Done With Helen Thomas
Just saw this at HipHopActivist.com, Y-Love’s new website: Not content with telling the inhabitants of Israel to “get the hell out of Palestine”, Ms. Thomas continues to suggest that the (mostly Jewish) inhabitants of Israel should “go back to Germany and Poland” — seemingly throwing in “America, and everywhere” as a second thought. Perhaps she realized immediately the gravity of her statement. Perhaps she began thinking of places with large Jewish populations. Regardless, she more than overstepped her bounds with her comments.
Her flimsy apology from her website doesn’t even begin to cover up her choice of words:
“I deeply regret my comments I made last week regarding the Israelis and the Palestinians. They do not reflect my heart-felt belief that peace will come to the Middle East only when all parties recognize the need for mutual respect and tolerance. May that day come soon.”
Very nice. ”Mutual respect and tolerance.” It’s kind of hard to buy a transition from “go back to the places which murdered you by the millions” to “mutual respect and tolerance” in a week. Dennis Glick, head of B’nai Brith International, called her remarks “beyond offensive”, and B’nai Brith International VP Daniel Mariaschin went further, saying “there should be no place for her in a news organization.” B’nai Brith called on Hearst Newspapers, Thomas’ employer, to dismiss Thomas immediately from her current position as columnist.
The Anti-Defamation League released a statement today, saying that Thomas’ rant was “outrageous, offensive and inappropriate,…bigoted and shows a profound ignorance of history.” Former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer called for Hearst to “fire Helen Thomas now.” Time Magazine’s Swampland called Thomas “vestigial”, saying she should be banished to the “back of the room.” GOP gubernatorial candidate Rick Lazio called her comments “racist and despicable” and called on Hearst to “fire” Thomas “immediately.”
Her ignorance has already cost her her speaking agent. But no word as to whether or not she’s still being relied upon to report the news. And Hearst is still keeping quiet on whether or not they’ll stand by her.
Let your voice be heard. Let Hearst Corporation know that you agree with the growing voice from both the left and the right (and the center): Ms. Thomas needs to politely step out of her front-and-center role in the White House press corps. Quick. Contact details via snail mail are here (bless you for patronizing the Postal Service), or you can just email Lisa Bagley (shoutout to “brinksmom” at BigJournalism for the info, who called her Ms. Thomas’ “supervisor”) at Hearst – lbagley at hearst dot com.
Helen Thomas’ contact email is helent at hearstdc dot com.
The Facebook group “Boycott Hearst – Fire Helen Thomas” calls on users to do the following:
Call Hearst divisions and flood their phone lines to get Helen Thomas fired. Email her bureau chief richard.dunham [at] chron.com or call (202) 263-6400. Email the White House … and have them pull her press credentials. Email Helen Thomas helent [at] hearstdc.com and indicate your displeasure with her openly anti semitic remarks. Journalism is supposed to be unbiased. Clearly she’s unprofessional. She needs to be OUT!
It’s as many have asked before: if these are her views, can she be relied on to report the news?
P. S. Craig Crawford, the co-author on her book, Listen Up Mr. President, has publicly distanced himself from her, saying he will “no longer be working with” her on their “book projects.” Good. The book will do better without her.
