Palestinian students showed up at Park West School in Halifax, Nova Scotia, for Cultural Day wearing the keffiyeh, a symbol of the Palestinian “resistance” against the state of Israel. They presented it as “cultural” garb. When asked to remove it, a brouhaha erupted, with Palestinian students screaming “racism.” “Palestinian scarves controversy at Nova Scotia school prompts calls for public apology,” by Rebecca Lau, Global News, March 6, 2023:
Abdullah Aboalkhair, who was at the protest, said his 13-year-old brother was among the students wearing a keffiyeh at the school that day.
“He was wearing the keffiyeh, kept hearing that people are getting suspended for wearing the keffiyeh. He got worried, decided to take it off to not get suspended, came home worried, scared, telling us about it,” said Aboalkhair.
He said it was “disappointing” and there were “no words” to describe what happened to his brother and his friends.
“I would like racism for us to end, people stop discrediting us and understand that this is just a culture,” he said.
Even a Palestinian lobby got involved. The president of the Atlantic Canada Palestinian Society, Lana Khammash, stated that “asking them to take off the identity symbol for us is really painful. It’s racism.” She sure knew what to say and how to say it, while leaving out the truth about the keffiyeh.
No school in Canada will intentionally pick on Palestinians. The students were asked to take the garment off because someone at the school had an inkling about what the keffiyeh meant and recognized how disturbing it would be for many other students to see it. The outcome as expected, an apology, and one that signified a total lack of knowledge about what the keffiyeh is and what impact it may have upon other students:
In a letter to families sent last Friday, principal Benedette Anyanwu called what happened “an isolated incident involving a few students.”
Anyanwu stressed there was no ban on what students are allowed to wear, but that the school was working to “build understanding and to ensure the social and emotional well-being of all students.”
‘I want to reiterate that students at Park West are always welcome to express themselves in ways that maintain safety, dignity and respect for themselves, their classmates, and their cultures,” Anyanwu wrote.
The incident did involve a “few students,” and “the social and emotional well-being of all students” is being dismissed. The Palestinian scarf, or keffiyeh, is not simply an innocent cultural symbol. It holds ramifications involving the destruction of the Jewish state. Although having historical origins dating back to the Ottoman era, it became a symbol of opposition to Zionism during the Arab Revolt of the 1930s. As CAMERA explains:
In 1936, the Arab Higher Committee, led by Grand Mufti Husseini, launched a campaign of anti-Jewish violence across Palestine. Accompanied by a six-month-long strike, the campaign became known as “The Arab Revolt.”
The keffiyeh is still a political symbol of national armed resistance against Israel. Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Leader Yasser Arafat, who frequently wore the keffiyeh, brought it to new heights of fame and global recognition. According to the PLO’s founding manifesto, the organization was formed in the 1960’s “to attain the objective of liquidating Israel.” The Palestinian National Charter states the same goal of obliterating Israel. Thus for other students it certainly does not promote any sense of safety, dignity and emotional well being.
According to Anyanwu: “I recognize that the situation that evolved this week has caused harm.” Anyanwu seems to be oblivious about how much harm this incident caused, but she was not referring to that. National unity is in tatters in Canada, and not because of “racism.” Recently, the Toronto local of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation in District 12, a teachers’ union, presented an “anti-Palestinian racism” workshop that reportedly parroted Hamas.
Dave De La Rond says
Why should anyone be shocked, Muslim organizations in Canada funded by Iran and Qatar have been funding Muslim Immigration to all small cities across Canada for the past 30 years .
mg says
And yet… across Europe, jews are told to take off their yarmulkas and star of david necklaces…. due to the
hatred and bigotry of muslims, and leftists. That is acceptable due to the unbelievable numbers of attacks against ordinary people just walking about there. And so, fakestinians now get to cry victim tears before it too becomes instead, the scenario where jews are told to take off their yarmulkes and stars of David to prevent, ‘tensions’
Jim says
This is to be expected from Palestinians. Their whole identity issue is a big lie. They did not fight the Romans, they were not the Philistines, and many or most of them do not descend from people who lived in Israel before the Jews. Probably most got interested in Israel when they saw all the Israelis accomplished there. Their religion preaches deceit and disrespect for other cultures. The Muslims who do respect other culturesare ones who have little interest in Islam, never read the koran and do not care about the Palestinian movement. If these people in Canada are so committed to the cause, they should move back to Gaza or some Muslim country that practices sharia. People who think theirs is a religion of peace probably also thought that nation building and liberalizing illiberal societies would create a peaceful one world global system but their dream has come to naught. There has to be a will, otherwise there is no way.
mjazz says
Remember when Jews couldn’t wear religious headgear in Congress but the second Omar got in they all bent over backwards to accommodate her? Its time to end islamic supremacy.
tim gallagher says
AS Robert Spencer often asks, “Are we diverse enough yet?” This hideous look, with these trouble-making palestinian students wearing their shitty head coverings, takes that wondrous diversity way too far, at least as I see things These creatures will provide nothing positive to Canadian society or any other western society and should bugger off back to the country to which they feel their only loyalty.
Keith O says
The other little gem to com from this Tim is the statement that this rag, which has become associated worldwide with terrorism, is “just a culture”.
A culture of what? Death, destruction, lies, violence, racism and terrorism?
And these turds expect thinking humans to get a warm fuzzy feeling whenever we see someone wearing one???? IN YA DREAMS!!!
tim gallagher says
Spot on, Keith O. i keep thinking how much trouble Muslims, such as these students and endless other Muslims, cause in our societies. It never ends. You never, for example, get shit like this from Buddhists or other groups that live in our societies. islam is totally incompatible with our way of life. On islam, the Hungarians and the other Visegrad bloc countries have it right. Just keep them out. They are not worth all the trouble they always bring because so much of islam is completely barbaric and fit only for people from 7th century arabia.
James Lincoln says
A whole bunch of young Yasser Arafat types.
Nothing good can come out of this…
somehistory says
I recall seeing a video of arafat bragging about how he lied to the infidels about wanting “peace.”
Gordon A Dale says
it is sickening that they bring their hate for Israel to Canada
AN says
This is coming to United States! In fact it is already here. Politicians do not see it. Let us start a nation wide public awareness. Cannot limit ourselves just to this forum. Must join Pam Gellar and likes.
OLD GUY says
Muslims bring hate and violence wherever they migrate too.
Tanya says
If they go back to Palestine then they can wear their little button all they like. But if they choose to live in Canada then they need to check their hate at the door. Israel is our ally. There is no room for this kind of hateful and deceptive rhetoric. How dare they pull the victim card.