A Little to the Left: Boycotting Israel—It’s All the Rage

by Marjorie Winkelman

Srebrenica, July 1995: More than 8000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys were massacred by Serbian forces in what is often referred to as the worst mass murder on  European soil since World War II.

The Hague, July 2014:  A civil  court rules that the Dutchbat (Dutch UN peacekeeping battalion) were responsible for the deaths of more than 300 of the murdered men and boys. The men and boys  were among thousands of Muslims taking shelter in a Dutch compound inside the U.N. declared safe haven of Srebrenica. Dutchbat troops handed the men and boys over to Serbian forces. The ruling found that the peacekeeping force should have known that the Muslims were likely to be killed by the Serbs.

After almost twenty years, thanks to the efforts of a group known as the Mothers of Srebrenica, the families of the 300 will receive compensation from the Dutch government for negligence which led to murder.  The Dutch did not find themselves responsible for not protecting the thousands of other victims of the massacre and no compensation will be offered to the families.

Where is the international outrage? Why are there no calls to boycott Dutch products? Where is the call for Dutch scholars to be banned from international conferences? Where are the picketers outside the local Dutch Reform Church? Where is the movement of Dutch Americans speaking out against the policies of the Netherlands?

In addition in 2014, the U.S. Presbyterian Church voted to divest from companies which do business in Israel.  The same day the church  voted to support gay marriage, but failed to mention that Israel is the only country in the Middle East which bans discrimination based on sexual orientation.  Nor was the brutal persecution of gays and lesbians in Palestinian territories mentioned by the church.

Then there is the boycott of SodaStream, which has manufacturing facilities in Israel and the West Bank. According to reports on NPR and in the Christian Science Monitor, the boycott has had a negative effect on the many Palestinian employees of SodaStream.

Why boycott SodaStream and not a huge cry to boycott companies who use child workers in China or slave labor on shrimp boats in Thailand?

Where is the international outrage? Why are there no calls to boycott Chinese and Thai products? Where is the call for Chinese scholars to be banned from international conferences?

The answer is  that it is easy and comfortable to hate Jews. It must be a relief for the Presbyterians to let down the facade, loosen their belts and relax.

European outrage against Israel, Israeli scholars, companies which do business in Israel fits into a long history of hating Jews.  It’s ok again.  What a relief. France, Britain, the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium:  fine upstanding governments and citizens need not look at the treatment of immigrants in their countries, not to mention their own history of murder, genocide and colonialism.

So, don’t look for the local food co-op to boycott goods from the Netherlands, or Thailand.  It’s not going to happen.  But as the current conflict in Gaza and Israel continues, we should expect more international outrage and regret that Israelis aren’t dying in the same numbers as Palestinians.  The world is more comfortable with dead Jews than with Jews who defend themselves.