and arab-american community. i spent a fair amount of time working in the middle east in jordan and iraq and traveling through loud the milk -- throughout the middle eastern areas, so i feel very much at home, and it is important that feeling is well represented in city hall. i look at the flags that are well illustrated year. it amplifies the need that much more that san franciscans, californians should understand and become more acquainted with the arab-american culture. if the census proves me right, when the numbers come out next year officially, we will see a significant growth of the arab- american population in the san francisco bay area but also throughout the state of california. that is critical because it means that much more that arab- americans have the right and the reason to want to make sure that their interests are being well represented in local government and city government, and, of course, in federal government. i continue to look forward to working with everyone here. thank you for the contr

we need to have a greater understanding and appreciation of the arab-american culture, the arab culture in the united states and in san francisco as well. this celebration is an important part of that work we have ahead of us together. i want to always say that my office is always open to hear from members of the community and to be invited to events in the community as well. i look forward to a partnership that lasts many years, and that we will all live together in a peaceful world. thank you. [applause] >> we as a community have had really an amazing year, from the hearings about the flotilla at the board of supervisors to the hearings at the human rights commission about racial profiling. it has been a profound year for us, and it has raised a tremendous amount of awareness, not only in city hall, but in northern california and the nation about the issues we face as a community, but it has not just been those issues we have faced. we also had what i think is probably the most successful festival we have had in a long time with the arab cultural center, and each year, the film festiv

he is with justice for jews from arab countries. he is actively familiar with this. >> i had a personal question. the u.s. holocaust museum, as we both know, was not very keen to discussing this topic five years ago. [inaudible] >> can you tell me in the last two years, they are still not talk about this topic or have they addressed at? >> okay. the question is when the u.s. holocaust museum at information about this topic on the answer is of course yes. and many people in this organization of survivors know how difficult it has been to get the management of the museum to be truthful and cooperative on many issues. i believe it was five years ago, there was an attempt to get recognition of the farhud. this man was involved, the scholars were involved in the holocaust museum, put a stop to by sending out e-mails to all the other holocaust museums. they are narrative was that the holocaust experience, hitler's war against the jews, was a european experience. i'm sure you all know the jewelry. but that does not mean that just mile sout

there were many arab nazis. when i say and arab nazi i am not talking about a guy running around with a swastika armband. i am talking about it for use in arab lands. i mean 100,000 young jews -- who went to germany and brought the concept that can organize on the german bases and considered themselves action will not cease. the second most popular name for a young child was hitler. today you see some people on the internet whose name is hitler. i will give you an example. a man buys the name of hitler, he is just an ordinary civil servant in egypt in charge of the efficiency. his name is hitler. he was not born in austria, his real name was mohammad, he was a little e. egyptian boy who visited all the mosques of egypt and he was the new savior of the arab people. the posters in the marketplace, your master is ala and on earth your master is adolf hitler. in 1981 and june, just before june 1st, they were told to go into their homes, shush their homes. kissel stay off the phone and turn off the radio and pack the

or thought that -- an arab or thought that we could be an arab. he had the extraordinary ability to remain what he was, a short, pink-skinned blond, blue-eyed oxford englishman, and yet he was able to join into arab life to a most extraordinary degree. he had the capacity to do that. when he stopped, he almost ended it as if cut by a knife. when he left damascus in 1918 after he and faisal took damascus i and went back to england. he never intended to return to the middle east. he only went back, reluctantly, when winston churchill asked him to, and there is a wonderful scene -- two, actually -- in what is now the west bank of jordan with winston churchill in which the arab bedouin tribes ride out of the desert, and lawrence is stand there in a gray suit and civilian shoes and a civilian hat and collar and tie, and these glamorous, exotic figures by the thousands come riding out of the desert on their camels and horses firing their rifles and pistols into the air and riding around lawrence and crying, lawrence, lawrence! is and winston churchill r

the arabs don't possible has bringing you the best of the arab film to the bay area.s year's festival is no exception. consider the most important arab film festival outside of the arab world, the festival offers a rare window to the arab world and its diverse community. featuring 24 films from over 18 countries, it is also one of the only four runs that showcases new works by established and emerging arab filmmakers. the possible films in four cities. in addition, the festival organizers a film series for high-school students free of charge. this year's lineup offers something for everyone, including shorts, documentary's, comedies, and dramas. >> [speaking arabic] the mission of the arab film festival, since it its inception in 1996, and it came about -- members of our community realized there was stereotyping of arabs in the media, and they wanted to change that proactively. they wanted to use the power of film to bring in the stories, to bring in authentic images and narratives of the arab world, here to american audiences, in order to fight the negative stereotyp

arabs are in bethlehem. they've thrown out the christian arabs. there are only muslim arabs there. and it's a very unsafe environment for jews. so in any case, this is -- and all those holy places, the temple mound, all these places are being claimed by arabs that this is their -- these are their holy sites and the evil is compounded by the fact that unesco, the united nations economic social cultural organization supports these claims. of course, i don't have to tell you about the united nations. okay. so it takes a house of representatives resolution no. 1734 with over 30 cosponsors to attempt to stop the revisionist history by opposing unilateral declaration by the arabs of a pa state because the arabs are saying we can't negotiate with you. we're not going to -- we don't recognize you. we're not going to declare a state so we'll do it unilaterally and brazil, argentina and uruguay have already declared recognition. 1917, the belford declaration establishing palestine is a natural home for the jewish people. 1920, the british mandate over palestine. 22, 78% of palestine gets cho

arab speakers hijacked the clip. that's where it starts. and muslims were always stereotyped but after two thousand and monday after nine eleven there were the scapegoat for everyone's fear else. we go through periods of time like this where this hysteria sweeps the country. as it you can i sit quiet like hope group is being profiled. org the whole thing that happened to brown school is mind blowing to me who could even concoct for a film. nobody would believe. i thought it was a brilliant idea and i absolutely welcomed the opportunity because i have dedicated my life to this kind of work and i felt that this was really the next step in my life. became a part of who debbie was how she identified because she was very much engrossed and involved in every aspect of the school that it was immediately of a very family were in this together feeling where everyone had a sense of this was going to be something important. to school is targeted at all of new york city kids here in the vision the hope would be that it would be half english speakers ha

and when i say arabs, i mean tens of thousands of arabs. and i'll give more information about that as i go along. i want to remember -- i want to remind everybody in the middle of my speech that this is about history, nor do i wish to say ha every arab -- that every arab in palestine was unwilling to coexist with their jewish neighbors. but i have to tell you something, i'll give you an example. one of the strongest families in jerusalem, but those who try today coexist with the jews just like today are marginalized, they're intimidated, they're murdered, they're ostracized. and eventually, the forces of hate, the no, sir forces of hate -- the forces of hate take over. now, i talked to you in the beginning about the beginning of this being the extermination off the jews in the 627. why did i do that? just to find some historic problem? the no. that is what the arabs themselves constantly spoke about in their newspapers, in their rallies, on the radio. they constantly referred to the extermination of the jews as setting the path for their fu

world the arab countries would let arabs live normally in their countries you know it's so funny how you folks are talking about arab rights. as i almost anyone they want how are you doing there who don't have rights and on give them arab rights throughout the arab world stop you. were jogging. along this road when we're talking about who was on his progress and i listened and i took palestinian nation for the jewish week of how i was in the out and we're not going to give them up we have right he said i really wish i wish you had the rights meson some of the real sources there too as the season is this is their allies insults you see how denying it now mr feist are you listen for a second don't you see how denying the palestinian rights of its arms and. equivocal to denying the gym's right to self determined how can you say that this group over here cannot self-determined but the jews can it danger is the jewish right to help determine oh i was so nice when i was up there where the stones were doing our job you know please you know this is going on and on this you should speak we th

minority i lived with arabs when i was young i still live with arabs today i think that the arabs that want to stay in israel are going to be welcomed in our country but nobody's going to destroy our country from inside nobody's going to be on the record when i go to mars no matter what we do we have to go from here we're doing here or anybody else quite quite process quite quite frankly people like rabbi fleischer you know i hear him talk a lot about israel's enemies and i think people like him are actually the most dangerous people for israel because the people who are keeping israel from coming into the us i will agree with the palestinians in which peace would last are the ones who are actually endangering the long term interest of israel exum to a peaceful agreement and the occupation allow the palestinians to exercise their right to self-determination that is what is needed so quite frankly the only thing that there is to say at this point about the peace process this is that unless there is a game changer there is no new you know the right wing coalition government in israel has