesses of Western democracies and THEY have the upper hand. THEY know it, and so do we. THEY are terror supporters and they come in every color and shape: radical Islamists, immigrants with an inferiority complex, woke spoiled Westerners with funny haircuts reflecting their confusion, antisemitic conspiracy theorists, financially or sexually frustrated academics, and sometimes, even Palestinians. Authorities do not know how to handle them out of fear of overstepping, of being accused of sexism, ageism, racism, fascism or Islamophobia. Authorities do not deal with them out of fear of provoking them, because they know that they are hostile and violent. Authorities do not deal with them out of fear of infringing on their freedoms, and consequently they are free to abuse democracy and intimidate and bully those who are not hostile and violent.
Only brave and determined politicians can help save the West. Otherwise, get ready for anarchy. When push comes to shove, the Jews know that they can move to Israel, but what will you do?
Rawan Gabrielle Osman Speaks
Yesterday, I was safe. But Europe is not.
Let’s make this clear: the “free Palestine” protests are part of the anti-Israel movement. While they want Israel to disappear, they intimidate Jewish communities around the world, strengthening their bond with Israel, the only Jewish state on the planet which might be their only haven in the future. The strategy is counter productive.
Ahead of my visit, some pro-Palestine activists claimed that my lectures are “Zionist propaganda” justifying a genocide. I was invited to tell my personal story, as someone who lived in the Arab world and had an antisemitic upbringing. I was invited as an activist who raises awareness of rampant antisemitism in the Arab World that needs to be addressed if our Middle East was to know peace.
In Maastricht, the protests were so loud and violent, the mayor decided to stop the event and asked the police to evacuate me, as my safety is the top priority.
What about the safety of your Jewish students, dear Mayor? What about their rights? What about the Netherlands and Western values? Yesterday, I was surrounded by a security team and had two personal bodyguards. I was safe. But Europe is not. Instead of surrendering their power to thugs, Western politicians and decision makers must push against them and be consequential. Instead of aborting the event, the mayor of Maastricht had to send more police to form a separation wall between the protesters and the glass of our hall that they were trying to break.
When I was invited to speak in the Netherlands, I expected violent protests at all three venues, but only in Maastricht the Pro-Palestine mob could get enough people to prove us right: THEY behave like criminal zombies not because “they were provoked by Israeli football hooligans” in Amsterdam, but because they can behave that way and get away with it. THEY are exploiting the weaknesses of Western democracies and THEY have the upper hand. THEY know it, and so do we. THEY are terror supporters and they come in every color and shape: radical Islamists, immigrants with an inferiority complex, woke spoiled Westerners with funny haircuts reflecting their confusion, antisemitic conspiracy theorists, financially or sexually frustrated academics, and sometimes, even Palestinians. Authorities do not know how to handle them out of fear of overstepping, of being accused of sexism, ageism, racism, fascism or Islamophobia. Authorities do not deal with them out of fear of provoking them, because they know that they are hostile and violent. Authorities do not deal with them out of fear of infringing on their freedoms, and consequently they are free to abuse democracy and intimidate and bully those who are not hostile and violent.
Only brave and determined politicians can help save the West. Otherwise, get ready for anarchy. When push comes to shove, the Jews know that they can move to Israel, but what will you do?