To be the recipient of Rutgers University Student Assembly’s meal sign-away program is coveted and sometimes controversial. This semester, the winner is the University chapter of Palestine Children’s Relief Fund. Some claim that PCRF is a poor choice because it is exclusive and only helps Palestinians when there are many others who need help. Others claim that PCRF’s record is tarnished with the connection to The Holy Land Foundation, which was shuttered by the U.S. Treasury for alleged connections to groups that the U.S. considers terrorist. Some also complain that rhetoric of the president of PCRF is anti-Israeli.
It is good to be concerned who the meal-swipe program will assist, but there is more to the story. First, PCRF does great humanitarian work, providing medical care to Palestinian children who lack access to or cannot afford medical care. Second, it is endorsed by major world leaders like Nobel Peace Prize recipient Desmond Tutu and former President Jimmy Carter. Third, PCRF complies with U.S. law and does not fund terrorism or anything like it. The only controversy in its funding is who has supported it.
It is true that the Holy Land Foundation was shut down by the U.S. Treasury for suspected connections to groups like Hamas. However, it should be noted that Hamas has many branches, and many countries recognize Hamas’ militant wing as a terrorist group, but not its civil/humanitarian wing. HLF was supporting a group that provides medical supplies and other necessities to Palestinians, and because the U.S. lumps the different branches together and calls them all terrorist, the foundation was closed. The attempt to transfer money to PCRF once the money was frozen was simply done to help people with the money, rather than have it sit useless — quite a positive thing to do.
In terms of exclusivity and funding only Palestinians when there are so many to help, the sad reality is that there are so many people to help in this world, we could forever put off helping one group until others had been taken care of. No one group is more deserving of aid than any other, and we should help anyone in need when we can.
As to the PCRF’s Founder Steve Sosebee, his speeches have been given to organizations and at events that support the creation of a Palestinian state, a desire supported by many in the Middle East and in the rest of the world. His talks have not disparaged Jews and therefore are not anti-Semitic. He has spoken about the desire for and struggle to attain a Palestinian state, but this is not anti-Israeli either. He has not spoken about the destruction of Israel, only of the creation of Palestine.
There are people in need all over the world, and Rutgers’ students have done an excellent job of concerning themselves with the local community in New Brunswick, as well as those farther away. I commend RUSA for supporting PCRF as the winner of the meal sign-away competition, and I hope that it will benefit from Rutgers’ support.
Avi Smolen is a University alumnus.
24 comments
he's always been moderate, and always seeks to see both sides, this was something that made him wonderful at Rutgers.
Avi is not delusional enough to think that Jews are 100% in the right.I agree with the earlier commentator, listen neither to the praise or criticism. You don't need it- your moral compass functions just fine.
"there is no solution to the Palestinian problem except by jihad", as Hamas' charter clearly states -- should not be supported in any way shape or form. This is not an attack on PCRF - it really does appear as though they have an important mission. Rather, I am wondering whether their organization is linked with Hamas, and whether RUSA and RU's students bothered to consider that before awarding it with this honor.