Boycotting Israeli products

boycotts and artists

Above is the link to an opinion by Israeli artist about boycotting/ trying to impose boycott/ overcoming (or not) boycotts by artists.

During last so-many-years there have been numerous occasions when one organisation or the other was calling for boycott of Israeli goods/ artists/ films (see my former posts)/ anything. They were trying to connect sometimes the critics of Israeli politics (sometimes right more often wrong) with economic or artistic life (they have enough self-preservation instinct not to try it with scientific products and ideas). Today I would like (inspired by this article and my own many observations) write a little about those boycotts. First let me give you some examples:

1. Former Israeli ambassador to Ireland, while giving one of his speeches shortly before leaving the country, said that one of the things he will always recall when thinking about Ireland (and about warmth and beauty of Ireland he has spoken volumes) would be the policemen guarding Israeli potatoes in Dunnes (one of the biggest supermarket chains in Ireland). It was shortly after 2010 flotilla incident and after calling for boycott of Israeli goods few policemen were guarding potatoes imported from Israeli. It looked double funny to me when I thought that a country 1/4 Ireland's size (not that Ireland is that big :)) having nearly double the population of Ireland and consisting in 1/3 of desert was exporting food and what's more traditional Irish POTATOES for god's sake, to Ireland. That would have been funny enough. Having to put guard to protect them against big politics is definitely absurd.

2. Another incident I recall were protest agains Riverdance going to perform in Israel. There were oh so many protests from so called pro-Palestinian organisations. Finally Riverdance went to perform and few months later I heard from my Israeli friend (obviously unaware of the whole discussion) how beautiful that was. Her impressions were purely artistic, my reflections mostly of sociological nature

3. There were call s for boycott of Israeli Film Festival in Dublin (check plese my former posts about it if you haven't read them). The protesters were completly not interested in what the films were about, what problems they touched, who directed them. The only thing that mattered to them was that they were Israeli films.

4. Finally I remember (and this time from France) calls to make compulsive indicating if food produced on so called West Bank was made by Jews or Arabs. The calls never - as far as I know - succeeded - but they were purely racial and antisemitic (as one of the main arguments was to let people by only Arab-grown veggies) - unless somebody will show me the difference between olives growing 2 meters to the right or two meters to the left ;)


After those few examples I want to share few reflections, and those are much sadder than examples, which are - looked upon from some angles - rather homoruous.

1. Israel has healthy, capitalist economy based on private property. Boycotting this or that may (in some cases) affect the owner and his/ her employees but not the state, generally speaking. There are Jewish farms/ factories/ firms, Arab ones and joint-venture Jew-Arab ones in Israel. And for the most part if somebody is growing bananas or dates or produces new technologies or makes artistic performances it is NOT to demonstrate this or that political views but to make business. If one is concerned about policies of a big concern (say: Exxon Valdez after the Alaskan catastrophe) and they boycott its products - fine; if one is against values prophesied by this or that artist (artist group) and doesn't go to their shows or doesn't buy their products (understandable, nobody goes to theatre, or reads books to suffer) - fine; if somebody doesn't like policy of communist country like Cuba or China or former Eastern Europe and boycotts their goods - fine. If somebody wants to buy only fair trade goods of some kind if available (like myself) - I couldn't agree more.
BUT not buying Israeli made goods because we don't approve of government policy can (if affective at all) hurt only some businessman or business woman who may even share our views about this exact policy or doesn't have an opinion at all - so why do it?

2. Secondly boycotting something ourselves is our choice, calling for others to boycott (whatever made wherever by whomever) is our freedom of speech and is OK. Threatening somebody to use force or affect somebody's safety or trying to prevent somebody from making a choice for themselves and coming to their own opinion is - in my humble opinion - a felony. And steering towards totalitarianism, and depriving me of my freedom. I remember one of the Fathers of the USA constitution saying "I despise your opinion but I would die for you to be able to express it" - because it is our RIGHT and FREEDOM. And those calling for boycott, cancelling concerts or performances or imposing aggressively their opinions on us without giving us chance to create our own opinion - are trying to steal those rights and freedoms from us. I grew up in totalitarian country and I don't take freedom for granted. I cherish it. And I won't let somebody make my choices for me. It is mine and mine only prerogative. As much as everybody else's not to be taken away.

3. Israel is one of the leaders in new technologies and science. It is easy to boycott privately grown potatoes if one likes. How about not using medicines or medical equipment developed in Israel? How about not using technologies to desalinate water to make it potable? (again: Israeli made). How about not using insulin-pumps for our near and dear? (same story). Do those callers really want to deprive us of medicine/ medical equipment/ technologies/ cultural events because they don't like this or the other Israeli policy? I will recall again part of the former's Israeli ambassador's speech: don't try to beat Israeli papers in criticizing Israeli government - you stand no chance, but PUT THE FACTS RIGHT (caps lock mine). And I could add: let people make their own opinion about facts, honest facts. It is their right!