TO THE EDITOR:
Recently, two atrocities sent a resounding alarm for my alma mater. One was the killing of three Muslim students, of which all of America has been informed. The other was the protest of a respectable black ambassador for Christians United for Israel.
Dumisani Washington came from California to enlighten the UNC community on Martin Luther King Jr.’s pro-Israel legacy. Sadly, most of the attending students appeared to be self-aggrandizing. At the first mention of Christian Zionism, these Palestinian advocates carried their narrow minds out of the Great Hall. Their own identity took precedence over academic enrichment. Had they utilized what CUFI offered, and what a university is supposed to provide, they would have received much more than self-promotion.
Listening to Washington describe his upbringing in the segregated South, these protestors lost patience when he defined his terms. Consequently, they missed the historical contexts for ancient Zionism, King’s perspective and the labeling of Zionism as racism. Most importantly, they missed affirmation: His final point was the immense problem of Palestinian human rights.
Pilferage of history should anger us enough to seek truth. Exhibitions of bigotry imply that propaganda is consuming students. CUFI’s attempt to reinstate critical thinking is fastidious.
Kathy Arab
Class of ’81
