German human rights campaigner PhD Milena Rampoldi, the woman behind the pro- Palestinian site www.promosaik.com, has
been subject to some ugly harassment in the past week. Surprise
surprise, it wasn’t the Zionists, Hasbara merchants or Mossad operators
who tormented her. It was a Palestinian ‘supporter.’ The following
interview is sad: it reveals the heightened state of despair displayed
by our thought police. The Stalinist purge culture that is symptomatic
of the Jewish Left and its network of Sabbos Goyim backfired once again.
Truth cannot be suppressed forever, it doesn’t even leak out; it just
bursts. Gilad Atzmon: Milena, you have been subject to some severe political pressure recently. It appears as if the people who mounted pressure on you consider themselves to be ‘anti’ Zionists and ‘pro’-Palestinians. Can you identify these people and explain what their demands were? Why did they campaign against you?
Dr. Milena Rampoldi: I think that censorship is the result of fear combined with a sense of entitlement. I never thought that I would be subject to censorship as editor-in-chief of www.promosaik.com. Our magazine is relatively small. We are fighting for human rights and peace.
We are engaged with different topics, not just Palestine. Our focus is on the fight against racism and Islamophobia and we stand for intercultural and interreligious empathy. However, as a Muslim and as a human rights activist, Palestine is an especially important issue to me.
My interview with you was the last in a long series of exchanges I conducted on anti- Zionism, Israel and Palestine. I introduced your interview, and asked a question about why your position is unique within the context of dissent to Zionism and Israel. I wondered whether your arguments are so provocative because they transcend the usual Zionism/anti-Zionist discourse in that you challenge both simultaneously.
Gilad Atzmon: It is simple. I examine Jewish Identity Politics. As far as I am concerned, Zionism and Jewish anti-Zionism are similar in nature and tactics because they are the two sides of the same coin. They are both continuations of the same exceptionalist ideology and culture.
Dr. Milena Rampoldi:
My idea was to start a debate… to invite people to write to us and
start an open ideological, spiritual and ethical exchange. I do not
agree with all the ideas I publish, or with all that you say, but this
is not the issue. If I were to publish only those ideas with which I
agree, the promise to present a mosaic-diversity of opinions would be a
lie. As soon as your article appeared on our site, I was subject to a vile attack by E.A, the editor-in-chief of an established German pro-Palestinian online magazine that published a lot of articles about Palestine. He was a very important partner for us because he published many of our articles on his site.
Gilad Atzmon: Milena, I understand that you prefer not to mention E.A by name but it would be silly to hide his identity from our readers. The person who contacted you is ‘Pro’-Palestinian activist Erhard Arendt, am I correct?
PhD Milena Rampoldi: Yes, it was he. His magazine is crucial for the success of my work, because I am relatively small and need to reach more readers.
Gilad Atzmon: Can you please name the Magazine? Don’t be afraid of these people, actually naming your abuser is your insurance policy.
PhD Milena Rampoldi: The magazine is called Palästina Portal and it is well known in Germany.
First they told me that they will no longer publish anything by ProMosaik and if I continue to publish independently, I may have to face the consequences. They repeatedly told me that I don’t understand the (Israeli Palestinian) conflict. I was offended both because I grasp your ideas and consider myself an intelligent person. They insisted that I remove you from our website. I agreed in part but I refused to remove the English version of the interview we did in March.
At that stage, I was trying to calm the situation. This was a big mistake on my part and I regret it. However, I did remove the German translation of my interview with you. I also deleted a very positive comment about your work by the prominent Jewish author, Evelyn Hecht Galinski. My initial idea was not to glorify you, but to create a debate with as many contributors as possible.
Another person I was “advised ” to delete by Mr Arendt, this time on the phone, was the wonderful pacifist Johanna Heuveling. I like her lot, although again, I do not agree with everything she says. I like her approach to reconciliation and peace work for Palestine. Mr Arendt called her “an Israeli collaborator,” which is simply not true. I then asked Erhard Arendt: what next? I realised that step by step he was taking over my editorial board.
Erhard Arendt threatened again that he would stop publishing me. I stupidly did what he wanted but Arendt didn't stop harassing me. Arendt told that publishing you is no different than ‘posting Goebbels.’ He called you a ‘Nazi.’ It was wrong and outrageous. I think that you are a Jew and you have the right to question your Jewish identity.
Gilad Atzmon: I am not a Jew and Goyim are also entitled to question Jewish identity, politics and culture.
Dr. Milena Rampoldi: It is your right to say this, but it still has nothing to do with Nazism. I refused to accept the Nazi label. I told Arendt that I only removed the German translation because I thought that in Germany the interview could be misinterpreted as Holocaust denial and because I wanted him to circulate my articles. Let me emphasise, I am not a Holocaust denier. I empathise with the suffering of people who lost their relatives in the Holocaust. I regard Anne Frank as a symbol of Jewish suffering.
I consider myself left wing and I push for a far more colourful left. I felt terrible because I had violated my principles, I also thought that you would understand my position as, in fact, you did. I removed a comment by Galinski about your interview because it was ‘too positive.’ This saga started to make me sick. I felt dismissed as a person and as a thinker.
The crisis didn’t fade away. Arendt made me think that the entire anti-Zionist community had turned against me. I was upset because I really like the people I interview and work with; in particular two old ladies, the beloved Felicia Langer and the wonderful and brave Ellen Rohlfs, whom I consider a wonderful poet. Arendt made me believe that Felicia Langer would turn against me, because she would see me as a Holocaust denier.
Then I found out that I wasn’t alone. I spoke with the Jewish communist author and publisher Giuseppe Zambon. I asked him whether publishing an interview with Atzmon was really a bad move. Zambon was very helpful and supportive, he said that it does not matter if you agree with Atzmon or not, you should never agree to remove him from your website, because freedom of expression is the most important political weapon. The struggle is for Palestine, not against each other.
I was hurt by the entire saga, the tactics, and the lack of manners. I accept that some people do not approve of me, but I am genuine and truthful. When I make a mistake, I am quick to apologise. I would like to apologise to you for my conduct in this saga.
Gilad Atzmon: You don’t have to apologise to me. The day Zionists and their caretakers stop chasing me and my supporters, my role as a whistleblower will be over. I will retire quietly. But for now, I am amused by the fear I create within this clumsy collective of crypto Zionists and AZZs (Anti-Zionist Zionists).
Dr. Milena Rampoldi: I think that it is not a matter of Anti-Zionism, Zionism, or any ideology. Some people see you as obstacle and want to silence you. They don’t like that you are a star and a truth teller.
Gilad Atzmon: This is fine. I love being an obstacle.
Dr. Milena Rampoldi: I often feel that people simply want to interfere with our spirit. This is not limited to Anti-Zionists. Justice and freedom of speech are two things I would die for.
Gilad Atzmon: For quite some time we have been dealing with a controlled opposition in our midst. The first challenge is to expose the vicious matrix that interferes with our ability to speak the truth and to think authentically. To support Palestine and justice is to put yourself in the line of fire. I have done it for a while, I am pretty good at it and occasionally, I even enjoy it! Not everyone can put up with this role. Let’s move on, what is next for you? You seem more spirited than ever and this is good news.
Dr. Milena Rampoldi: I plan to study the coexistence between Jews and Turks in 19th century Istanbul. I am convinced that this positive experience can be replicated. I would also like to publish a small compilation of interviews with anti-Zionists to convey a true portrait of Mosaic diversity. What I like most in your thinking is your ability to rethink your position again and again. Although we differ ideologically, I think that we follow the same method, hermeneutically speaking. At the end of my interview with you, your take on Netanyahu made it clear to me that we used the same method but came to opposite conclusions. When I asked you about Netanyahu I was hoping to hear from you that Jews wouldn’t stand for Netanyahu, understanding that he was the worst possible representation of their most problematic positions. But you had the opposite opinion. You said, “He is the right man for them… He is a true reflection of what Jewishness is all about, Netanyahu is the contemporary archetype Jew ” You had a clear view of reality, as did Paul Eisen, when I asked him who would win the Israel elections. He correctly predicted the results; while I was shocked by Netanyahu’s win, I couldn’t write a word for half a day!
Gilad Atzmon: Thanks for your time Milena. Truth has set you free. You are emancipated now, and you should thank Arendt and his ilk. I certainly do.
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