This diarty is NOT about Ms. Thomas' views on Israel/Palestine. She has every right to her views. This concerns the clear bigotry against Jews entwined throughly in her stereotype-laden comments.
For accuracy, she is captured on video telling israeli Jews to "get the hell out of Palestine..." and to "go home to...Poland and Germany..." (Links: (1) youtube and (2) rabbiLIVE.com, see details in body.)
These comments include three core anti-Jewish themes:
--Jews as alien intruders
--Jews not having the rights of others (i.e., choice of where to live)
--Trivializing the Holocaust (why else mention Poland and Germany)
For consideration, I share this statement by Lanny Davis (former advisor to Pres. Clinton):
Helen Thomas, who I used to consider a close friend and who I used to respect, has showed herself to be an anti-Semitic bigot. This not about her disagreement about her criticisms of Israel. She has a right to criticize Israel and that is not the same as being an anti-Semite.
However, her statement that Jews in Israel should leave Israel and go back to Poland or Germany is an ancient and well-known anti-Semitic stereotype of the Alien Jew not belonging in the "land of Israel" — one that began 2,600 years with the first tragic and violent diaspora of the Jews at the hands of the Romans.
If she had asked all Blacks to go back to Africa, what would White House Correspondents Association position be as to whether she deserved White House press room credentials — much less a privileged honorary seat?
Of course Helen has the right as a private citizen under the First Amendment to speak her mind, even as an anti-Jewish bigot — but not as a member, much less privileged member with a reserved seat, in the WH press corps.
(Video links: (1) http://www.youtube.com/... (2) http://rabbilive.com/...