Syria speaks

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/aug/11/sales-of-syrian-culture-anthology-soar-after-woman-held-for-reading-it-on-plane

Faizah Shaheen, who was reported to authorities after been seen with a copy of Syria Speaks on a flight to Turkey.

The Guardian

Sales of Syrian culture anthology soar after woman held for reading it on plane
Syria Speaks, which made headlines after it led to a honeymooning airline passenger being questioned under the Terrorism Act, sees surge of interest

Alison Flood
Thursday 11 August 2016 15.09 BST Last modified on Thursday 11 August 2016 15.22 BST

The publisher of a book about Syrian culture that hit the headlines last week, when a British Muslim woman was detained after being seen reading it on a plane, has rushed through a reprint after sales soared.

Syria Speaks, subtitled Art and Culture from the Frontline, was first published by Saqi Books in 2014. But it received renewed attention last week after psychotherapist Faizah Shaheen was seen reading it by a Thomson Airways crew member on a flight to Turkey, and reported for “suspicious behaviour”. On her return from Turkey, where she had been on honeymoon, Shaheen was detained and questioned by police under Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act.

“The story went viral [and] it was quite frantic last week,” said Lynn Gaspard, Saqi’s managing director. Demand for the book, which showcases the work of more than 50 artists and writers, shot up when Shaheen spoke out about what had happened to her. It climbed to around 300th place in Amazon’s charts, and Saqi has now put through a reprint of 1,000 copies. The publisher has also shipped in 450 copies of the book from the US, and 30 from Beirut. According to sales monitor Nielsen BookScan, it was selling between one and five copies a week in previous months.

“We had to bring over all these copies because we’d sold out by last Friday afternoon,” said Gaspard. “I’m so glad people are still reading this book two years on, although I feel so sorry for Faizah … It’s absolutely horrific what happened to her. I totally understand that we need to be vigilant and careful, and that there is a real problem, but come on, people.”

Shaheen herself retweeted a series of comments from Twitter users who said they had ordered the book from shops and libraries in support. “I’ve been humbled by all your support and encouragement. I’m pleased that sharing the story has raised the issues that need to be addressed,” she tweeted on Friday.

“In a time when Syria’s creative output is more accessible than ever, the west should not dismiss it as something threatening or alien. These are the voices that we should be listening to, as we consider Syria’s future,” co-editor of Syria Speaks, Malu Halasa, wrote in the Guardian on Thursday, while Jo Glanville, director of English PEN, wrote in the Independent that “if you want to protest, start by buying a copy of Syria Speaks – and reading it in public”. Glanville previously said in a statement that “the freedom to read any book, no matter the subject, is a fundamental cornerstone of our liberty”, and that “no one should ever be detained or questioned by the police on the basis of the literature they’re reading”.

Gaspard said that the situation in Syria had moved on since the book was published. “Now it is just total chaos and mayhem, but these people [the artists] are still there [and] their voices are being drowned out,” she said. “It’s such a privilege to be associated with this book, to be able to publish it. It’s never about the money, it’s just important to get these voices, to try to bring them to the mainstream.”

Following last week’s events, a contributor to Syria Speaks, Robin Yassin-Kassab, will now also be appearing on 18 August at the Edinburgh international book festival, at a panel on the subject of refuge, migration, banishment, exile and sanctuary. Saqi said it had been “thrilled with the support among authors and readers”.

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/aug/04/british-woman-held-after-being-seen-reading-book-about-syria-on-plane

The Guardian

British woman held after being seen reading book about Syria on plane
Faizah Shaheen was detained after a Thomson Airways crew member reported her for suspicious activity on a flight to Turkey

Sian Cain
@siancain
Thursday 4 August 2016 15.34 BST Last modified on Thursday 4 August 2016 22.00 BST

Free-speech groups have condemned the detention of a British Muslim woman after a cabin-crew member reported her for “suspicious behaviour” while reading a book about Syrian culture on a flight to Turkey.

Faizah Shaheen, a psychotherapist in Leeds, was detained by police at Doncaster airport on 25 July, on her return from her honeymoon in Turkey. A Thomson Airways cabin-crew member had reported Shaheen on her outbound flight two weeks earlier, as she was reading the title Syria Speaks: Art and Culture from the Frontline.

Police officers questioned Shaheen for 15 minutes under Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act, under which the police can detain individuals without grounds for suspicion of involvement in criminal activities, including terrorism.

Shaheen, whose work in the NHS includes efforts to stop radicalisation among young mental health patients, told the Independent she intends to make formal complaints against the police: “I was completely innocent – I was made to feel like a culprit … I couldn’t understand how reading a book could cause people to suspect me like this. I told the police that I didn’t think it was right or acceptable. I do question if … it would be different if it was someone who wasn’t Muslim.”

A collection of essays and writings by more than 50 artists on “challenging the culture of violence” in the country, Syria Speaks was published by British imprint Saqi Books in 2014. It received positive reviews from the likes of musician Brian Eno and author AL Kennedy, who described it as “a wise, courageous, imaginative and beautiful response to all that is ugly in human behaviour.”

Jo Glanville, director of English PEN – which supported the book’s publication with a grant towards translation – said Thomson Airways should be “highly embarrassed about this gross act of misjudgment”.

“The current culture of anxiety around extremism now means that even our reading material has become grounds for suspicion of terrorist activity,” she said. “The freedom to read any book, no matter the subject, is a fundamental cornerstone of our liberty.” Glanville also called Schedule 7 a “continuing problem” and said it was overdue for reform.

Zaher Omareen, the co-editor of Syria Speaks, condemned Shaheen’s detention as a “despicable incident”.

“Judging individuals and even taking measures against them based on their race, their looks, their language, or the printed words they carry is unacceptable and unjustifiable,” Omareen said. “It was enough to carry a book which includes the word ‘Syria’ in its title for its owner to be under suspicion as a potential terrorist. I would like to remind the people and the government that Syria must not be reduced to the politicised and power-constructed soundbites carrying simplistic messages of violence and horror.”

In a statement, a Thomson Airways spokesperson said: “Our crew undergo general safety and security awareness training on a regular basis. As part of this they are encouraged to be vigilant and share any information or questions with the relevant authorities. We appreciate that in this instance Ms Shaheen may have felt that overcaution had been exercised. However, like all airlines, our crew are trained to report any concerns they may have as a precaution.”

Lynn Gaspard, the managing director of Saqi Books said: “If Faizah gets in touch, I would be happy to invite her to our bookshop in west London and offer her any of our titles.”

David Walliams in Come Fly with Me

Come Fly with Me is a British mockumentary television comedy series created by and starring Matt Lucas and David Walliams. Narrated by Lindsay Duncan, the series launched on 25 December 2010 on BBC One and BBC One HD. A spoof of British documentaries Airport and Airline, the series follows the activity at a fictional airport and three fictional airlines: FlyLo (a low-cost airline), Our Lady Air (an Irish low-cost airline) and Great British Air (a major international British airline). Lucas and Walliams portray many of the focal airline and airport staff, as well as some passengers, whose comments and experiences are featured in one or more of the series episodes in the style of a "fly-on-the-wall documentary". Despite the BBC announcing a second series, Walliams confirmed in January 2013 that a second series was not going to air.

Come Fly with Me has received mixed reviews, with the Daily Express calling it "the worst sketch show, or sitcom to have ever gone out on a Christmas Day" and expressed concern over its screening on the day, considering the lack of quality. The Daily Mirror, however, claimed it was a resounding success and the claims of racism and lack of humour made by the Express were unfounded. The show was the most-watched comedy of 2010 with 10 million viewers, but also had thousands of viewer complaints, and criticism for perceived racist content.  It was also the third most-watched show in the UK on Christmas Day.

On this day in 1945 Poles in Kraków engage in a pogrom against Jews in the city, killing one and wounding five.

The Kraków pogrom refers to the violent events that occurred on August 11, 1945, in the Soviet-occupied city of Kraków, Poland, which resulted in the shooting death of Róża Berger while standing behind closed doors by security forces, and the wounding of five others. According to the report prepared for Joseph Stalin by the NKVD in Kraków,[1] it was Polish militiamen who sanctioned the violence.[2]

Around 68,000–80,000 Jews lived in Kraków before the September 1939 German invasion of Poland. Because of the Holocaust and further migration following the arrival of the Soviet Red Army only 2,000 prewar inhabitants of the city were still present after January 1945. Many Jewish refugees returned to Kraków from the Soviet Union, including those who came from the neighbouring villages and towns.[3][4]

By May 1945, the number of Jews in the city reached 6,637. The return of the Jewish population was not always welcomed, especially by the anti-Semitic elements in the populace. The safety of the Jewish community in Kraków was becoming a very serious problem according to the Soviet-installed starosta in the city, even though "no serious antisemitic events were recorded in the rural and small-town regions."[5] In his report for 1–10 August, the Kraków city administrator (starosta grodzki) noted the "insufficient supply of food."[6] In June 1945, the new communist voivode of Kraków described growing tensions in his report in the following way:

In regard to the attitudes of the Polish population towards the Jews, the remnants of Nazi influences acquired during the occupation still linger... Robberies combined with murdering Jews occur: the motives and the perpetrators are usually not found. Nevertheless, their anti-Semitic background is apparent...In the previous month there were no serious anti-Jewish events in the voivodeship, yet there is no evidence that society's attitude towards the Jews has changed ... An utterly insignificant event, or the most improbable rumour can trigger serious riots. The populace's attitude towards the Jews is a serious problem requiring a constant vigilance on the side of the authorities, and proper interaction with lower level offices.[3]

On June 27, 1945, a Jewish woman was brought to a local Milicja Obywatelska police station falsely accused of attempting to abduct a child. Despite the fact that the investigation revealed that the mother had left her child in the care of the suspect, rumours started to spread that a Jewish woman abducted a child in order to kill it.[7] A mob shouting anti-Jewish slogans gathered at Kleparski square, but a Milicja detachment brought the situation under control. Blood libel rumours continued to spread. False claims that thirteen corpses of Christian children had been discovered were disseminated. By 11 August, the number of rumoured "victims" had grown to eighty.[7] Groups of hooligans who gathered at Kleparski Square had been throwing stones at the Kupa Synagogue on a weekly basis.[7] On 11 August an attempt to seize a thirteen-year-old boy who was throwing stones at the synagogue was made, but he managed to escape and rushed to the nearby marketplace screaming "Help me, the Jews have tried to kill me".[8] Instantly the crowd broke in into the Kupa synagogue and started beating Jews, who had been praying at the Saturday morning Sabbath service;[9] and the Torah scrolls were burned.[10] The Jewish hostel was also attacked.[10] Jewish men, women and children, were beaten up on the streets; their homes were broken into and robbed.[8] Some Jews wounded during the pogrom were hospitalized and later were beaten in the hospitals again. One of the pogrom victims witnessed:

I was carried to the second precinct of the militia where they called for an ambulance. There were five more people over there, including badly wounded Polish woman. In the ambulance I heard the comments of the escorting soldier and the nurse who spoke about us as Jewish crust whom they have to save, and that they shouldn't be doing this because we murdered children, that all of us should be shot. We were taken to the hospital of St. Lazarus at Kopernika Street. I was first taken to the operating room. After the operation a soldier appeared who said that he will take everybody to jail after the operation. He beat up one of the wounded Jews waiting for an operation. He held us under cocked gun and did not allow us to take a drink of water. A moment later two railroadmen appeared and one said, "It's a scandal that a Pole does not have the civil courage to hit a defenceless person", and he hit a wounded Jew. One of the hospital inmates hit me with a crutch. Women, including nurses, stood behind the doors threatening us that they were only waiting for the operation to be over in order to rip us apart[11]

During the pogrom some Poles, mistaken for Jews, were also attacked.[12] The centre of these events was Miodowa, Starowislna, Przemyska, and Jozefa Streets in the Kazimierz quarter.[13] The riots were most intense between 11am and 1pm, calming down around 2pm, only to regain strength in the late afternoon when the Kupa synagogue was set on fire.[13] Polish policemen and soldiers actively participated in these events.[14] Among twenty-five of those accused of inciting racial hatred, robberies, and violence against Jews, twelve were officers.[14]

There is one record of a death relating to Kraków events in the archives of the Forensic Medicine Department in Kraków. The victim was 56-year-old Auschwitz survivor Róża Berger, shot while standing behind closed doors.[15][16]

Polish historian Anna Cichopek stated in her university master's degree thesis later published as a book[17] that all historical sources confirmed this one death.[18] However, she also noted that in an archival photo of a funeral there were five coffins visible, thus suggesting that there might have been five fatalities; she also claimed in her book that The New York Times in 1946 had noted a death of a man (Anszel Zucker), and Polska Agencja Prasowa noted a death of another unknown woman (in addition to Róża Berger) and five wounded.[18]

Polish historian, Julian Kwiek, who has published existing Polish documents regarding the Kraków event stated that he is not familiar with the documents quoted by Cichopek from outside the scientific literature. He stated that one death is confirmed in all historical sources, therefore it is questionable whether this event truly falls under the definition of a pogrom,[19] even though most other sources refer to the event as such.[8][9][10][11][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28] [29] [30] [31] [32] [33] [34]

Another historian, Dariusz Libionka from the Center for Holocaust Research[35] of the Polish Academy of Sciences, suggested that the photos showing the coffins were taken in the Spring (April 24, 1946) of the following year and came from the Kraków funeral of five Jews shot on April 21, 1946 by partisans of Józef Kuraś "Ogień" near Nowy Targ. In many cases – Libionka suggested – it would have been more appropriate if Anna Cichopek relied on existing studies rather than on archival material. He stated, that Polska Agencja Prasowa noted one dead person and five wounded. Libionka questioned the source of information regarding Anszel Zucker's death. According to him it should have been concluded that the Kraków pogrom resulted in one dead and five wounded victims.[36]

1. Pagacz-Moczarska 2004, Alma Mater.
2. Cichopek 2003, p. 226.
3. : a b Cichopek 2003, p. 223.
4. Adam Dylewski, Where the Tailor Was a Poet... website created under the aegis of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, Warsaw; chief editor: Dr. Piotr M. A. Cywinski. Editorial assistance: Dr. Anna Marta Szczepan-Wojnarska, and Kaja Wieczorek from Jewish Historical Institute, Warsaw
5. Joshua D. Zimmerman, Contested Memories p. 224
6. Joshua D. Zimmerman, ibidem p.224
7. : a b c Cichopek 2003, p. 224.
8. : a b c Marcin Zaremba Psychoza we krwi. Polityka 05.07.2006 reprint in Onet.pl
9. : a b Joanna Beata Michlic (2006). Poland's threatening other : the image of the Jew from 1880 to the present. Lincoln, NB: University of Nebraska Press. p. 220. ISBN 0-8032-3240-3. OCLC 62302216.
10. : a b c David Engel (1998). "Patterns Of Anti-Jewish Violence In Poland, 1944-1946" (PDF). Yad Vashem Studies Vol. XXVI (PDF). Jerusalem: Yad Vashem. Retrieved 2007-04-01.p. 32
11. : a b István Deák; Jan Tomasz Gross; Tony Judt (2000). The politics of retribution in Europe : World War II and its aftermath. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press. p. 111. ISBN 0-691-00953-8. OCLC 43840165.
12. Anna Cichopek, Pogrom Żydów w Krakowie, 11 sierpnia 1945 r., Żydowski Instytut Historyczny, 2000, str. 10.
13. : a b Cichopek 2003, p. 233.
14. : a b Cichopek 2003, p. 230.
15. (Polish) Tomasz Konopka "Śmierc na ulicach Krakowa w latach 1945-1947 w materiale archiwalnym krakowskiego Zakladu Medycyny Sadowej" - "Pamięć i Sprawiedliwość", IPN, 2005, nr 2, p. 148
16. (Polish) 11 sierpnia 1945 roku doszło do rozruchów antyżydowskich. Rozruchy w Krakowie nie były tak tragiczne jak rok później w Kielcach, ale nie obyło się bez ofiary śmiertelnej. 56-letnia Róża Berger zginęła od strzału oddanego przez zamknięte drzwi. Sekcja zwłok, oprócz rany postrzałowej, wykazała wiele ran pochodzących od uderzeń rozbitego strzałem zamka. Tomasz Konopka, "Historia Krakowa pisana protokołami sekcyjnymi" available at www.forensic-medicine.pl [1]
17. Książka jest poprawioną i uzupełnioną wersją pracy magisterskiej, pisanej w 1998 roku w Zakładzie Historii i Kultury Żydów w Polsce Uniwesytetu Jagiellońskiego. Serdecznie dziękuję promotorowi prof. Józefowi A. Gierowskiemu i dr. Krzysztofowi Lincz-Lenczowskiemu za naukową opiekę, liczne wskazówki... Anna Cichopek, Pogrom Żydów w Krakowie, 11 sierpnia 1945 r., Żydowski Instytut Historyczny, 2000, str. 10
18. : a b Cichopek 2003, p. 232.
19. Translation of Magdalena Tytuła, Kielce na Kazimierzu, Gazeta Wyborcza (local 'Gazeta w Krakowie'), August 11, 2000, (English)
20. Bozena Szaynok (2005). "The Role of Antisemitism in Postwar Polish-Jewish Relations". Antisemitism And Its Opponents In Modern Poland. Cornell University Press. p. 272. ISBN 0-8014-8969-5. OCLC 57557379.
21. Norman M Naimark (1992). "Revolution and Counterrevolution in Eastern Europe". In Christiane Lemke. The Crisis of Socialism in Europe. Duke University Press. p. 77. ISBN 0-8223-1197-6. OCLC 23462173.
22. From David Engel: "Patterns Of Anti-Jewish Violence In Poland, 1944-1946." The Polish files are located at AAN-MAP 786-90. [2]
23. Paul R. Carlson (2000). "The Eleventh Commandment". Christianity After Auschwitz: Evangelicals Encounter Judaism in the New Millennium. Xlibris. p. 52. ISBN 0-7388-1583-7. OCLC 46665787.
24. Iwona Irwin-Zarecka (1989). "Poland's Jews - A Memory Void". Neutralizing memory : the Jew in contemporary Poland. Transaction Publishers. p. 48. ISBN 0-88738-227-4. OCLC 17841360.
25. Celia Stopnicka Heller (1977). "Epilogue". On the Edge of Destruction: Jews of Poland Between the Two World Wars. Columbia University Press. p. 297. ISBN 0-231-03819-4. OCLC 2778495.
26. Jan T. Gross (2004). "After Auschwitz: The Reality and Meaning of Postwar Antisemitism in Poland". In Jonathan Frankel. Dark times, dire decisions Jews and Communism. Oxford University Press. p. 214. ISBN 1-4237-2223-X. OCLC 61362769.
27. Joseph J Preil (2001). Holocaust testimonies : European survivors and American liberators in New Jersey. Rutgers University Press. p. 102. ISBN 0-8135-2947-6. OCLC 45024375.
28. David M. Crowe (2004). Oskar Schindler:The Untold Account of His Life, Wartime Activities, and the True Story Behind the List. Westview Press. p. 463. ISBN 0-8133-3375-X. OCLC 55679121.
29. Efrayim Dekel (1973). B'riha: Flight to the Homeland. Herzl Press. p. 176. OCLC 658157.
30. Andreas Hofman (1997). "Die polnischen Holocaust-Uberlebenden Zwischen Assimilation und Emigration". In Fritz Bauer. Überlebt und unterwegs: Jüdische displaced persons im nachkriegs Deutschland (in German). Campus Verlag. p. 57. ISBN 3-593-35843-3. OCLC 38499545.
31. Hanns-Seidel-Stiftung (1954). Politische Studien (in German): 310. ISSN 0032-3462. OCLC 56525037. Missing or empty |title= (help)
32. Julian Grzesik (1989). Alija (in Polish). Lublin : [J. Grzesik?]. p. 79. OCLC 24409205.
33. Roland Brockmann; Dieter Luippold; Rainer Eisenschmid (2006). Polen (in German). Mair Dumont Baedeker. p. 347. ISBN 3-8297-1096-8. OCLC 76749833.
34. Tadeusz Lipinski; Hans Duda (1971). Hans Duda und die Askaris (in German). Tel-Aviv: Hamenora. p. 17. OCLC 10180081.
35. (Polish) Centrum Badań nad Zagładą Żydów Instytut Filozofii i Socjologii Polskiej Akademii Nauk [3]
36. (Polish) Dariusz Libionka's opinion about Cichopek's version in Polish Wikipedia
37.