"The headline change, resulting in the replacement of the world “expulsion” with “displacement” downplays the fact that Palestinians were forced from their land and homes, and creates a factually inaccurate portrayal of the 1948 Nakba. By the time the State of Israel was declared on May 14, 1948, over 200 Palestinian villages had already been “emptied as people fled in fear or were forcibly expelled by Zionist forces, and approximately 175,000 Palestinians had been made refugees." Plan Dalet, adopted by Zionist forces in April 1948 sought to expel Palestinians and destroy, and depopulate Palestinians villages, resulting in at least 750,000 Palestinians forcibly expelled between 1947 and 1949."
May 17, 2023
To:
Steve Serviss, Editor-in-Chief, Kingston Whig-Standard
Tim Gordanier, Deputy News Editor, Kingston Whig-Standard
Dear Mr. Serviss and Gordanier,
I’m writing to you on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME, https://www.cjpme.org) to request immediate changes to the article “Vigil marks 75th anniversary of Palestinian displacement” by the Kingston Whig-Standard published on May 12, 2023, and updated on May 16, 2023.
It was brought to my attention that the article was significantly edited, resulting in a headline change and significant deletions of content following a complaint filed by Honest Reporting Canada (HRC). HRC is a pro-Israel media watchdog that has a history of bullying journalists and media outlets who report anything even mildly critical of Israel and its policies. Their objective is not to facilitate an informed, balanced conversation but to target and remove Palestinian perspectives and distort history.
The headline change, resulting in the replacement of the world “expulsion” with “displacement” downplays the fact that Palestinians were forced from their land and homes, and creates a factually inaccurate portrayal of the 1948 Nakba. By the time the State of Israel was declared on May 14, 1948, over 200 Palestinian villages had already been “emptied as people fled in fear or were forcibly expelled by Zionist forces, and approximately 175,000 Palestinians had been made refugees.”[1] Plan Dalet, adopted by Zionist forces in April 1948 sought to expel Palestinians and destroy, and depopulate Palestinians villages, resulting in at least 750,000 Palestinians forcibly expelled between 1947 and 1949. Not only does the edited version amount to a less accurate version of historical events, but it also actively erases the Palestinian perspective – which is particularly inappropriate given that the blurb was about their event.
Further, I see that the article was edited to remove the English translation of the Arabic world “Nakba,” which means “catastrophe,” and to remove a section of text describing the conditions that Palestinians live in. These deletions are outrageous and have no journalistic value. Their only function is to eliminate Palestinian perspectives.
Given that there is no explanation or reason given for these edits, I expect that the headline and paragraphs are promptly restored to their original versions.
It is important to stand up to pressure to delete Palestinian narratives, which hinders a climate of free journalism and freedom of expression.
I hope that Kingston Whig-Standard takes the steps to restore the article to its original version.
Should you wish to discuss this matter further, you can contact me at 438-380-5410.
Sincerely,
Tayla Shair
Media Analyst, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East
[1] Institute for Middle East Understanding, “Plan Dalet: Blueprint for the Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine,” March 8, 2013, https://imeu.org/article/plan-dalet