Youth for Human Rights and the Politics of Exclusion.

http://www.youthforhumanrights.org/watchads/index.html
Chutzpah is a Yiddish word that roughly translates to “nerve” as in “She’s got a lot of nerve.”  The classic definition is that of someone who has killed both his parents and then pleads to the judge for mercy because he is an orphan.

The first ad from “Youth for Human Rights” was probably brought to my attention via facebook.  It shows images of children from many ethnic backgrounds, and asks, “Can you tell which of these children was not born free ?  Can you tell which of these children was not born equal? Can you tell which of these childre  does not deserve to be treated with dignity? We can’t either?”  Missing from the ad, are any children with visible physical dis-abilities, children with and children with on-conforming appearances and weight.  

Quite a statement, no?  There’s always more information in what is excluded than what is included. 

These are the children most likely to endure the daily humiliation and rights violations in the most “normal” of situations– the school yard, the playground, summer camp, assuming that these children can even get their “wheels in the door!”   

So I wrote a letter to the organization, and I include the email exchange below.  I also revisited the web page and found that there were several ads.   I don’t know if they were new, or if I simply hadn’t seen them the first time.  On reviewing all of them, in this human rights vision, I noted other oversights as well– gay rights, Palestinian rights, women’ rights that were either excluded or undermined by this campaign. 

Here is that exchange:

There were no children with visible disabilities, outside of normative weight categories. in your commercial. These students remain the segregated in all communities and often are the most ostracized. What is your vision and work regarding the human rights of children with disabilities?

Emma Rosenthal

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

From: YHRI 
Sent: Nov 10, 2009 12:29 AM 
To: Emma Rosenthal 
Subject: Re: youth for human rights, and children with disabilities. 

Dear Emma,

Thank you for your comment.  Of course we’re interested in rights for all, that’s the purpose of the whole activity.  I hope you can use these materials to forward your purpose in this area. 

Best,
Beth Akiyama
Coordinator 

++++++++++++++++++

11/10/09

Ms. Akiyama, 
I personally find it outrageous that you would have the chutzpah to even respond so patronizingly to my suggestion, stating “Of course we’re interested in rights for all” without also stating that you were working to address these oversights nor the acknowledgment  that an entire segment of the population was excluded in your otherwise diverse image of humanity.  –making the marginalization of this demographic even more marked in their absence! 

The exclusion of pwds (people with dis-abilities) as well as of people whose appearance doesn’t conform to narrow constraints of acceptability (the children most likely to be excluded from public school, programs, etc and most likely to be bullied, harassed and ostracized by their peers) is more than a minor editorial decision, but is part of an overall and rather comprehensive segregation of pwds from most areas of public life.  

When I first wrote to you I had only seen the first ad. Having now viewed the entire series I am even more appalled.  You show several classroom and playground scenes, yet there are no pwds, even quietly, in the background.  In your human rights schoolroom, everyone is model beautiful and below average weight (for developed countries– malnutrition worldwide aside.) Most of the people with a voice in your videos are male, and the few spoken roles by women are not positive (the school teacher who doesn’t know about modern slavery and the young white woman who accuses a Black student of stealing from her). In the segment on nationality you have students from several countries, each stating “I am”, and the name of their country, including Israeli, but NOT Palestinian– a rather glaring oversight in the contemporary dialogue on human rights, and that ad ends by saying  ”We are Mankind” instead of humankind, or humanity– an obviously more inclusive term.   In your segment on the right to marriage all of your couples are heterosexual, thin, young, attractive, and definitely NOT displaying ANY dis-abilities.  One of the couples, the man says “She’s my queen…. of course I’m The King.” –not exactly a human rights model of sexual equality.  In “The Right to Democracy”  a public forum, a city council meeting perhaps, is being conducted, and as the men scream back and forth, a small boy, gets on a chair and says into the mike “I have something to say.”  There are no women in the room at all,  How does that advance a human rights agenda?  Judging by the exclusion of pwds in your ads, pwds don’t have a right to access to education or to play (schools and playgrounds being the areas of highest exclusion, marginalization and discrimination for children with dis-abilities), we don’t work, go to court, (in a recent small claims case, the judge refused to let me present my own case!!!), We aren’t included in your social security ad, except perhaps the boy with the cast on his arm. Despite the incredibly limited housing stock that is wheelchair accessible, you don’t include us in the ad granting everyone else a right to housing, (In the U.S. families with small children and pwds comprise the largest sector of the population experiencing housing discrimination).  I could go on, but I think I’ve made my point.  In the entire series, there is ONE example of a pwd, a brief image of an athlete in a wheelchair– an image pwods (people wiithout dis-abilities) find comforting, (referred to in dis-ability studies, as the hero gimp) but an image of dis-ability most pwds find difficult to live up to. 

Finally, your last ad, states that these are “your human rights.”  ”You don’t need to buy them or ask permission to have them.”   “No one can take away your human rights.” 

So, no, I don’t think I can use this material.  it would be in contradiction to the basic principles of full inclusion and the vision of universal human rights that I adhere to.    Human rights isn’t about nice pretty people, in expensive, well executed ads, with nice ideas. Human rights ARE denied, they ARE taken away, they HAVE to be fought for.  People DIE  defending them.  And, most importantly, they have to apply to everyone, even those whose image isn’t pretty enough for you slick campaign.  The only use of your material in my work would be as an example of the incredible unwillingness to recognize and include the issue of dis-ability rights, as well as Palestinian, gay and women’s rights, in the dialogue on human rights.    

Emma Rosenthal

When I “think positive” I get in a lot more trouble, than when I am prepared for the obstacles that may come before me. As a person with a dis-ability (pwd) many obstacles are REAL obstacles. There are also social obstacles. The most humiliating experiences with dis-ability came when I was in the most positive frame of mind.

The constant directive to “think positive” is about conformity, about forcing the individual who may have very real concerns about very real social or personal situations, to behave in a way that makes OTHER people comfortable.

As social activists how can we begin to build a better world if we cannot bear witness to each others’ experiences or discuss unpleasant and tragic events and situations?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8339647.stm

BBC NEWS | Health | Feeling grumpy ‘is good for you

Jewish-American Women Speak Out Against the Occupation

Whole World Press

Spring 2010

Edited by Osie Gabriel Adelfang

with an introduction by Cindy Sheehan and a forward by Amira Hass

Including contributions from:

Anna Baltzar

Maia Ettinger

Susan Greene

Linda Dittmar

Osie Gabriel Adelfang

Hannah Mermelstein

Tomi Laine Clark

Starhawk

Alice Rothchild

Jen Marlowe

Hedy Epstein

Kim Goldberg

Sandra Butler

Emma Rosenthal

On facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Shifting-Sands-Jewish-American-Women-Speak-Out-Against-the-Occupation/117315474206?ref=ts

On the web:  http://www.osieonline.com/Home_Page.html

“I applaud Osie Gabriel Adelfang and all those who contributed essays to Shifting Sands. Jews, and in particular Jewish women, are the natural force to be in the forefront of the efforts to end Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands, lives and future. From the opening pages about a Jewish prayer on doubt, through each and every one of the personal accounts, readers feel the wisdom of women on every page, as well as a deep sense of love for humanity—all humanity.Shifting Sands meticulously weaves the daily trials and tribulations of a military occupation with stories of real people who are dispossessed and subjected to daily doses of ethnic cleansing by a state drunk on power. Bottom line: the sands are truly shifting and this occupation is coming tumbling down, like all the other that came before it. When all is said and done, the women in this book—side by side with Palestinian women from Gaza, Jerusalem and Nablus—will form the foundation of a new Palestine and Israel that will flourish as one.”

 

Sam Bahour, Co-Editor of Homeland: Oral Histories of Palestine and Palestinians, and Palestinian-American businessman in El-Bireh, occupied Palestine
August 17, 2009

“This is a moving collection of readings by Jewish women writers who are committed to the quest for justice and compassion in Palestine and Israel. They powerfully articulate, in their different ways, the axiom of our common humanity. It may have taken our whole life to reach that place (as one contributor put it), but those who are finally able to see, must stand up and advocate for sanity now, today.”

Deb Reich, translator, Abu Ghosh, Israel/Palestine

“Writing with personal modesty yet great humanity, these courageous women offer richly textured, revelatory accounts that will grip the reader’s thoughts and feelings. All the selections are finely rendered, insightful, and endowed with a determined sense of justice and compassion.”

Michael Parenti, author of Contrary Notions and God and His Demons

THE L.A. ECO-VILLAGE PURPOSE AND CONTEXT

I sent this letter to the Eco Village, on two occasions, and months later, have yet to receive even an acknowledgement of receipt.  I sent it via their email address and posted it to a local listserve.  I do doubt that they ignore ALL emails they get.  After all, they provide the email address so inquiries can be made.  So why IGNORE this email?  Why refuse to even dialogue on this issue?  What is it with human rights organizations and activists absolute hostility and indifference to this issue?

According to their web page,  which was updated this month, and still makes no apparent mention of dis-ability inclusion on their web page. They have a new page, entitled Some Neighborhood Issues and Potential Eco-Village Responses, which I hoped might have included some response to the concerns I raised, but no. Dis-ability inclusion doesn’t seem to be part of their housing agenda, their social agenda or their auto-dependency agenda. Their purpose is defined as follows:

We are a neighborhood in the built-out Wilshire Center/Koreatown area working toward becoming a demonstration of healthy urban community. Our whole-systems approach to community development tries to integrate the social, economic and physical aspects of neighborhood life to be sustainable over the long term. Eco-villagers intend to achieve and demonstrate high-fulfillment, low-impact living patterns, to reduce the burden of government, and to increase neighborhood self-reliance in a variety of areas such as livelihood, food production, energy and water use, affordable housing, transit, recreation, waste reduction and education. We also plan to convert the housing in the neighborhood from rental to permanently affordable cooperative ownership. 

and

Purpose

Eco-Villagers demonstrate the processes for creating a healthy neighborhood ecologically, socially, and economically. We try to reduce our environmental impacts while raising the quality of neighborhood life. We are a public demonstration of sustainable community development sharing our processes, strategies and techniques with others through tours, talks, workshops, conferences, public advocacy and the media.

 (emphasis mine)  (maybe pwds aren’t healthy enough for this vision of the future?)  

For more information about the eco-village: http://www.laecovillage.org/   

According to their web page, their email address is:  crsp@igc.org

Theirs is a nobel project, and it has done much good, apparently, in the community it serves, but whenever a vision of social justice or sustainability excludes any significant sector of society these omission must be part of the dialogue, must be welcomed, must be considered, and must inform a change in praxis.  

______________________________

l.a. eco village:

i just visited your web site and wiki. i live in echo park, have a burgeoning urban farm, am a writer, activist and artist and educator.  am very intrigued by your program.  i do have one concern or inquiry and wonder why, for the most part, it isn’t included in your information.

with the exception that children’s special needs will be taken into consideration in accepting families, there is no mention of inclusion of people with disabilities in your program at all.  you explain your policy around pets, without mention of service animals, have a discount for residents without cars, without mention that pwds (people with disabilities) often can’t rely on bicycles or public transportation, and therefore might have that requisite waived.  there is no mention in your barter system for meeting the social needs for people who may have less conventional means of contributing to a community, or who simply are at a point in their lives when their needs outweigh what they can contribute. 

as a community, what have you done to address these issues?

are these issues of concern to you as a community?

how do we build sustainable communities that are inclusive?

in building a sustainable community, how do we take into account needs that pwd and people with chronic illnesses may have that might not be needs of people who fit the dominant physical paradigm and may require extra ecological and financial resources?  (such as air conditioning, cars, service animals, etc.)

if you have taken these issues into consideration, why are they not reflected in your mission statement or your on line presentation of your community?

if you have not taken these matters into consideration, why not?

in solidarity,

emma rosenthal

The last few years have been overwhelming: the purges, death threats, isolation, humiliation, the overall initiation into the marginalization of dis-ability, the shutting down of the server my blogs were on, the reestablishment, post by post, image by image of the entire chronicles, the invasion of our home by 14 armed members of the Los Angeles Police Department, the confiscation of our property, the legal costs, ongoing health problems, the deaths of my father and Barbara Franklin, a close friend, several hospitalizations of my son, moving twice,  finding a place to live, restoring an old house, becoming part of a neighborhood.

I started this blog: “In Bed With Frida Kahlo” to provide resources for other people with dis-abilities (pwds), and to speak to the overall experience of dis-ability; a source of identity and self-recognition for other pwds, and a way of exposing pwods (people without dis-abilities—aka the temporarily able bodied) to the realities of the daily indignities of dis-ability. *

People who know me, know I hate new age-y platitudes. I didn’t always.  I invested time, money, hope, dreams and even my reputation on the illusion that positive thought and following one’s dreams would inevitably bring about a positive solution.  “Do what you love, the money will follow.”  “Follow your bliss” “What would you do if you thought you couldn’t fail? “  In the case of the latter, fail publicly, repeatedly, and to the detriment of my integrity and reputation, not because I intended to let people down, but because my expectations and my belief in that mythology were not in alignment with either my financial or physical realities.

The Annenberg Space for Photography is an amazing space, but thought alone did not create it.  It took the wealth of the Annenberg family and lots of hard work to make a wonderful idea, a reality.  Daily life and its demands and limitations are very different for those with money and those without.  Life moves more slowly for those with fewer resources, slower yet, for those with options limited by both physical and social barriers.

It took two years for Andy and me to make a home together, to finish most, though not all the work on a very old house, that in the L.A. housing market, we barely squeezed into. I started projects, and then found myself overwhelmed with the minutia of life—the daily tasks, the unexpected emergencies, the requisites of responsibility to others, that would interrupt my work and delay responses that events demanded.

So here I am, in the present moment.  Most of the past is behind us. I know that sounds funny, but this month I finally caught up on the finances on quicken: everything is categorized, documented, accounted for.  We can finally really make a budget, plan our future, keep track of spending in the present tense.  It is a huge load off our backs.  The blogs are up to date, for the most part.  I have a place to work, to stack my books on shelves, to file papers for research I’m doing for upcoming essays.

The transition to dis-ability happens faster than I can write.  Hopefully now, the space and time exist to allow me a current response.  Two humiliating events occurred this week,  which is not uncommon for a pwd.  Not uncommon at all!   I hope this weekend to sit down and write my chronicle of the events.  I don’t feel I have years of work looming over me like a tidal wave.

There’s some delay in writing these stories.  It takes me awhile to understand what happened.  There are so many nuances to dis-ability discrimination, trauma, shock. I am also, often too humiliated and ashamed to look at what has happened to me.  I’ve done enough victim advocacy to know the fallacy of that thinking, which helps, but doesn’t remove the stain, stigma or injury, totally.

I also know the risks of writing about dis-ability discrimination—the common assertions-  “What did she do to bring this upon herself?”  “Is she lying?”  “She’s probably just trying to get attention.”  “She must have done something to contribute to the situation.”  “She’s loud and demanding and she got what she deserved.”  I’ve been told all of this, by human rights activists, educators and social service providers, even.

As Audre Lorde said:

“I write for those women who do not speak, for those who do not have a voice because they were so terrified, because we are taught to respect fear more than ourselves. We’ve been taught that silence would save us, but it won’t”

“My silences have not protected me. Your silence will not protect you.”

But the biggest obstacle to writing has been time and the responsibilities of life.  Writing is process, there must be a space, often a ritual, and the muse must be courted.  The drama of the last few years, the unpredictability, the danger, all had to take priority over the reporting of events.  I never wrote about the airline flight attendants who refused to let me use the restroom at the front of the plane, refused to hold my place in line for the bathroom at the back of the plane, while I waited my turn in my seat, instead of standing, and ridiculed and humiliated me as I struggled to reach the back of the plane, while they denied me the use of the airline wheelchair that is mandatory on all flights, forcing me to collapse onto the floor until the line dissipated.  I never had time to write about the numerous social service, educational and health care personnel who openly ridiculed me in front of my son instead of providing the services they were required to provide my family.  I didn’t write about repeatedly humiliating experiences in Whole Foods, and other yoga beautiful establishments, including farmers’ markets, where dis-ability access is denied or impaired because our presence is seen to diminish the cachet of the establishment. I never wrote about the repeatedly miserable experiences I had in theaters, including one theater where, without even an introduction, one employee, after I had found my way to my seat, grabbed my walker (as per theater policy, apparently) because it took up too much space.  (No similar demands were made of tall people for taking up too much space! For pwds, our ambulatory devices are our legs. Without my walker, I would not be able to access the restroom during the performance if need be, or get to the restroom in a timely manner during intermission.  I would have had to wait patiently for this brutal matron to return my legs to me, on her own timeline, on her own accord.)   Unreported were the numerous occasions where Andy would repeat something I had said, to be praised for the great idea, that seemed to go totally unheard when I made the same point, or where I was accused of being rude, and he was praised for being courageous, brave, outspoken. Good gimp gurls must be quiet!!!

And I never wrote about the human rights activist, who yelled at me for running into her with my scooter, when she backed up without looking, and then chastised me for driving inside a public building.

So now I hope to have the time, the space, the clarity to write, in the present time, not catching up with the past, but writing what is happening now, in the life of one crippled gurl guerrilla gimp, out to take over the world, one wheelchair ramp at a time.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

*I hyphenate the word, because disability is subjective.  Little people are considered dis-abled, but tall people are considered enhanced.  The deaf community does not, in general recognize deafness as a dis-ability at all.  It really comes down to social values of what is desired, what is rejected and what is normative.   If some people had wings and others didn’t, those without wings would be considered dis-abled.

THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR ACCESS LIES WITH THE EVENT PLANNERS. IT IS NOT THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE INDIVIDUAL ATTENDING THE EVENT.

The issue of disability rights is often either ignored within the larger human rights dialogue or treated with outright hostility. Too often events are either held in inaccessible locations, or the way space is used, in otherwise accessible locations, rendered inaccessible. Additionally, often individual attempts at participation are greeted with out right hostility and ridicule by many individuals who consider themselves to be advocates of (more worthy?) human rights causes. If we are to build a strong movement that is truly democratic, truly representative and truly uses all the resources, skills and expertise of our community, it must be fully inclusive. if inclusion is not a collective responsibility it is delegated to the individual to assure her own participation, to adjust to the larger constructs, rather than have the community make the adjustments and accommodations. Often participation is totally impossible. IF YOU WANT TO KNOW IF YOUR EVENT IS DIS-ABILITY FRIENDLY AND ACCESSIBLE– IF WE AREN’T THERE, IT ISN’T!!!!

Attached is a guide book, published by the City of Los Angeles, for making events accessible. I would add that

1. Progressive communities need to begin (BEGIN!!!) the dialogue on inclusion.

2.All events have a designated accessibility coordinator to make sure aisles remain clear and unblocked and to support people with dis-abilities, should problems arise.

3. Ridicule and humiliation of people with dis-abilities be treated like all hate speech, and that appropriate action be taken to assure events are not hostile environments.

4. Where “special” entrances are necessary, specific signage and staffing must be provided so that people with dis-abilities have the agency to come and go with the same liberty as all other participants, not having to wait until someone becomes available to assist them.

My biggest pet peeve, are otherwise accessible venues where the stage is not accessible. IT IS A VERY STRONG REMINDER– “YOU ARE WELCOME TO BE HERE, BUT WE DON’T FEEL THAT YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO SAY!”

http://ens.lacity.org/dod/indexpage/dodindexpage169433612_11152005.pdf

This blog was forced to move when the previous hosting site shut down.  The process has been tedious. Each post and each image has been reinstalled one by one. A direct import was not available.

For more information on this process:

http://inbedwithfridakahlo.wordpress.com/site-under-construction-pardon-the-sawdust/

The following pages have recently been revised or reinstalled, providing new information to the threads; UTLA Human Rights Committee, and Anatomy of a Blacklist:

http://inbedwithfridakahlo.wordpress.com/2006/08/25/letter-to-utla-leadership-regarding-the-situation-within-the-human-rights-committee/

http://inbedwithfridakahlo.wordpress.com/2006/09/29/ableism-in-the-human-rights-committee-2/

To follow the complete thread; Anatomy of a Blacklist, go to:

http://inbedwithfridakahlo.wordpress.com/2009/06/28/anatomy-of-a-blacklist-a-thread-on-two-blogs/

you’re such a pretty lady

too bad you’re such a bitch, he said

 

good girls can go to hell

being polite to bad boys

 

learning to sit quietly

taking no space

 

I choose brazen words today

more suitable for caustic occasions

 

than tea cups and lace

I don’t like ladies sewing circles

 

eating finger sandwiches

and smoking platitudes

 

while l sit pulling knitting needles

from between my shoulder blades

 

lodged neatly by dainty manicured hands

in starched white gloves

For the last three years I have been documenting a series of events within United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA), around disability rights, Palestinian rights, union democracy and blacklisting, which started as a strange power play within the Human Rights Committee apparently around disability rights, but in my estimation, may have merely been the utilization of (my) disability as the socially acceptable way of attacking when no legitimate means was available. 

Just as that controversy seemed to be resolving itself,  the Jewish Zionist Establishment (the ADL, The Simon Wiesenthal Center, the Jewish National Congress, Stand With Us, the Progressive Jewish Alliance–them too!, as well as others) launched a campaign against the Union, the Human Rights Committee, the AFSC, Café Intifada, and….. me, focusing particularly on an upcoming meeting to discuss boycotts, sanctions and divestiture (BDS) from Israel.  Thisresulted in an unholy alliance between the Zionist lobby, the “progressive” UTLA leadership, bent on protecting themselves and their positions, and the members of the Committee who now had a (pro-imperialist) arsenal of accusations to use against me, resulting in my removal from any position of leadership within the Committee and the destruction of the Committee infrastructure I had played a  large role in creating. 

Due to the (ongoing)  blacklisting, death threats, personal attacks, humiliations and the limitations of my health,  as well as, more recently a “tip” to a hot line,  an early morning service of a search warrant  of our home, complete with 14 armed police officers, a news camera, the seizure of our property, which included a thorough three month investigation  of every computer,  hard drive, zip drive, digital camera, thumb drive, back up disc and memory card, the result of which determined NO EVIDENCE OF CRIMINALITY  (no arrests, no charges, case closed!.  All of this, leaving us with  legal bills and other expenses,  PTSD (!) and (for all teachers under police investigation) the removal of my partner from the classroom.    (More on the police action later. )

Over the course of this time,  I retreated into a period of deep self reflection, depression, study and creativity. I sold my house, moved in with my partner and fellow activist, went back to school to learn new skills and  with him, bought and restored  an old house that promises to be a vehicle for our vision of local and global struggles for social justice.   The pressure on our marriage has been considerable as we have both needed to take time to work on our most basic support system: each other.  Only now am I  attempting to emerge, increasing my personal security, finding out who my real allies are, breaking the silence, speaking out,  healing deep wounds, initiating new dialogue with some of those who committed betrayals of silence, and enjoying the emergence of new, younger movements for social justice within Los Angeles. 

In the interest of disclosure:  During this same span of time the original home of my blogs shut down, so I had to repost each blog entry piece by piece, photo by photo to the new server. Emotionally, there were periods where I couldn’t look at this any more.  It just hurt too much.  And life had its own demands.  Our  larger adversaries are paid to bring us down.  We must work for justice in our spare time.  Emergencies come up, work gets put to the side. So, I have contributed to this thread on and off,  and while material is provided in chronological order, some of the entries have recently been updated or contextualized, drafts written at the time may have been recently completed and posted.  

And I doubt we have seen the end of this.  I invite my detractors to feel free to post comments as they see fit.  If their positions have the validity they claim, there should be no reason for their ongoing anonymity and stealth.  As long as they don’t obscure their identity, I will approve their posts. And it is quite possible that some events have been misrepresented.  I am open to critique and will be issuing corrections in that event. 

Finally, a word about my union ( UTLA), and the progressive slate, whose members include activists with whom I have worked for decades.  I submit this documentation, in the spirit of critical support.  I believe that dissent is essential for the life of this organization that I first joined over 25 years ago.  I was involved in the early recruiting campaign that brought UTLA membership from  30% of teachers and support staff,  to greater than 90% going into the 89 strike. I was active in the fight for bi-lingual education and against the English only movement. I was a cluster leader during the 1989 strike, rising at 4 am and not getting home until after 9:30, all the time carrying my 2 month old son.  (nicknamed “el huelgito)! I have helped plan several conferences, served on the House of Representatives, participated in the School Community Relations Committee, the Human Rights Committee and the Chicano Latino Education Committee.  I have been a delegate to the NEA RA, served as a Chapter Chair (shop steward) before I had permanent status, and filed and won over 30 grievances.   I chose at several junctures not to file harassment or discrimination lawsuits against the union, though I would have been in very good standing, especially when targeted by a member of the Board of Directors and Vice Presidents.  I also chose at the time of the entire controversy regarding BDS, not to present the matter as a an attack on my person, or use the matter to promote my own agenda within the larger community. While the L.A. Times originally accused us of planning for a rally inside (!?)  of UTLA , we very well could have, without union permission, held a protest outside the hall on the day of and at the time the canceled meeting was to be held.  We did not.  We attempted to address these matters internally, except for a call for letters to the broader community when President Duffy made a similar request to only members of the Jewish community.  It is only with considered reflection and after years of continued marginalization, harassment, innuendo and humiliation  along with increase attacks on other activists by these same forces,  that I have decided to fully address myself to this compilation and  broadcast these events more publicly.   

 To follow the complete dialogue on the issue,  please start by reading the statement: Enough is Enough- Who’s Who and Why it Matters, where  I provide a summary of events and  list the real names of the people (formerly given pseudonyms)  who have carried out this campaign against me within the Union.  As I make changes, adjustments or additions, I will post updates and links.  For those who chose to follow this closely, you may subscribe to the blog and will be alerted to newer posts.

The beginning of the thread, regarding disability discrimination is chronicled on my blog:  In Bed With Frida Kahlo- daily indignities, small insurrections and honest musings for a life of infirmity and rebellion 

The documentation pertaining to the Zionist lobby continues on my other blog: Cafe Intifada which is the web page of the organization of the same name.  

1. Go to: Enough is Enough: Who’s Who and Why it Matters:   http://inbedwithfridakahlo.wordpress.com/2009/06/28/enough-is-enough-who’s-who-and-why-it-matters/  (If that doesn’t work, try cutting and pasting.  I don’t understand it, all the other links i post, seem to work!)

2. Then start the thread at the beginning at:  http://inbedwithfridakahlo.wordpress.com/category/utla-human-rights-committee/page/4/    and read the posts in reverse chronological order, starting with the link at the bottom of each page.  

3. From there, within the thread,  you should be directed to the sister blog; Cafe Intifada, but should that link fail, return here, and follow this link to the continued thread:

 http://cafeintifada.wordpress.com/category/anatomy-of-a-blacklisting/page/3/   and read the posts in reverse chronological order, starting with the link at the bottom of each page.)

Peace with Justice, 

Emma Rosenthal

In covering blacklisting  within the union, United Teachers Los Angeles, and specifically within the Human Rights Committee, which has been documented within this blog and then later in the blog of Café Intifada, I initially chose to use pseudonyms in quoting or discussing the actions of those with whom I did not agree.  (In the Café Intifada blog,  I used initials.)  I can’t do that anymore, and listed at the foot of this post, are the real names of the public figures who had important roles in these events. 

At the time I felt that while it was important to document what was happening  in the Union, with teachers, activists on the issue of human rights, disability rights; that the names of individuals was more sensitive.  I was still under the illusion that dialogue could, in this situation allow for transformation and that differences could be ironed out with further discussion.  But many of my opponents have influential positions and public images that they have continued to use to wage a campaign of defamation and character assassination against me, well beyond the confines of the Committee, or even the Union hall, with no consequence to their own reputation, and because of their prestige, they have credibility.  As long as the words and actions,  are not attributed to them, they can hide behind their own justifications and misrepresentations, which they have continued to do.  

Their renown, without any evidence to the contrary, gives credence to their campaign, which has been ruthless and relentless.  While I don’t doubt that many of their supporters share their hostile indifference to disability  or Palestinian rights, I hope that others will be horrified to know the depravity of their attacks and the history of dishonesty and abuse.  I continue to endure humiliating and marginalizing responses to even the most passive appearances within the Union hall or at progressive events, having discontinued activity within the Committee since October of 2006. Often phone calls and emails go unanswered, old allies, also close to these detractors,  took themselves off of the Café Intifada listserve without context.  I am constantly barraged with strange accusations.  (For example: that I had falsely sent out Don White’s notice regarding the situation at UTLA in the BDS uproar, or I had fooled both he and Andy into positions that they would not have taken without my guile and manipulations.—as if these two men couldn’t think for themselves on such a vital issue!)

I was finally blacklisted within the Union, as a result of an unholy alliance among  members of the HRC, who are also some of L.A.’s most respected activists,  the “progressive” leadership of UTLA and the very powerful Zionist establishment.

What became clear to both Andy and myself, was that disability had been only the pretext for an attempt to wrestle power within the committee and that the fallout, including capitulation to the Jewish Zionist establishment over the BDS controversy, necessitated these prominent activists continue their lies and accusations beyond the Union hall into the larger progressive community, labor community and the left.   Additionally, the hatred and bitter disregard for disability rights, that would allow these activists to use that bigotry as a means to an end, also provided motivation for what has continued to be a campaign to limit my expression and participation in the larger movement.

It’s not about policy, politics or program. Otherwise we could simply live and let live.  Our paths don’t cross that often, and even when they do, they could extend to me the same courtesy they have had the gaul to demand of me.  (Nod, smile, move on.)   I do think it’s about power, initially within the Committee structure,  in some case, ego; in others, that I dared to write about what happened to me, even not naming names.

These bullies are so  effective, one wonders what other lives have been damaged.  How dare I speak up!

At one point, Greg Sotir brought copies of my writings to the HRC and demanded that the Committee shut down my blog!!!!  I think, in the case of what happened in Berlin, it’s about power.  It’s the school girl thrill of being able to manipulate and instigate hostility and ostracism while taking no action of one’s own.   Rosemary Lee has behind the scenes, been campaigning against me for years, insisting that I don’t have a disability, that I only use it as a pretext to get attention, inspiring others to openly ostracize me, forcing or attempting to force divisions between me and anyone close to me.  The problem with gossip is that it never bears scrutiny of the light of day.  Those who go along, take the heat for their public expression of the silent provocation, or,  with the power of numbers– the mob mentality of the bullies have the justification of majority.   (We tell the target of bullies, to ignore, when in reality it is not possible to ignore those who seek one out– it is the bully that should be given that directive.)  The others, who might even disagree with the perpetrator, do so in one on one conversation, not understanding that beyond that “private” conversation, is a very public  and essentially political campaign.  There are people who reportedly stood up to Rosemary, but only in the intimate context of the accusation. 

We say “the personal is political”  but this entire mess is a failure to really understand how personal the political really is. Illness is very personal. An attack on one’s disability is an attack on her body, on its statement, presence and place in the world.  Gossip, though apparently private; the ancient preserve of ladylike  discourse; the subtle current under the apparently calm sea, has always been political.  It speaks volumes to the role or women. Beyond that, it provides obscurity for a very public agenda. Repeated over and over again,  privacy is only an illusion; the shear volume, over time, distance and the number of people involved.  Whatever the reason for this campaign: hatred of disability, hatred of me, power within the Union around conference planning, resentment of attention being offered to assist access, we’ll never know.  We’ll never know.  That so many went along with it is astounding.  That picking on “the cripple” is still acceptable (among teachers!!!) speaks  to a larger depravity.  Whatever the reason, there is no excuse for the use of bigotry to forward that agenda. 

And something must be said about the controversy around Palestine and how it played out in the Union hall.  The progressive slate, consisting of activists of several leftist tendencies, including Solidarity, ISO, etc, all anti-Zionist;  as well as more “moderate” members of the slate, totally capitulated to Zionist pressure, both from the membership of the union, and from the  larger, Jewish Zionist establishment who launched the campaign to shut down a small, open meeting to discuss (discuss!!!) boycott, sanctions and divestiture of Israeli apartheid.  Gossip became extremely essential in explaining this capitulation, especially from the clique within the HRC, who used this nexus of disdain, the two step children of human rights activism: Palestinian and Disability Human Rights,  to further their own personal political agenda.  To cover their duplicity, they told their friends within the L.A. left they had been mislead either by me and Andy (Griggs)  or by the SDS/MDS, or they didn’t understand the issue, or the HRC never really took a position on the matter, and a few people, acting on their own, plummeted the entire Committee and Union into this controversy.  To their more moderate friends, mostly those within the Union,  they could parrot the point of view asserted by the Jewish Zionist establishment; that any support of Palestinian human rights –even non-violent actions, such as boycotts, sanctions and divestiture was the work of a few extremists who had steered the committee away from a real human rights agenda, supporting terrorism and violence, had failed to back up the leadership of the Union (!) had a one issue agenda, were divisive during contract negotiations (Unions are always involved in contract negotiations.)  

What followed over a period of several years, were a series of hate mail, anonymous phone calls,  death threats and an extensive police investigation based on a “tip” to a hotline, resulting in the serving of a search warrant at gun point, the presence of a news crew, the seizure of our property and an extensive 3 month investigation that found no NO NO NO NO evidence of criminality.  Despite these very real dangers, these individuals continued their personal campaign,  making it clear that the simplest appearance by me, at the funeral of a close friend or simply as Andy’s partner at a Union breakfast,  would subject me to continued harassment, marginalization and humiliation.   They have even taken to sending (traceable) anonymous emails to me, knowing that I have been subjected to hate mail and death threats.  (That was the final straw!) 

I don’t know what will come of finally exposing these names to the light of day, of holding these prestigious activists accountable for their actions.  It may bring on more wrath, though I doubt the situation could get much worse for me, in terms of what has already been dished out, in terms of the damage that has already been done. Their skill and lack of remorse assures that there are other bodies (so to speak) and I hope that by speaking out we can begin a dialogue on solidarity, revolutionary discipline, human rights and group process. 

I do hope that this will illuminate for people that they need to speak  against this stealthy, relentless campaign.  It hasn’t been just one statement or a few small opinions. It has been an ugly operation, conducted over the course of over 4 years, utilizing commonly held hostilities towards people with disabilities, which regardless of anything I may or may not have done, or may or may not be, is cause alone, for public outcry and denunciation. 

IF YOU HEAR SOMEONE MAKING STATEMENTS THAT ARE ROOTED IN BIGOTRY,  SPEAK UP. LET THEM AND THOSE AROUND THEM KNOW THAT THESE ATTITUDES ARE NOT ACCEPTABLE.  IF IT IS PART OF A LARGER CAMPAIGN, OR THEY HOLD SIGNIFICANT POSITION AND PRESTIGE,  SPEAK UP PUBLICLY.  MAKE THEM ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE DAMAGE THEY DO, FOR WHILE YOU MIGHT CHOOSE TO DISREGARD THEIR ALLEGATIONS, THERE ARE MANY THAT DON’T,  AS EVIDENCED BY THE FOLLOWERS THESE ACCUSATIONS ATTRACTED.  THIS SEEMINGLY INNOCENT, CHILDISH GOSSIP IS PART OF A LARGER BODY POLITIC, HAS REAL CONSEQUENCES, LIMITS REAL ACTIVISM, ISOLATES, MARGINALIZES AND DESTROYS.   

The fact is, there has been no negative social consequence for their behavior. 

We who fight for social justice are up against a brutal and ruthless machine. There are those among us who are agents of that machine, though with the complexity of the human animal, determining motives can be quite difficult.  When we let our petty differences, egos, status and pride rule our priorities, people will get very hurt.  As one Iranian friend of mine stated; “In a time of extreme repression, this is the behavior that gets people killed.” These actions lack collective vision and revolutionary discipline.  

 I do not reveal the identity of these  individuals casually, but with the  measured reflection of several years.  We have a huge battle in front of us, and I want, I need to be a part of it.  This gossip has gone on for so long, that my silence lends to my own marginalization and limits my own contribution, as well as the contributions of others whose voices have been similarly stifled.  

I’m not asking that these individuals be ostracized or treated as they have treated me.  They too have important work to do (though don’t expect me to serve on a committee with them any time soon!)  But I do insist that a serious left will be less tolerant of this behavior and will work to draw our circle as wide as is possible, so that we can all bring our skills, our heart, our love and our strengths to the battle, this enormous battle that looms ahead of us. 

Peace with Justice,

Emma  Rosenthal

Within the Human Rights Committee

Gilroy:  Greg Sotir, Multimedia Director, Coalition Against Militarism in the Schools (CAMS)  also known as Coalition for Alternatives to Militarism in the Schools, Teacher, LAUSD, UTLA House of Representatives

Ethel or “W” :  Arlene Innouye  General Coordinator, (CAMS)  also known as Coalition for Alternatives to Militarism in the Schools, Speech and Language Therapist, Special Education, Roosevelt High School (speech and language.) LAUSD, UTLA House of Representatives

Mildred: Roselva Ungar, Retired teacher LAUSD, Past Board member, and Vice President Unitarian Univeralists L. A. UTLA House of Representatives.

Camile: Rosemary Lee  Chair, Trinational Conference, Retired teacher- LAUSD,  UTLA House of Representatives

Clarence:  Howard Bransky   Director, UTLA Board of Directors  2005-2008, UTLA House of Representatives, Teacher LAUSD

Tammy: Theresa Sams, UTLA House of Representatives

Other key players:

A.J. Duffy, President UTLA

Joel Jordan, Director of Special Projects, UTLA

Josh Pechtalt, UTLA Vice President AFT,

Dan Barnhart, Director, UTLA Board of Directors, UTLA North Area Chair

Steve Seal, UTLA Human Rights Committee Chair. UTLA House of Representatives and later, UTLA Board of Directors

Julie Washington, UTLA Elementary Education Vice President

To follow the entire thread, go to: http://inbedwithfridakahlo.wordpress.com/2009/06/28/anatomy-of-a-blacklist-a-thread-on-two-blogs/