How NOT to write a letter disavowing anti-Semitism

Be that as it may, the organizers of Palestine Writes want you to know that the charges of antisemitism leveled against their conference are false. Hmm.

Well, if you want to know how NOT to start a letter defending yourself from accusations of antisemitism, you can use this letter as a model. After noting that the festival has been harshly criticized by “the Jewish Federation and the ADL,” the organizers have this to say:

unlike our detractors, we do not operate in the shadows nor among elite decision makers and funders. Rather, we value transparency and public access, accountability, and scrutiny. We are also acutely aware of the power disparity between these highly funded, connected and organized Zionist organizations versus our small cultural institution run by volunteers and student organizations, most of them Penn students.

[Emphases in VC’s excerpt. Gotta say, the most convincing defenses against allegations of anti-Semitism always include [checks notes] references to ‘shadows,’ ‘elites,’ ‘highly funded’ ‘Zionist’ organizations. The only thing they left out was nose size. The University of Pennsylvania should be embarrassed to be hosting their conference, but they won’t be. — Ed]