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Chomsky to speak on Israeli conflict
Famous political activist to join researchers from Europe on health issues in Middle East
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Political activist and famous lecturer Noam Chomsky along with researchers from The Lancet, one of the world’s top medical journals, are coming to Madison April 5 to 7 as a part of the Middle Eastern Studies Program’s event on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The development of this event began in March 2008 when The Lancet published a special issue on the conflict between Israel and Palestine and the medical concerns and issues involved with the violence.
“The Lancet is a prestigious medical journal. … Many people consider it to be the gold standard for studying civilian casualties,” said Uli Schamiloglu, chair of the Middle Eastern Studies Program. “As far as I can tell, The Lancet is a very serious journal and … will be taken very seriously by a lot of people.”
According to Jennifer Loewenstein, associate director of the Middle Eastern Studies Program, The Lancet publication is the first time any medical journal has undertaken systematic comprehensive study of health and medical care in countries under occupation.
Due to this publication, Loewenstein invited two of the researchers, Rita Giacaman of Birzeit University in Ramallah, West Bank and Graham Watt from the University of Glasgow and London’s Royal College of Medicine, to come to the University of Wisconsin to give a talk on their research and medical experience in the field.
After the April 2008 attack on Gaza, she contacted Chomsky, a correspondent of hers for 11 years, to join the doctors. She asked him to offer a more historical and political perspective to “The Lancet” findings, specifically about the change in administration between former President George W. Bush and current President Barack Obama.
The event begins on April 5 with a talk from Giacaman, followed by a speech from Watt and a panel discussion at Edgewood College with both researchers and Chomsky on April 6 to discuss the issue of the intimidations tactics people use to silence debate in U.S. universities about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
An example of this, according to Loewenstein, is the reaction The Lancet has received for its publication for “having dared” touch upon the issue of Israel and Palestine.
“As far as I’m concerned, the purpose of the university is not to avoid controversial subjects, but encourage public debate,” Schamiloglu said.
Chomsky will give his keynote speech April 7 at the Orpheum Theater.
According to Lowenstein, Chomsky will be talking about “any changes he expects to see with the transition of administrations in the conflict, to give historical and political analysis as well as contemporary situation in Gaza as well as West Bank and also place in context the issue on health and human rights in the occupied territories.”
“This is a serious subject. I don’t want this to be some propaganda circus,” Loewenstein said. “This is about medicine, medical research and nutrition. For Chomsky, it’s about analyzing U.S. foreign policy from Bush to Obama on Israel-Palestinian conflict.”
Tickets for the event go on sale today for $10 and can be purchased at Rainbow Bookstore Cooperative, the Orpheum Theater and the Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice.
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A number of things should be corrected or clarified here: This event was originally conceived last fall to coincide with the March 2009 issue of The Lancet & its planned special series on Health services and Medical conditions under occupation in the Palestinian territories. The topic was broadened after the military offensive against Gaza that took place this past December and January, not last April. There are a number of other errors or misprints in this article as well: the series has nothing to do with Pakistan; Rita Giacaman is a Palestinian doctor and medical researcher from the West Bank, not “Europe”. The Middle East Studies Program is not the primary sponsor of this event; it is one of approximately 35 co-sponsors from both the University of Wisconsin and the greater Madison community, a number of members of which planned the events collectively. The focus is the effect on the quality and efficiency of medical care and health services when they are forced to operate under an illegal occupation regime; and the “propaganda circus” mentioned was in reference to the often hysterical complaints received, particularly on university campuses, each time the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is discussed by scholars and other professionals who might include critical facts in their remarks about Israel.
‘famous political activist’ it’s almost like the herald wants flame-fests on the comment section, I wonder why
“touch upon the issue of Israel and Pakistan.” Wait are you kidding me? The author doesn’t know the difference between pakistan and palestine? Does the Herald just train chimps to write their articles now because thats the quality level. Goodness this paper sucks
Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t Lowenstein the terrorist sympathizer who says there’s nothing wrong with Hamas murdering Israeli civilians?
Why can’t he speak on campus?
“Chomsky to speak on Israeli conflict”
Majority of UW community to ignore Chomsky.
8:58am: thank you for igniting the forthcoming hysterical responses…
those loonies at the Rainbow bookstore would be the ones selling tickets. You could probably get the same tickets at the University store for $5.
Given Avram Chomsky’s presence, one hopes the agenda rises above its uninformed humanitarianism to include a critical exposé of financiers that radicalize, arm, and dupe otherwise dispensible Palestinians against their enlightened self-interest. Disclosure of such financial intermediaries might once and for all shatter the academic fairytale on solidarity for the ‘occupied’ by Sultans, Kings, Sheikhs, Princes, Heirs, Mullahs, and in fact any other regional leader. The one major academic self-silencer stems of backward complicity to admit that the driving power of hierarchies of hate trumps all other explanation when it comes to the ‘Jewish’ Question and that the Israeli state is not a gambler by definition.
Chomsky is a beacon of human rights and justice, and his monolith of impeccable scholarship make him as respectable as anybody. Very glad to have the opportunity to see a man I look up to so dearly.
See you there Noam!
I was just checking the web to see if/when Chomsky would be speaking in my area and came upon this article/announcement.
You folks are fortunate to have Chomsky speaking in your area, I hope that the sponsors do a quality video of the event and of the q&a. Be sure to get the sound loud and clear. Please put it up on the web in toto, and feel free to drop me a line when it’s up! Thanks.
Nick Lento
unboughtandunbossed(at)gmail.com
PS
I’d bet that there will be enough substance/material in Chomsky’s talk to have it become the kernal of a full year’s course at your school.
Chomsky is an exceptional intellect who can, even in his 80’s, routinely manifest world class intellectual stamina, clarity and that is an indication that the man is a genius. Even more important than his intellectual machinery is the high moral/ethical ground from which he speaks.
I have yet to see anyone successfully refute Chomsky’s take on the things political. (Chomsky routinely bested William F Buckley on “Firing Line” long before many, if not most, of you reading this were born.) Once you actually listen to what he’s saying and check out the facts he relates; the conclusions are fairly easy to follow……so long as one is being honest.
It’s sad that so many of you need to be anonymous. What are y’all afraid of? ….and what does the need to “be afraid” to speak under your own name in America say about our political/economic/academic cultures?