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Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid&o=10616

Palestine Peace Not Apartheid

Palestine Peace Not Apartheid is a New York Times Best Seller written by Jimmy Carter, 39th President of the United States (1977–1981) and winner of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, and published by Simon and Schuster in November 2006. While President, Carter hosted talks between Menachem Begin of Israel and Anwar Sadat of Egypt that led to the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty.

In this book Carter argues that "Israel's continued control and colonization of Palestinian land have been the primary obstacles to a comprehensive peace agreement in the Middle East." That perspective, coupled with Apartheid in the titular phrase Peace Not Apartheid (which many regard as a subtitle) and allegations of errors and misstatements in the book, has raised great controversy throughout the mass media and academia. Carter has defended his book against such charges and countered that response to it "in the real world…has been overwhelmingly positive."

Purpose, main argument, and major points

"The ultimate purpose"

Thesis: How to achieve "permanent peace in the Middle East"

Carter identifies "two interrelated obstacles to permanent peace in the Middle East":

To bring an end to what he calls "this continuing tragedy", in Chapter 17 ("Summary"), Carter calls for a revitalization of the peace process following the following three "key requirements":

"Some major points"

In his recent op-ed entitled "Reiterating the Keys to Peace", published in the Boston Globe on 20 December 2006, Carter summarizes what he calls "[s]ome major points in the book":

Critical reaction and commentary

Critical response to Palestine Peace Not Apartheid has been mixed. Some journalists and academics have praised what they regard as Carter's courage for speaking honestly about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in a media environment described as hostile to opponents of Israel's policies. Others, however, have been more negative. According to Julie Bosman, criticism of the book "has escalated to a full-scale furor," much of which has focused on Carter's use of the word "apartheid" in the subtitle. Some of the book's critics, including several leaders of the Democratic Party and of American Jewish organizations, have interpreted the subtitle as an allegation of Israeli apartheid, which they believe to be inflammatory and unsubstantiated." Former President Bill Clinton wrote a brief letter to the chairman of the American Jewish Committee, thanking him for articles criticizing the book and citing his agreement with Dennis Ross's attempts to "straighten ... out" Carter's information and conclusions about Clinton’s own summer 2000 Camp David peace proposal. The book led to 15 resignations from among the more than 200-member Board of Councilors of the Carter Center. Some reviewers of the book, such as Jeffrey Goldberg (who served in the Israeli Defense Forces as a prison guard during the First Intifada) and Ethan Bronner (NY Times Jerusalem correspondent), respectively, have accused Carter of engaging in hyperbole throughout the book, placing too much of the burden of responsibility for what he regards as the plight and mistreatment of the Palestinians on Israel, and misrepresenting historical facts. Although, according to James D. Besser, Abraham Foxman, the national director of the Anti-Defamation League, initially accused Carter of "engaging in anti-Semitism" in the book, Foxman told James Traub later that he would not call the former president himself an "anti-Semite" or a "bigot". Despite the initial claims, Bronner stresses that Carter's "overstatement" in the book "hardly adds up to anti-Semitism." Several familiar with Israeli press reportage, including some left-leaning Israeli politicians, such as Yossi Beilin, argue that Carter's critique of Israeli policy in the Palestinian territories reflects that of many Israelis themselves.

Carter's response to criticism of the book

Carter has responded to negative reviews in the mainstream news media in an op-ed published in the Los Angeles Times (which was excerpted in the London Guardian and elsewhere):

He also wrote a "Letter to Jewish Citizens of America" explaining "his use of the term 'apartheid' and sympathizing with Israelis who fear terrorism."

In a report updated by the Associated Press after the publication of Carter's "Letter to Jewish Citizens of America", Greg Bluestein observes that Carter replied generally to complaints of the book's errors and inaccuracies by Dennis Ross, Alan Dershowitz, Kenneth Stein, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, and others by pointing out that the Carter Center staff as well as an "unnamed 'distinguished' reporter" fact-checked it. Rachel Zelkowitz points out that, as cited in various news accounts, "Carter has consistently defended his book's accuracy against Stein and other critics"; in a prepared statement, Carter's press secretary Deanna Congileo responds "that Carter had his book reviewed for accuracy throughout the writing process" and that "[a]s with all of President Carter's previous books, any detected errors will be corrected in later editions.... In response to the Associated Press's request for a comment on the resignations of Stein and fourteen other members of the Center's Board of Councilors, speaking on behalf of both Carter and the Carter Center, Ms. Congileo also provided a statement from its executive director John Hardman, who, according to Zelkowitz, "also fact checked Palestine, saying that the members of that board 'are not engaged in implementing the work of the Center.'

Public and other programs pertaining to the book

Carter has said that debate on issues concerning Israel is silenced in the US media because of lobbying efforts by the pro-Israel lobby: "[M]any controversial issues concerning Palestine and the path to peace for Israel are intensely debated among Israelis and throughout other nations — but not in the United States. . . . This reluctance to criticize any policies of the Israeli government is because of the extraordinary lobbying efforts of the American-Israel Political Action Committee [sic] and the absence of any significant contrary voices." He stresses that through the debate among others that he hopes this book will stimulate and through his own related public-speaking and media appearances, he hopes to tear down the "impenetrable wall" that stops the people of the US from seeing the plight of Palestinians.

Brandeis University visit

In early December 2006 Brandeis University invited Carter to visit the university to debate his book with Alan Dershowitz: "Brandeis president Jehuda Reinharz said he agreed with a trustee's suggestion to invite Carter last month [December 2006], if Carter were willing to debate one of his most outspoken critics, Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz." But Carter declined that invitation, explaining: "I don't want to have a conversation even indirectly with Dershowitz. There is no need to for me to debate somebody who, in my opinion, knows nothing about the situation in Palestine." Carter said that the Brandeis debate request, "is proof that many in the United States are unwilling to hear an alternative view on the nation's most taboo foreign policy issue, Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory," adding: "There is no debate in America about anything that would be critical of Israel." In response, Dershowitz criticized Carter's refusal to debate him, asserting: "Carter’s refusal to debate wouldn't be so strange if it weren't for the fact that he claims that he wrote the book precisely so as to start debate over the issue of the Israel-Palestine peace process. If that were really true, Carter would be thrilled to have the opportunity to debate." Additionally, Dershowitz pointed out that his later presentation in George Washington University, Carter, in addressing Brandeis's proposal to debate Dershowitz, responded that he had "never received any invitation to debate, contrary to what a Harvard professor has said. This has raised an contradiction that Carter has yet to address.

According to an article entitled "Brandeis Group Pursues Carter Visit: Professors Call Debate an Insult", published in the Boston Globe on December 22, 2006, however:

On December 26, 2006, WCVB-TV (an ABC-TV affiliate), reports that "[a]bout 100 students, faculty and alumni of Brandeis University have signed an online petition to push the administration to bring former President Carter to campus to discuss his new book on Palestine, without being required to debate it."

The Boston Globe reports that since it initially revealed "that Carter felt unwelcome on the Waltham campus, people have argued over whether he is unwilling to answer for his views, or whether Brandeis, which was founded by the American Jewish community, can't tolerate criticism of Israel. The latter is a view that some professors hope they can dispel by reviving the Carter visit." "The main organizer of the effort, according to other professors, is Gordon Fellman, a sociologist who is chairman of Brandeis's program in peace, conflict, and coexistence studies...." David Gil, a professor of social policy, is suggesting that "Brandeis should choose Carter's book next year [2007-2008] as the work that all incoming freshmen read over the summer and discuss it during orientation. Carter could visit to talk with them about it", Professor Gil says, and he "also has decided to assign the book in his spring [2007] seminar.

On January 10, 2007, it was reported that President Carter would discuss Palestine Peace Not Apartheid at Brandeis University but that he would "not, however, debate the book with" Dershowitz. Brandeis officials reported that Carter would "be the first former president to visit Brandeis since Harry Truman delivered the commencement address in 1957.... It will be Carter's first visit to a university to discuss the book, [Carter's spokeswoman Deanna] Congileo said", confirming also "the president has set no conditions and would answer as many questions as possible"; Carter plans to "speak for about 15 minutes and then answer questions for 45 minutes during the visit." The speech, which occurred on January 23, 2007, was "closed to the public and limited to 'members of the university community only'"; nevertheless, Dershowitz said that he still planned to "attend and question Carter": "'I will be the first person to have my hand up to ask him a question,' he said. 'I guarantee that they won't stop me from attending.'" On January 18, 2007, Fox News and other news outlets reported that Brandeis announced that while Dershowitz could not attend Carter's speech, after it ended he would have the stage for a "rebuttal."

Streaming video of the speech (15 minutes), the question-and-answer period (45 minutes), followed by Dershowitz's rebuttal (one hour), have been posted on the Brandeis University website, as has been a transcript of Carter's remarks and ten of the questions and answers, preceded by a related student newspaper article.

The day after the speech, on January 24, 2007, The New York Times reported on the program in "At Brandeis, Jimmy Carter Responds to Critics": "Questions were preselected by the committee that invited Mr. Carter, and the questioners included an Israeli student and a Palestinian student.... After Mr. Carter left, Mr. Dershowitz spoke in the same gymnasium, saying that the former president oversimplified the situation and that his conciliatory and sensible-sounding speech at Brandeis belied his words in some other interviews. According to David Weber, of ABC News, Carter said "that he stood by the book and its title, that he apologized for what he called an 'improper and stupid' sentence in the book [which he acknowledged seemed to justify terrorism by saying that suicide bombings should end when Israel accepts the goals of the road map to peace with Palestinians and which he had already instructed his publisher to remove from its future editions,] and that he had been disturbed by accusations that he was anti-Semitic.... [Carter]...acknowledged...that 'Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid' has 'caused great concern in the Jewish community,' but noted that it has nonetheless prompted discussion. An editorial published in the Waltham, Massachusetts newspaper, the Daily News Tribune, concludes: "Carter succeeded in bringing to Brandeis a productive, civil debate. Videotaped excerpts from Carter's visit to Brandeis were featured on several national news programs in the United States, such as NBC's morning program Today, along with follow-up interviews with him.

As a result of the visit, major donors told Brandeis University that they will no longer give it money in "retaliation", according to Stuart Eizenstat, chief domestic policy adviser and executive director of the White House Domestic Policy Staff during Carter's presidency and a current trustee of Brandeis, as quoted in The Jewish Week in mid-February 2007. According to Brandeis student Kevin Montgomery, who led the Student Committee to bring Jimmy Carter to Brandeis, as also cited in the Jewish Week, the Brandeis University Development and Alumni Relations office had expected, prior to Carter's visit, to lose $5 million due to the visit.

Man from Plains: Documentary feature film by Jonathan Demme

According to the Boston Globe, Jonathan Demme "has been filming Carter for three months to compile footage for a documentary about the former president's book and Carter's efforts to increase debate on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict." Time Out London reports that the film, tentatively entitled "He Comes in Peace" but re-titled Man from Plains, "follows the former President as he takes part in a book tour across America to publicise his new tome, 'Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid'." While it granted camera access to members of the news media for their broadcasts, Brandeis University refused Demme's request to film Carter's January 2007 speech for the end of the film, citing logistical and legal considerations. Man From Plains debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 10, 2007.

Carter Center conversation

On February 22, 2007, former President Jimmy Carter participated in a "conversation" about Palestine Peace Not Apartheid with former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright at the Carter Center, moderated by Conflict Resolution Program Director Matthew Hodes. The event became sold out in early January 2007. The event was simultaneously webcast in the Carter Center's online "multi-media" section, and the Center's website now includes a direct link to the "archived webcast.

George Washington University visit

On 8 March 2007 George Washington University hosted a visit by Carter during which he discussed his book. According to Beth Schwartzapfel, in her report published in The Forward, a group of Jewish students led by Robert Fishman, executive director of the campus Hillel, dominated the microphones, preventing other students from asking their own questions, while asking questions critical of Carter prepared, forwarded, and distributed to them in advance by faculty and students at Emory University as if they were their own questions:

Schwartzapfel also cites "[a] video of the event, posted to the G.W. Web site, [which] shows that Carter received several standing ovations and long stretches of applause. "But", Schwartzapfel continues, "an Associated Press story that ran immediately after the event characterized the audience as 'polite but mostly critical,'" adding: "Jack Stokes, an A.P. spokesman, told the Forward that the article’s description of the audience 'was based on [reporter Barry] Schweid’s observation of the speech, as well as the subsequent Q&A Carter engaged in with the students. The A.P. story stands as written.'"

Schweid observes:

Schwartzapfel reports, however:

Fishman told the Forward, Schwartzapfel reports further:"'You know how we did it, honestly?...We said, "Let’s sit near the microphones." They each had a copy of the questions, and then they stood on line.'" Yet, she adds: "Hennessey asserted that the maneuver ended up influencing media coverage of the event. 'This small group successfully outgunned the microphones and managed to give some journalists this totally erroneous impression that that was how the student body felt about Carter,' he said." Whereas "Hennessey, who described Carter’s book as 'very courageous,' contended that the G.W. students 'very successfully stood up and blocked anyone else from asking a question,'" Schwartzapfel continues:

University of Iowa visit

Pointing out that "The former president rarely speaks about his book at universities. He says he’s been invited to more than 100 campuses, but he's only visited five," Claire Keller reports that, during his public appearance at the University of Iowa, in Iowa City, on April 18, 2007, Carter stated: " 'I wrote this book to describe the plight of the Palestinians and because I'm convinced we desperately need debate about where we are and where we ought to be going, and how to rejuvenate the non-existent peace process in the Middle East' ... [and that] Carter says the book's objective is permanent peace for Israel and its neighbors," adding: "It’s something the former president says he’s dedicated his entire adult life to."

While Kellett states that "Many in attendance applaud his efforts," she also provides the following qualification: "But others criticize the author, claiming his book contains factual errors and misstatements. Members of the local Jewish community say it's simply one-sided." She quotes Tali Ariav of the Hillel Jewish Student Center on the Iowa campus, who stated: "'I am an Israeli so of course I served in the military, so I feel emotionally involved, but I feel every person, every American, every thinker needs to think twice about Carter's opinion, because it's not right' ..." Nevertheless, Keller adds: "Carter adamantly defends the accuracy of his book, saying he wrote every word himself."

University of California, Irvine visit

After being "greeted with thunderous applause" ("Event Synopsis"), on May 3, 2007, former President Jimmy Carter presented a lecture and participated in a discussion relating to the book, in association with the Center for Citizen Peacebuilding, Department of Political Science, at the University of California, Irvine. According to an account by the Associated Press presented on Federal News Radio, "Former President Jimmy Carter urged students at a Southern California university with a history of strained relations between Jewish and Islamic groups to set differences aside and work together to find solutions. ... 'I'd like to see the leaders form a combined group and take my invitation to go to Palestine and see what's going on for yourselves,' Carter told a crowd of about 3,300 students and faculty ... 'If you take me up on it, I'll raise the money to pay for your trip,' he said ... reiterat[ing] his belief that Palestinians 'are being persecuted horribly.' "

See also

Notes

References

Book excerpts

Book reviews

Related opinion-editorials and interviews by Jimmy Carter

Public and other programs by Jimmy Carter pertaining to the book

News accounts, editorials, and letters by others

Further reading

External links

  • Carter Q&A: Carter Question Blog hosted by Brandeis University faculty and students about the book pursuant to the Brandeis University visit by Jimmy Carter. Answers by Carter. Also presents links to transcript of Carter's opening remarks, books, and media coverage. (Registration required for participation.)
  • . Documentary film by Jonathan Demme focusing on Jimmy Carter's book tour for Palestine Peace Not Apartheid. Expected release date is 2008.

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