Members of the Rutgers University Student Assembly, the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund and the general student body debated Thursday whether the PCRF should have been granted the semi-annual meal sign-away plan this fall.
Concerned students and a few RUSA members argued that the international group, which was recently granted the meal sign-away program, is highly political — and for students to sign away their meals to this group would be controversial.
“There are many other organizations that provide purely humanitarian relief for children in the Middle East, and I would have no problem with one of those organizations,” said Tali Rasis, a School of Arts and Sciences junior. “But [the PCRF] is a politically oriented organization with a questionable past.”
While no vote was made, RUSA members are expected to decide today if the PCRF will keep the meal sign-away program.
After the meeting, members from both sides argued with one another, some shouted the issue was a result of racism, while others shouted that the PCRF was anti-Israeli.
RUSA member Avi Scher said some comments PCRF President and Founder Steve Sosebee made on his blog made a few students think Sosebee stood for combining armed struggle with humanitarian help.
Scher said the blog shows that Sosebee is biased and his organization is political.
But the President of the PCRF’s University Chapter Ghadeer Hasan said this evidence is not accurate, and the sources are not reliable.
“These quotes that were said by Steve Sosebee, none of them were documented, none of them were substantial, and if anything, they were taken out of context,” said Hasan, a School of Arts and Sciences junior.
There were also accusations that the PCRF was linked to terrorism, because they had previous connections with the Holy Land Foundation, which funded Hamas, one of the largest terrorist groups in the Middle East, Scher said. The foundation tried to transfer money to the PCRF.
“I am not saying that the PCRF is a terrorist organization, but what I am saying is that they’re clearly linked to terrorist organizations,” said Scher, a School of Arts and Sciences sophomore.
Hasan said the quotes and allegations should not be looked at as a reason to not fund the group, because its main goal is to provide humanitarian aid to children from the West Bank and Gaza, who are battered as a result of the war.
She said the only relation the PCRF had to the Holy Land Foundation was to help a child years ago.
“I don’t see any controversy over bringing a child over and giving them a surgery they would not have access to in the West Bank or Gaza, where they’re living under a military occupation, where their living under siege,” Hasan said.
The organization may have some political ties — but the children do not — and it is not their fault their in the middle of a political situation, Hasan said.
“Maybe the word Palestine is political, but that isn’t the point,” she said.
Some members at the meeting argued the organization is also political in the sense that it is providing medical services to only Palestinian children.
But Hasan said although the organization started as a group to help children in Palestine, it has expanded to help children in other countries in the Middle East, such as Lebanon.
“No sides are being taken; we’re simply providing medical treatment to children,” Hasan said. “Whether it’s Arab children, whether they’re Muslim, whether they’re Jewish, whether they’re Christian — it doesn’t matter. The fact of the matter is that they’re children, and that’s why we’re here.”
New Jersey PCRF Chapter President Nora Whisnant said the accusations were an attempt to refuse aid to Palestinian children.
Thousands of children are assisted through the PCRF, she said.
“Nobody in the Second World War would deny German children the right to medical care,” Whisnant said. “This is a different agenda trying to deny Palestinian children medical care, but in terms of Steve Sosebee, look at his work, not his blogs.”
School of Engineering senior Avi Gilboa said he does not think anyone is making claims that Palestinian children do not deserve and need humanitarian service, but the PCRF has questionable ties and allegations.
“There are plenty of other organizations that have a squeaky-clean slate. Why not choose from there, because this is such a controversial and political issue?” he said.
Vice President of the PCRF’s University Chapter Ekjot Grewal said he was shocked to hear allegations that the PCRF was linked to terrorism. He was surprised to hear it from the University community, because it is so diverse.
“At Rutgers, the major slogan for everything is ‘Jersey Roots, Global Reach,’” said Grewal, a School of Arts and Sciences junior. “Now what we’re trying to do here is take Rutgers mission to somewhere where there really are bad hospitals and things like that. I do not see Rutgers students having a problem with signing a meal away to a kid who got his leg blown off.”
A few years ago, the PCRF brought a child to the U.S. to receive a surgery because the child was born with his bladder outside of his body, he said.
“I could say, quite clearly, after meeting this kid, this kid is not a terrorist, he is not attempting to be a racist or the next Hitler,” Grewal said. “He’s simply just a kid wanting a chance for a better life.”
Cook College junior Laura Silverman said allowing the PCRF the meal sign-away program would divide the University community, because the issue is so personal and controversial.
“No one is claiming that any Rutgers student is a terrorist,” she said. “I think the problem here is with RUSA being able to stand with something that stands behind the entire community, and I don’t think that this does that.”
Meal program decision ignites burning debate
Published: Sunday, November 22, 2009
Updated: Wednesday, November 25, 2009
5 comments
Thanks.
This is true even ignoring the fact that helping children to receive medical care is not controversial or political by itself and you are making it political with or without awareness.