Hiding behind masks doesn't help the cause

You never show your face. Why is that? You're a passionate believer. We get that. We hear it in your voice as you march down the street, screaming your slogans and shouting your beliefs at anyone who gets in your way.

But why hide your face from us? You certainly have no doubts about the righteousness of your cause and the evil of those you oppose. So why don a mask and swaddle your features in a black and white keffiyeh?

Could it be you're embarrassed? Is that it? Did that keffiyeh help hide your shame last weekend as you abused and assaulted that 84-year-old great grandmother as she made her way to a rally against anti-Semitism in Melbourne?

What was it you yelled as you prodded and poked that elderly woman whose family made Australia its home six generations ago? "Zionist pig!" you spat.

That was just the start of it. A group of you - all masked as usual - then assaulted an 82-year-old Jewish man. You burned an Israeli flag. A 77-year-old woman was reportedly spat on and kicked several times. And what about the frail old woman in a wheelchair you intimidated? So great was the abuse you hurled at her that police, fearing for her safety, formed a protective ring around her.

Please tell us that embarrassment drives you to hide your face from us. The only other explanation is gutlessness.

What else do you expect us to think? It's not as if you're fighting for an unpopular cause. Israel's bombs have killed more than 30,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. The unceasing pounding of its iron fist on Gaza and its tone-deaf reaction to the rest of the world's protests has provoked global condemnation.

No one opposes your right to hold an opinion or to air it publicly. It's good to know there's fire in your belly and fury in your heart when your fellow humans are treated inhumanely.

Did we see you on the streets in the days after Hamas's brutal rampage on October 7 last year? Were you among the crowd denouncing the slaughter and rape of hundreds of innocent Israelis? It would be nice to think you were there.

But that's the problem with masks, isn't it? Who would know? Fighting for important principles - dignity, fairness and the right to live without fear of persecution - requires having the courage to at least show your face.

This mask thing - and, let's be honest, your venomous behaviour toward innocent people - demeans you. It makes you appear sinister and overcome with hate. It reduces you to something smaller than your enemy, and that's saying something.

Look at the support you have. Our university campuses are heaving with protests. Cowed administrators display far more leniency toward pro-Palestinian demonstrators than those supporting other causes. Students have been free to plant olive trees and hold their candlelight vigils while shouting abuse at passing Jewish students.

Consider the directive the provost of La Trobe University recently issued to teaching staff: "If protesters enter your classes we ask you to refrain from intervening and allow them to share the information they wish to."

You see? You've never had a pulpit like this before.

Last week a class taught by University of Sydney professor Peter Morgan was hijacked by several masked pro-Palestinian demonstrators spouting, according to Morgan, "left-wing anti-Semitism masquerading as political belief".

When Morgan asked them to leave so his 80 students could resume their lecture the protesters accused him of supporting genocide.

You might like to have a quiet word with these students. They're not exactly helping your cause. Even you would have to acknowledge they've become a laughing stock. Who can forget the comical behaviour of those American students who seized a building at Columbia University earlier this month?

They held a media conference on the steps of the building, all solemnly draped in keffiyehs, demanding they be provided with "humanitarian aid".

Free to leave at any time, or simply stroll to a nearby cafeteria, their leader demanded charity. "Do you want students to die of dehydration and starvation?" she asked. "Like, could people please have a glass of water?"

It's become a circus, hasn't it? What should have been a profound demonstration against the senselessness of war has been hijacked by naive goons and provided cover to all those racist thugs still clinging to that millennial-old hatred and distrust of Jews.

You want support? Muster a little courage. Take off that mask. Undrape that keffiyeh and look us in the eye. Maybe then we'll take you seriously.

HAVE YOUR SAY: Have pro-Palestinian demonstrators gone too far? Should universities impose greater crackdowns on campus protesters? Do you think it is appropriate for anyone marching in the streets to disguise themselves? Email us: echidna@theechidna.com.au

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THEY SAID IT: "Protest is OK. But protests, according to my King family legacy, should be peaceful." - Alveda King, niece of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr

YOU SAID IT: Airline passengers have a range of bad habits. Unbuckling their seatbelts and keeping them unbuckled is the worst.

Benti writes: "I have been in turbulent air above the Alps where I thought the plane would be shaken apart. I have been in a lightning storm over Borneo. I have been in a 300-metre deep air pocket at the tail-end of that storm. The jumbo dropped like a rock. In none of these events was any damage done. We were all in our seatbelts. Nobody undid their seatbelts until we were told it was OK to do so."

"Standard operating procedure for airline passengers (and please don't call us customers): always pay attention to the safety briefing, no matter how many times you have seen it and always keep your seatbelt fastened while seated," writes John.

On a flight to Vietnam, Carl was aware of the ordeal on the Singapore Airlines flight: "I definitely stayed buckled up all the way this time, especially crossing into the equatorial range and monsoon season." His pet hates are kicking kids and passengers grabbing the back of his seat when they get up. "I'm not shy, sometimes calm but also angry. People shouldn't have to put up with bad behaviour. And it's not just on aircraft. People have lost their manners and often surprised when you call them out. But then maybe it's just my Clint Eastwood voice that gets 'em."

Jennifer writes: "Having been injured by an unbelted person flying through the air at me in a minibus crash, I'm very aware of the risks in moving vehicles, so have an unpopular tendency to (somewhat fearfully) suggest others do their belts up. Hopefully this incident will prevent the need for me to do this on planes. However, I expect it will still be an issue on coaches. When will all buses have seatbelts? My daughter as a five-year-old sustained a head injury when the school bus suddenly stopped and she was thrown out of her seat down the steps to the ground."

"My worst experience in a plane was not turbulence but a loud explosive noise followed by flame shooting from the inboard starboard engine," writes Sue. "We had barely taken off from one of the Gulf airports. We circled for close on two hours, with not a word from the pilot. Finally, we straightened out and gained further altitude. About two hours short of London, the captain told us that there had been a minor problem with one of the engines. As far as I am concerned, flying is for the birds, who don't seem to have the problems our human-designed versions have."

Helen writes: "I'm firmly in the buckled-up brigade. The only time I unbuckle is to go to the toilet. Even though sleeping wearing a seatbelt is very uncomfortable, I still keep buckled up when trying to sleep. I've never experienced such severe turbulence like the recent Singapore Airlines flight, and pray I never will. But I have been through enough turbulence to know the seatbelt is there to keep me safe, not to drive me crazy."