Submitted by Lindy Urso, Cos Cob
It is fascinating that group of almost 2 dozen of my neighbors joined to respond to my letter (URSO: Arrest of Lawful Permanent Resident is Assault on 1st Amendment March 16, 2025) pointing out how, in carrying Israel’s water by trying deport Lawful Permanent Resident Mahmoud Khalil, Trump is endangering free speech in the US. (GROUP LETTER: Urso’s Letter on Mahmoud Khalil Omits Relevant Facts March 21, 2025)
What is not surprising is that they resorted to tired, ad hominem defamation by suggesting I am antisemitic. Zionists have been using that tactic in order to deflect criticism of Zionism or Israel since the (ironically named) ANTI-Defamation League was created in 1913.
First, Judaism is not Zionism – period. Additionally, criticism of Zionism, Israel, or US policy vis a vis Israel, is simply NOT antisemitic. In fact there are many Israeli Jews, American Jews, and various Jewish sects whose members are far more critical than my letter – are all of those Jewish folks antisemitic? Again ironically, the “antisemite” trope is designed to stifle free speech – which was the essence of the complaint in my letter.
Also unsurprising is that they did not, and can not, dispute the fact that:
1. Khalil has not been charged with any of the crimes they enumerated;
2. His arrest was the first of its kind in US history – historically a green card holder is only deported after having been convicted of one or more specifically enumerated crimes;
3. They misrepresented Mr. Khalil’s protest against Israel’s ongoing massacring of tens of thousands of women and children (the average age of Palestinians is currently 18), as “pro-Hamas” rather than “against Israel’s massacre” or “pro humanity, as it was;”
4. They ignore that Hamas was created in large part BY Israel in order to divide (and conquer) the Palestinians and that they are now using them as a boogeyman to justify the final stages of their near 80-year ethnic cleansing campaign;
5. The claim that Israel is a democracy is a joke, as Arabs in general are at best second class citizens and the Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank are treated as if they aren’t even human;
6. That Trump received upwards of $100 million in campaign money from Israeli citizen and former IDF soldier Miriam Adelson, and his policies – i.e. trying to deport Mr. Khalil for protesting against Israel’s slaughter, taking money from schools that allow protests against the same, bombing Yemenis because they support Palestinians, declining Tusli Gabbard her choice for deputy director to DNI because he was critical of Israel’s massacre of Gaza, etc. – show that Trump is effectively owned by them; and
7. My (and your) taxpayer money is going to fund Israel’s annihilation of Gaza and Gazans, and that any American or Lawful Permanent Resident has every right (and, I believe, an obligation to humanity) to protest the wholesale slaughter of these innocent women, children and babies, especially when we are paying for the bombs.
My father was born in Italy and if Italy was slaughtering tens of thousands of women and kids, I would feel compelled to speak out even stronger against them.
I would just like to know how you 20 people sleep at night – let alone defend Israel at all – knowing Israel is slaughtering tens of thousands of helpless women, children and babies.