The Boston Globe has published an exceedingly sympathetic profile Sunday of a pro-Palestinian “summer camp” in western Massachusetts, where participants share ideas about communism and talk about building a better society.
The “Western Massachusetts Popular University for Palestine” is not just about the Gaza war started by Hamas terrorists, the Globe reports, but also about “the manifestation of the capitalism, colonialism, and white supremacy.”
It is difficult to imagine any newspaper publishing such a glowing tribute to an extremist right-wing movement, especially one that has been associated with antisemitism and violence.
But the Globe adopts an idealistic tone:
For many students, the pro-Palestinian encampments in the spring were a kind of utopia — warm, caring environments with participants contributing what they could to sustain the communities with libraries, food, medical aid, art, music, education, and other supports. Several students said participating in the encampments was a transformative experience.
“It felt like the blueprint, [or] the mappings of a better society,” said Owen Buxton, a student who was arrested twice in the spring semester at pro-Palestinian protests near Emerson College. “It felt like living outside of this capitalist, white supremacist patriarchy could actually be possible within my lifetime, which was inspiring.”
…
In Northampton, the roughly 20 graduate students and community members broke into small groups to discuss the week’s readings, the shortcomings of capitalism, and debate the benefits and pitfalls of social media. At one point, two senior citizens joined and applauded the students’ efforts.
The article barely mentions antisemitism, except to note that “allegations of antisemitism and the use of controversial slogans” limit the appeal of the pro-Palestinian movement.
The Globe notes that it is unclear if the pro-Palestinian “encampments” will continue. Vice President Kamala Harris, now the Democratic nominee for president, has applauded the “emotion,” if not the rhetoric, behind the movement.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of “”The Agenda: What Trump Should Do in His First 100 Days,” available for pre-order on Amazon. He is also the author of “The Trumpian Virtues: The Lessons and Legacy of Donald Trump’s Presidency,” now available on Audible. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
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