We are very excited to have Orly Noy for the next installment of the Bisan Lecture Series, on Wednesday December 18th, at 7PM Palestine time. Register here to get the Zoom link!
We are very excited to have Orly Noy for the next installment of the Bisan Lecture Series, on Wednesday December 18th, at 7PM Palestine time.
Notice that the lecture by Prof. Nadia Abu El-Haj, initially planned for the same date, has been canceled.
Register here to get the Zoom link!
Title: The Israeli society and the war: a conversation with Orly Noy
Abstract: The genocidal war waged by Israel against Gaza, in the wake of Hamas’ attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, seems to be backed by large sections within the Zionist margins in Israel. Even the political opposition to Netanyahu’s extreme right-wing government has been supportive of the war. Liberal citizens who, a couple of years ago, filled the streets in vocal demonstrations against a judicial reform, have rarely objected to the war and when they did criticize it, they focused mainly on the painful neglect of the Israeli hostages. Anat Matar, member of the BLS Steering Committee and senior lecturer of philosophy at Tel Aviv University, will discuss the current mindset of the Israeli society with Orly Noy, an Israeli journalist, translator and activist.
Bio: Orly Noy is an Iranian born journalist and political activist, Editor at the Hebrew website Local Call, chair of the human rights organization B’Tselem, a translator of Farsi Literature into Hebrew and an activist with the Palestinian Democratic National party, Balad.
Register here! You can find the list of previous and upcoming lectures on our website.
The Bisan lecture on November 13 was delivered by Prof. Fassin. Didier Fassin’s lecture offered a “lucid examination” (all quotations from Fassin’s talk and abstract) of what led to the situation in which the “destruction of the Palestinians of Gaza,” in contrast to any of the ongoing atrocities against civilian populations elsewhere in the world, has “elicited such unwavering support” on the part of the political and intellectual establishments in western countries. This support has reached the point where those who dare to protest are systematically accused of antisemitism or apology for terrorism and lose the right to participate in the public debate. In the space of an hour, reviewing the events of the 13 months since the October 7 attack, Fassin systematically analyzes the mechanics of this process of censorship and self-censorship and exclusion of the perspective of Palestinians and their defenders from accepted discourse, and demonstrates how even language has been deformed and corrupted in the service of the “Moral Abdication” of his title. In the final part of his talk, Fassin suggests that, beyond the obvious bases—historical, geopolitical, military, economic, financial—for the affinity between Israel and western powers, Israeli crimes against the Palestinians cannot be named because of a shared ideology, rooted in racism and colonialism. You can download the notes and watch the video of Fassin’s lecture here.
This lecture is sponsored by the Bisan Center for Research and Development and Scientists for Palestine.
In light of the urgent need to assist the people of Gaza, who are currently experiencing immeasurable loss of life and widespread devastation, please read this humanitarian aid appeal from ANERA, forwarded to us by a friend of BLS, Dr. Sara Roy of Harvard University. Hoping to see many of you at this webinar, we send you our best regards.
The Bisan Lecture Series Steering Committee
BLS Statement of purpose In concert with Scientists for Palestine and the Bisan Center for Research and Development, and in keeping with their joint commitment to full integration of Palestine in the global community of learning, the Bisan Lecture Series sponsors discourses on subjects of cultural, scientific, and societal importance by leading research experts and public intellectuals of varied heritage and viewpoint. The interactive webinars are free and open to the public, and recordings of each will be posted soon afterward.