U.S. University’s National Debate Topic that Justifies Murder of Innocent Israeli Jews

Zionist Organization of America

President Morton A. Klein issued the following statement:

The ZOA is horrified that at the recent April 9-11, 2016 U.S. Universities Debating Association (USUDA) national championship, held at African-American Morehouse College in Atlanta, (Martin Luther King’s Alma mater) top college debaters from all over the country were given the unprecedented Nazi-like anti-Semitic debate topic: “This House Believes That Palestinian Violence Against Israeli Civilians Is Justified.”  A ZOA volunteer and former college debater Michael Schneider stated: “This topic was akin to asking African Americans to debate that the Ku Klux Klan was justified in lynching blacks.”

Equally horrifying, ZOA’s preliminary investigation has revealed that the topic was likely no accident – and that our U.S. State Department, the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem, the Soros Foundation, and the Qatar Foundation are funding a “Palestine Debate Academy” to train “Palestinian” Arab students to propagandize against Jews and Israel, and its parent operation, the World Debate Institute (“WDI”) located at the University of Vermont.   The WDI includes “Palestine” and Qatar (a leading funder of Hamas) among its constituent countries, and excludes Israel.  One of the “adjudicators” apparently responsible for selecting the USUDA championship topic justifying violence against Jews is involved with both the Palestine Debate Academy and the WDI.

The Tower reported that the horrendous national debate topic – calling for the murder of Jews – caused students to break down in tears, and several debate teams to leave the debate early (after they had traveled to Morehouse College from all over the nation to participate in the debate championship).  Further, judges apparently penalized students who avoided supporting the proposition that murdering Jews is justified.  In addition 30 students submitted “equity violation” notices to the debate’s equity officer after the round’s conclusion.   The Tower explained that the topic “was especially distressing for participants who were Jewish or otherwise had ties to Israel, as they may have been forced to choose between losing crucial points in the national championship and advocating for murdering people they knew.”

Who Was Responsible for the USUDA Championship Debate Topic Justifying Murdering Jews?

Our preliminary investigation (kindly assisted by ZOA volunteer Michael Schneider) reveals the following:

• An “adjudication team” organized by a “convenor” at the national debate tournament’s host college (here, Morehouse College) chooses the debate topics.  Morehouse College’s bid to host the USUDA national debate reveals that Morehouse College’s “convenor” was Professor Kenneth Newby, and its adjudication team consisted of Sharmila Parmanand, Samuel Ward-Packard, and Brent Frazer.   At least two-thirds of this adjudication team appears to be heavily involved in “Palestine” propaganda training groups.  Specifically:

• Adjudicator Sharmila Parmanand is a co-coach of the “Palestine” National High School Debate Team, recently was a lecturer at the University of Vermont’s World Debate Institute (source), lectured at the “Palestine Debate Academy,” and has also worked with the Open Society Institute (“anti-Zionist” George Soros’s entity) (source).   During a 2015 lecture at the Palestine Debate Academy, Parmanand told Palestinian Arab students:  “You owe it to your society to learn to communicate your ideas in a way that’s effective, in a way that will convince people. . . . you want to fight for rights, you want to fight for justice..”

• During the same 2015 lecture, Parmanand also stated:  “The topics that we discuss in [school] debates actually do not have a clear right answer and wrong answer.  The topics are carefully chosen so that they are controversial and so that there are valid perspectives on both sides . . . . You’re not going to encounter a topic that says “This house supports genocide.”  Of course not.  It’s wrong.  So the topics you will encounter are more gray area topics, they’re not black or white, wrong or right.  So you have to accept that your opinion should be respected, but it’s not absolutely true . . . .”   In other words, when adjudicators Parmanand, Ward-Packard and/or Frazer chose violence against innocent Jews as a topic at the national USUDA debate, the adjudicators were saying that murdering Jews is a debatable topic – and not obviously horrific, immoral and wrong.

• Adjudicator Samuel Ward-Packard is a fellow at the Center for Arabic Study Abroad (CASA), and an “instructor for Palestine Debate and a coach of the Palestinian WSDC Team.”  (source)

• The Palestine Debate Academy may be training students to propagandize against Israel and Jews.  A Facebook fundraising post for the Palestine Debate Academy states that: “it is actually educating a group of passionate individuals to argue the injustice that is occurring in Palestine.”   Shockingly, the Palestine Debate Academy’s website reveals that it receives grant funding from the U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem.

• The World Debate Institute (WDI) at the University of Vermont is a co-parent of the Palestine Debate Academy.   The WDI’s list of participating countries includes “Palestine” and Qatar but not Israel.  Further, WDI’s website notes that:  “Since 1995 there have been various workshops and events organized around the world as part of WDI.  Sponsors have included USA State Department, European Union, Open Society Institute, Qatar Foundation and many others.” (emphasis added)  Why is the U.S. government supporting an anti-Israel propaganda training organization?

• The USUDA’s “Statement on the 2016 USUDC Israel-Palestine Debate” (April 15, 2016), acknowledged that USUDA’s membership “reviews and approves of bids to host the annual USUDC” – but claimed that the USUDA had no advance knowledge and no “legitimate power to stop” the debate topic that “some tournament participants found . . . offensive.”  USUDA stated that the topic was not part of Morehouse College’s bid to host the national tournament.  USUDA further stated that the national debate tournament’s host institution (Morehouse College) selects the “adjudication team” – which chooses the debate topics.   The USUDA stated: “It is the adjudication [team] core’s responsibility to ensure the tournament motions are appropriate for academic debate.”

The ZOA notes the following problems with the USUDA’s statement:

(1)  This was not an “Israel-Palestine debate.”   It was a debate about murdering innocent Jewish civilians.  Further, “Palestine” does not exist.

(2)  USUDA should vehemently condemn the topic, instead of merely saying that “some tournament participants” found the topic offensive.

(3)  Morehouse College’s bid to host the 2016 national convention revealed the identities of the convenor and adjudication team members who would select the debate topic.  As discussed above, these team members are involved in anti-Israel “Palestine” propagandizing under the guise of debate.  Although we believe that the USUDA was blindsided, some inviestigation of the identities of the adjudication team should have set off alarm bells and disqualified Morehouse College from hosting the debate tournament.

(4)  Instead of merely disclaiming responsibility, USUDA should have stated that in the future, the USUDA will require bidders to submit debate topics to USUDA for prior approval.

(5)  The USUDA also need to take steps to rectify the injustice done to students who left the debate or were downgraded for refusing to directly debate for the murder of Israeli Jews.

ZOA Demands:

• Investigation and Expulsion from all Debate Associations and Positions of the Persons Responsible for the Topic (believed to include Kenneth Newby, Samuel Ward-Packard, and Sharmila Parmanand) and debate judges who down-graded students who refused to advocate for murdering Jews;
• An Apology From Morehouse College and its Debating Association, and a Complete Overhaul of its Debating Association;
• Overhaul of the U.S. Universities Debating Association Processes (USUDA); and a stronger statement and action by the USUDA
• Overhaul of the World Debating Institute (WDI) at the University of Vermont;
• Cessation of the Funding by the US State Department, US Embassy in Jerusalem, EU, Soros’ Open Society Institute, and Qatar Foundation of the WDI and its “Palestine” branch.
• Justice for penalized student debaters.

Read more: http://zoa.org/2016/04/10321440-zoa-horrified-u-s-universitys-nazi-like-national-debate-topic-that-justifies-murder-of-innocent-israeli-jews/#ixzz46FQ0ZEDe