It is easy to be in favor of freedom of expression when you are safe and warm and not risking anything. It’s harder when the world is on fire. When one may have reason to fear that a point of view may trigger rage and violence, or for that matter damage your reputation, or your finances.
That is when they are put to the test, our principles. And so far into the war between Israel and Hamas, the principle of freedom of expression is not held as sacred in Western countries as one might think.
THOSE WHO GOT MISSING: During a demonstration in Jerusalem, the demonstrators showed pictures of the hostages who have been abducted by Hamas.
Photo: Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP
Both those who want to cry out anger and grief on behalf of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip and for the abducted Israeli hostages have reason to know that the space for expression is not as open as it should ideally be. But they probably know it in different ways.
The Palestinian writer Adania Shibli was actually supposed to receive a literary prize during the book fair in Frankfurt. But Litprom, the organization that awards the prize, canceled the ceremony because of “the war in Israel”.
The nomination of Shibli as prize winner had already been debated due to the negative depictions of Israeli soldiers in Shibli’s novel. One juror withdrew from the jury when she was selected. But refusing to honor a Palestinian writer because monstrous acts are taking place for which she is in no way responsible was nevertheless sensational.
CANCELED: Palestinian Adania Shibli was originally supposed to receive an award during the Frankfurt Book Fair, but the award was canceled due to the war between Israel and Hamas. Here from the author’s visit to the literary festival Litfest Bergen.
Photo: Eivind Senneset / LitFestBergen
So were the layoffs that started to come. The editor of the art magazine Artforum, David Velasco, was fired for publishing and signing an open letter supporting Palestinian liberation.
It also got Michael Eisen, the editor of the science magazine eLife, who is himself Jewish. He had shared an article from the satirical magazine The Onion with the ironic headline “Dying Gazans criticized for not using their last words to condemn Hamas”.
In France, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin attempted to ban demonstrations in support of the Palestinians, citing an explosion in anti-Semitic acts. A general ban was halted in the legal system.
LOST HIS JOB: Artforum editor David Velasco lost his job after printing an open letter in support of Palestinian liberation.
Photo: NYT
The recently resigned British Home Secretary Suella Braverman wrote to the police that carrying the Palestinian flag could be interpreted as support for terrorism. And in Germany, a number of Jewish artists and writers have come together to protest the cancellation of pro-Palestinian demonstrations. In an open letter, they declare that they are concerned about the restrictions on the rights of ordinary Germans.
When it is primarily this side of the conflict that experiences a purely formal restriction of freedom of expression, it must be seen in the context of the history of the West. The persecution of the Jews and the Holocaust are part of original sin. The fear of not being able to protect vulnerable Jewish minorities is palpable.
Because in a number of European countries there are now reports of a sharp upswing in the number of anti-Semitic abuses. Police in the UK reported an increase of a staggering 1,353 per cent in the first weeks of October, compared to the same time last year.
CRITICAL OF PALESTINIAN FLAGS: The recently resigned UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman came under heavy criticism for her views on pro-Palestinian demonstrations.
Photo: Reuters
Here at home, the Mosaic religious community has told about Norwegian Jews who have had horrible experiences. About a family who were woken up by threatening shouts outside the house and had the pram wheels cut open. About a protester with Palestinian and Israeli flags who was harassed to the extent that he had to have police protection to get away.
Many reacted strongly when an Israeli flag with a swastika was hung on a silo in Oslo earlier this month.
Then, in practice, it may not have much to say that it is not states or employers who say hush. Such experiences naturally create deep fear, and will mean that many choose to remain silent. In an article in Aftenposten, the researchers Kjetil B. Simonsen and Vibeke Moe tell us that Norwegian Jews are reluctant to say that they are Jewish in social contexts. Many have started to follow their children to school.
NORWEGIAN JEWS ARE HARASSED: The Mosaic faith community and researchers on Jewish life in Norway have told how Norwegian Jews have experienced more harassment after the terrorist attack in Israel and the subsequent acts of war.
Photo: Andreas Sundby / NRK
But where is the line for what can and should be met, not only with counter-arguments and criticism, but with sanctions? Porn star and influencer Mia Khalifa operated until recently on a separate channel on Playboy’s platform.
When Hamas’ terrorist attacks began on October 7, and videos of the attack spread on social media, Khalifa wrote on X/Twitter: “Can someone tell the freedom fighters in Palestine to turn their phones and film horizontally,” and “I can’t believe that the Zionist apartheid regime is overthrown by guerilla fighters in fake Gucci shirts”.
Although Khalifa later said that the tweets in no way encouraged the spread of violence, several professional collaborations quickly soured, including the connection with Playboy. There will always be limits to what a client can indirectly vouch for, by continuing to promote or collaborate with the person making the statement.
LOST CONTRACT: Porn star and influencer Mia Khalifa lost her platform at Playboy after speaking out about Hamas terror attacks.
Photo: AP
There have been many reactions to the dismissals in Artforum and eLife, and to the attempts to restrict the right to demonstrate in several European countries. Few seem to have a problem with Playboy’s breakup with Khalifa.
For those who go through the dismissals, cancellations and pointing fingers that have come after the terrorist attack on 7 October, it still appears as if Western countries are gripped by too much nervousness in the wake of such a violent and ongoing tremor.
In several countries, the institutions that were supposed to guarantee freedom of expression and ensure that people can speak freely have not lived up to that responsibility. Of course, the most comfortable thing is to ban, to remove, to push away expressions that are perceived as risky, so as not to be held indirectly responsible for them.
But it appears short-term. The task they have now is more complex: Equip the work against hate speech, be it against Jews or Norwegian Muslims, and at the same time allow as much as possible of pure political speech from the many who need to vent their anger, grief, and frustration.
If there’s ever a time we should put up with a lot of each other, it’s probably now.
2023-11-19 18:08:01
#feelings #wanted
