Archie Gottesman says being Jewish shouldn't require campus security

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
And welcome back to this Labor Dayeve edition of Alabama's
Morning News. My name is John Mountson, filling in for JT.
Being Jewish shouldn't require campus security as one of two
slogans greeting Alabama students as they return to campuses this fall.
Jew Belong is a national nonprofit organization that fights anti
Semitism and makes Judaism accessible. It's putting up three new

(00:20):
billboards to raise awareness and spark conversations about rising anti
semitism on college campuses. Joining me now is Archie Gotsman. Archie,
Welcome to Alabama's Morning.

Speaker 2 (00:30):
News, John, I'm so happy to be here.

Speaker 1 (00:31):
From January twenty twenty three, Yee is Right chock graffiti
was discovered in nearly twenty locations across the University of
Alabama's Tuscaloosa campus, referring to anti Semitic statements made by
the rapper Yee. In April of twenty twenty four, controversy
at UAB where Students for Justice and Palestine organizers characterize
the October seventh hamas Led attack as natural and justified.

(00:54):
Alabama college campuses have seen a sharp rise in anti
Semitic activity. Archie why is this growing so quickly in
both Alabama and nationwide.

Speaker 2 (01:04):
Because people are using Jewish people and Israel as a
scapegoat for everything, and it is so dangerous and really
it's bothes terribly for Americans because one thing about anti Semitism,

(01:26):
for anyone who knows history, is when anti Semitism starts
to grow, it is bad for everybody, not just Jewish people.
So it's important for Americans to really really get enraged
about the growing anti semitism in this country.

Speaker 1 (01:44):
And of course the scapegoating is nothing new. Hitler did it,
and before that, it's been done for decades. And why
is it all of a sudden just now? And this
is it because of what happened in Amas. By the way,
was the aggressor back a couple of years ago on
October it was October seventh, right, correct?

Speaker 2 (02:02):
Right? Yeah, in twenty three.

Speaker 1 (02:04):
Right, so Hamas was the aggressor. And but then since
then it seems like they've kind of turned it on
its head and tried to make the Israeli government as
the aggressor or paint them that way.

Speaker 2 (02:14):
Yes, that's exactly what's happened in It was an organized,
really evil but huge pr campaign against Israel. That has
really taken so many in the mostly progressive Americans to
believe that, I mean to think and say horrible things

(02:36):
that like, israelis are you know, that it had been
coming to them, and like that women should have been
raped and babies killed and just awful, and the pr
campaign that was launched by the Moas and really just
many many glible Americans have just bought into it. It's
outrageous what is happening to Jewish people in America. And

(03:01):
so that's why it's so important that we raise awareness
with these billboards and conversations like this.

Speaker 1 (03:06):
You can say a lot of things about Hamas, but
one thing, they're not stupid, and they know how to
strategically do things in a way that can rile up
international support for their side. Like, for example, they place
important war assets like artillery and weapons and things like
that basically on top of a school, so that when

(03:29):
Israel launches an attack and they destroy weapons because there
were weapons there, then they immediately have pictures of the
kids that were being kept right there with the weapons
and say, see look the attack today. It killed twenty
seven innocent women and children here in Gaza. And these
pictures get circulated around the world, and this helps bolster

(03:49):
their argument that the Israelis are the aggressors. Why is
it that Israel is not able to counter this narrative
with some of their own material.

Speaker 2 (04:00):
They're a very small country. They're the size of New Jersey.
They are I think many like just I think, as
you said at the beginning when you just said this,
like Mos has been planning this pr campaign, which really
is that's what it is, for years, and they I
don't think that Israel is, like you know, Inserl does

(04:22):
things that no no other war would ever be happening. Again,
war is terrible and it's and it's awful, but Hamas
is really not trying to help the Palestinians. And when
there are uprisings of Palestinians who are saying, you know,
to overthrow from us, like they're I mean, it's terrible.

(04:45):
They've been killed, they've been jailed. It's it's a very
it's a bad, bad situation. And I think until leaders
rise up who want peace, it's it's terrible. I Famos
doesn't want peace. They just they they just don't. What's
happening right now is when people play into their hands.
It's exactly what they wanted. Archie.

Speaker 1 (05:05):
I'm a firm believer that people are inherently reasonable, and
sometimes when you get a crowd, they're unreasonable as a whole.
But when you talk about like you get one person
and you have a one on one conversation about things,
usually you can find middle ground and you can find reason.
And when you have a reasonable conversation, it seems like
the reasonable thing would be to support life, and support

(05:26):
not killing, and support the sovereignty of Israel, the only
state in the Middle East that is basically an ally
of the United States. That's a one and only ally
over there. Really and truly, we as a country, we
need to support the people over there, and we need
to be willing to do what it takes to help
them defend their borders, defend their people, and to quash

(05:48):
the efforts of groups like Hamas who, like you said,
you know, it's not just a music festival. It's not
just from the river to the sea. Eventually, it's the
whole world that they.

Speaker 2 (05:57):
Hope to conquer, exactly, and people don't realize that that
this is it's literally you know, there's a saying that
first the Saturday people.

Speaker 1 (06:05):
Oh, that's exactly what I was going to say. It's
first just a Saturday people. That's the Jewish people. Then
it's the Sunday people, that's the Christian people. Then it's
every day of the week that's everybody. And that's the goal.

Speaker 2 (06:16):
Literally in the Islamic you know, statements like it's not
about and it's just important. I don't understand and I
don't know if I'm sure you've probably seen that some
of the views that you hear from like London or France,
where there's just you know, a lot more sort of

(06:38):
already you know, people who don't feel safe, you know,
whether it's the Jewish community feeling unsafe or people who
just feel like, wow, I there's a you know again,
not all muscles. This is not an anti Muslim, but
this is the radical when people are radical and say
you have to believe what I believe and you need

(06:59):
to you know, so dress the way I want you
to address that's what we are talking about, is not okay.
It's not okay for anybody to tell anyone else how
to live their lives.

Speaker 1 (07:07):
Absolutely, and to find out more about Archie Yachtsman and
you belong the website is youbelong dot org.

Speaker 2 (07:14):
Yes, it is so when you.

Speaker 1 (07:15):
Have some time this weekend, be sure to check that
website out. Archie, thank you so much for joining us
this morning on Alabama's Morning News.

Speaker 2 (07:22):
You're welcome. John, thank you too. I really appreciate it. It's
been a pleasure.