NJ 287 Billboard Promotes Harm to NJ Students and Repression of Protected Free Speech Rights
The depicted billboard faces NJ 287 South bound traffic – from the north bound side of the road – between miles 7 and 6. The billboard is promoting a false narrative that there is some sort of safety issues for students of the Jewish faith because there is a prominent movement on American campuses demanding the end to the wholesale slaughter of Palestinians in Gaza, expanding to the West Bank and a total Middle East war that the US and Israel are escalating.
Per the narrative of this billboard it is anti-Semitic to dare to criticize Israel, to oppose arming of Israel, to oppose genocide – the narrative demands total impunity including from our expressions of opinion for every depraved action that Israel takes – with the support of US tax dollars.
The equivalence of “Israel” with Judaism is a fraudulent conflation as practitioners of Judaism are well represented and at tha heart of opposition to US – Israel commission of genocide against the Palestinian people. The narrative behind this sign is that the demand against genocide among millions of college students in the USA should be absolutely repressed by college administrations. Jewish students who are pro-Israel should not have to deal with any displays, protests, signs .banners, rallies, encampments challenging their beliefs that Israel should receive full impunity – not even a mention. If there are expressions against Israel on the college campuses, per the false narrative of this billboard, that makes the pro-Israel Jewish students uncomfortable and they should not have to feel the discomfort. This billboard is an outright call for severe repression against the legitimate student demands against genocide – it is demanding administrative, police and military action . This billboard it a tacit call for violence against the students who openly defy the genocidal policies of the US and Israel.
After publication of this article additional information has come to light about the genocidal narrative of one of the sponsors of the billboards – she literally called for “burnig the whole place” (Gaza) in 2018!
This Fightbackbetter editor believes the best first steps to respond to this fascist message on a NJ highway is for us to denounce it for what it is – a call for fascist repression against the peace and justice loving students of the pro-Palestine and anti-genocide movement. Hopefully organizations and esteemed NJ voices can make statements and call for actions to respond to this development. If you as an individual or as a spokesperson for an organization would like to speak out with public commentary – to be edited into this article – please use the form below to offer your commentary.
