1996-1997 Rothberg Yearbook

Protest halts Rabin conspiracy talk
By ELLI WOHLGELfeRNTER
d em o n stratio n at th e
H ebrew U n iv ersity o f Jeru sa lem last
night by stu d e n t su p p o rte rs o f
M eretz and L a b b r forced, the p o stponem
ent o f.a c o n tro v ersial lectu re
on a “consp iracy” b e h in d th e a ssa s-
fo k e o u t betw een Som e 5 0 d em o n -
Itfato rs.ah d B a m p tis Security g u a rd s
a h a lt hour'SeTore th e lectu re w a s to
b e g iv e n b y jo u rn a lis t B arry
C h am ish . S ecu rity o fficials, fearin g
that g o in g ah ead w ith the speech
m ig h t lead to m ore v io lence, c alled
it o ff w h ile a c o u p le o f h u n d re d stu- ;
d e n ts c o n tin u e d c h an tin g slo g a n s |
a n d p u sh in g secu rity g u a rd s outside.
' - “I w a s told th at th ere w a s g o in g toj
b e a silen t p ro test o u t h ere,” saidj
B rian B u n n , ch airm a n o f the stu d e n t
g o v e rn m e n t at the R o th b erg S c h o o l
fo r O v e rse as S tu d en ts, w h o invited;
C h a m ish to sp e a k o n c a m p u s,“but;
th is is irresp o n sib le, insane, re c k ­
less, an d d a n g ero u s fo r e v e ry o n e .”
T h e p ro test h ad b e en b u ild in g up
fo r a w e e k , s in c e it W as firs t
a n n o u n c e d th a t C h a m ish w o u ld
Speak o n a to p ic th at c o n tin u e s to
d iv id e seg m en ts o f Israeli society.
M K R a ’an an C o h en had sen t a letter
to the u n iv ersity d e m a n d in g the c a n ­
cellatio n o f the talk, b u t the school
re sp o n d ed that w hile it h a d “ re serv
a tio n s o n the co n ten ts o f the lectu
re," it co u ld not, o n legal advice,
b an i t
T h e sc e n e, re m in isc e n t o f U S
c a m p u s p ro tests in the 1960s, w as
n o t all violent, as m o st o f the e stim
ated 2 0 0 protesters d em o n strated
p e a c e fu lly , h o ld in g c a n d le s a n d
p o sters o f R abin . O n e p o ster h ad a
p ic tu re o f Y igal A m ir sh o o tin g
R abin, w ith the question: “ A S h a b a k
[G en eral S ecurity S ervice] a g en t?”
'A n o th e r w ith R a b in ’s fa ce said:
“ W e w ill n e v e r forget: W h o w as
k ille d /w h o d id th e killing.”
“F re e d o m o f sp eech is fine, but
this is o u r fre e d o m o f speech as
w e ll,” said G a b rielle G aray, a stu ­
d en t fro m B e lg iu m , “and w e refuse
to let th is m an sp e a k on o u r c a m ­
pus. I f th is w a s o rg anized by the
re g u la r u n iv ersity , hell w ould be
raised , c o m p le te h ell. T h ey co u ld
o n ly g e t a w ay w ith it because i t ’s
th e o n e -y e a r p ro g ram , people w h o
are h ere fo r a y e a r w h o h ave d iffere
n t id eas o f w h a t’s g oing on fro m
Isra elis.”
In sid e th e le c tu re h all, C h a m ish
w a s p re se n tin g h is assassin atio n
c o n sp ira c y th e o ry to a c ro w d o f
jo u rn a lists, th e o n ly p eople w h o
w e re a llo w e d in sid e th e b u ild in g .
T h e *d e m o n s tra tio n tak in g p lace
o u tsid e , h e sa id , w a s a lso a c o n ­
spiracy.
“T h is w a s n ’t sp o n tan eo u s, this
w a s o rg a n iz e d d o w n to th e
sw eaters,” h e said , re fe rrin g to the
M e re tz sw e a tsh irts m an y " o f the
p ro teste rs w o re. ..
“ S o m e b o d y w a n ts this stopped,
an d th e o n ly re a so n so m ebody is so
p a ssio n a te to h av e this stopped isc
le arly b e ca u se th e y d o n ’t w an t th is
to b e k n o w n .” ~-~r
A n o th e r touch o f th e ’6 0 s w as
C h a m ish ’s a rg u m e n t A s in the case
o f p resid en t Jo h n K en n ed y , a political
le a d e r-h a d b een assassinated,
a n d th ere h a d b e e n a m assiv e
coverup.
“T h e difference is th at the c o n ­
sp iracy to kill R abin w a s v ery sloppy;
the c o n sp irac y to kill K ennedy
w a s p re tty g o o d ,” said
C h a m ish .“T h e R a b in c o n sp ira c y
h a s so m any lo o se en d s - and
th e y ’re u n d e n ia b le.”
F o r o rg a n iz er B u n n , w h o said the
ev en t w as postp o n ed, n o t canceled,
th e issu e w a s fre e d o m o f
s p e e c h .'T h e guy m ay o r m ay n o t
be rig h t,” said the 22-y ear-o ld from
In d ia n a p o lis . T h a t’s w h y w e
b ro u g h t h im to an a cad em ic institutio
n , w h e re th ere c an b e professors,
stu d en ts, Israelis an d stu d ents from
ab ro ad , w h o can c o m e and c h allen
g e his facts, his pro o fs, h is th eo ­
ries, etc.
“ T h is is n o t at all w h a t I e x p e c t­
ed - 1 e x p ecte d p e o p le to c o m e and
p ro test w h a t h e said. N e v e r in m y
w ild est d re am s d id .1 e x p e c t su ch
v io le n t p ro tests fro m stu d e n ts .”
C h am ish , m eanw h ile, sa id h e felt
lik e M ark L ane, the first person
w h o c h allen g ed the fin d in g s o f th e
W arren C o m m issio n re p o rt saying
there w as a lone K e n n e d y assassin.
“ H e w as rig h t in the e n d , and I'm
g oing to be rig h t in th e e n d to o ,”
C h am ish said. - .