This new group that bring together people who were expelled from Middle Eastern countries (“Seeking redress,” May 25) is interesting, but for one thing. I like that people who lived in countries from across Africa and the Middle East can get together and swap stories about what life was like when they were young, before their countries became closed to them and even pushed them out. It’s through them that we can see a way of life that we are unlikely to ever see again, given the current sad state of world affairs.
What really bothers me is a quote from the organizer, who stated: “It’s likely to be a number in value that is far beyond what the Palestinians are claiming that they are owed.” What does a Jew expelled from Morocco have to do with the Palestinians? Why should the actions of what one country did be held as a hammer over another? If the U.S., or Israel even, wants to make any headway in making so many citizens of that part of the world lose their resentment toward us, then we have to be smart enough to respect that the Arab and Muslim world is much more than a bunch of interchangeable towelheads. If we can’t get that, then none of these people who lost their homes, businesses and money should ever expect to get that back, either.