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Originally Posted by pspeid
My opinions on the CMHR/Nakba/Gail Asper thingie, for what they're worth (spoiler alert: not a heck of a lot).
The CMHR would never have existed without Izzy's vision and the ongoing support of the Asper family. I don't know any of them personally, but my impression is that Izzy was genuinely passionate about human rights issues. I don't think it's a stretch to suggest that he probably felt most passionately about human rights offences against Jewish communities, which would be natural for any of us with a personal connection to an issue.
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1. Asper never gave a shit about Hunan Rights issues. As a hardcore Zionist, it's well known he gave enormous amounts of money, for illegal Jewish settlements in Palestine, to raze homes, villages, etc to eradicate Palestinians.
2. Asper wanted a Holocaust Museum. When the Government denied him this, he wanted a watered-down Holocaust museum, under the guise of Human Rights.
3. Polling by friends of the Museum, as to what the centrepeice of the museum should be, shocked everyone. It turns out the #1 answer, was the treatment of our First Nations people, and the human rights violations they suffered. It was not even close. However, this was a complete shock to Gail Asper's group,,who were so tone-deaf that they actually thought the Holocaust would easily win.
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There is, of course, a significant section of CMHR space dedicated to the Holocaust. There's no denying this horrible event would deserve space in a Human Rights museum no matter who funded it.
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The CMHR gives the Holocaust too much space. It's a CANADIAN Human Rights museum. Last time I checked, the Holocaust occurred in Europe. However, the human rights abuses towards our Indigenous community easily should have taken up more space than something that happened on the other side of the World.
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Gail Asper has followed her father's vision in supporting the CMHR, which includes (included?) financial support of the CMHR. Again, I've never met the woman, but I would have no doubt she is as committed to the museum as she is committed to her father's vision of the museum.
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She certainly did. Izzy hated Palestinians, and wanted to drive them out of Israel. Gail is indeed, following in his footsteps.
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Her decision to withhold financial support is where things get unsettling for me. Her opposition to the Nakba display apparently wasn't about denying the Nakba occurred, but whether a "balanced" portrayal of the event, in how it impacted both Palestinians and Jews, was, in her opinion, lacking. She also voiced concerns about how the exhibit might contribute to antisemitism.
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The Aspers want to bully and pressure the museum to drop any reference to it. Consulting with Palestinians in regards to the Nakba (to get the Jewish side of the story), is the equivalent of consulting with the Nazils in regards to the Holocaust, so we can look at it from Hitler's side.
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I think her second concern was valid, as there is always an element that looks to demonize an identifiable group by generalizing offences across an entire population. We saw it with Muslims after 911, we see it with nations whose leader commit criminal acts.
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9/11 was not "state-sponsored genocide." It was a group of radicals that did not even adhere to their own religion. No different than certain extremist Christian and Jewish groups have done in the past. You cannot compare that to what the Zionists are doing in Palestine.
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Of course the Aspers can do whatever they want with their money. Personally I think the issue could have been dealt with better had Gail Asper simply asked the museum to have another display in the future that addressed her concerns. The issue of differing historical perspectives is certainly a valid one, and one the CMHR is, I believe, equipped to handle.
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Gail and the Asper family have far too much input on the museum. They need to be shown the door- permanently. She is a self-proclaimed Zionist, who would like nothing better than to have all Palestinians
driven out of Israel.
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