World Jewish News

German museum cancels antisemitic event with BDS advocate

A representative for a museum in the northern German city of Bremen confirmed to The Jerusalem Post on Thursday that an event with a hardcore advocate of the Boycott, Sanctions, Divestment campaign against Israel was cancelled.

The anti-Israel former pastor and BDS supporter Martin Breidert was slated to speak at the city-funded Übersee-Museum on Thursday on the topic: "Is criticism of the policies of the state of Israel antisemitic?"

Breidert is one of the main leaders of a pro-BDS group in the city of Bonn.

The Vienna based Jewish lawyer Michael Schnarch sent a letter of complaint to the museum's management on April 7."It all began with a boycott, the boycott of Jewish workers, Jewish businesses, Jewish doctors, and Jewish lawyers on April 1, 1933."

Schnarch, who is on the executive board on of the oldest and largest synagogue in Vienna, wrote in connection with the BDS campaign: "Boycott has nothing to do with peacefulness, nothing to do with non-violence.Today, this inglorious role is taken over by the so-called BDS movement, which aims to boycott all Israeli artists, all Israeli athletes, all Israeli institutions, all Israeli entrepreneurs, all Israeli scientists, all Israeli men and women."

Schnarch, who is the only child of survivors of the Holocaust, termed the event with Breidert "clearly antisemitic."

The lawyer's letter to the museum cited a February 4 Post editorial titled: "BDS Terrorists." The editorial quoted Strategic Affairs Minister Gilad Erdan who said: "Terrorist groups and the anti-Israel boycott campaign have united in their goal of wiping Israel off the map. Terrorist groups view boycotts as a complementary tactic to terror attacks."

Schnarch wrote "Breidert, as head of the BDS Group Bonn, is unfortunately a particularly bad example of antisemitic agitation."

JPost.com