Founded in 1891, the Philadelphia Free Library is run by a Board of Trustees that does not operate under any mayoral control, but is allocated funds from the mayor’s budget.  Also, the library has a fundraising arm, which is handled by a stand-alone 501(c)(3) Foundation, with its own board — dedicated to raising money for the library.  There is a small crossover of the two boards.  Some board members represent a who’s who of local socialites, with long histories of philanthropy.

The library system is a behemoth, with 54 neighborhood locations.  The mission statement of the library reads: “To advance literacy, guide learning, and inspire curiosity.  Its vision is to build an enlightened community devoted to life long learning.”  Anyone living in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is eligible for a free library card.

Against this august background, and over a century of enhancing education, it comes as a shock that on November 29, 2023, the library is hosting two outrageously overt anti-Semitic events.  Do members of the board sanction these events, produced by librarians at the various locations?  Clearly, they have been informed of the treacherous lies and a call to arms these events represent.  Yet they have sat on their hands, despite repeated calls for these events to be canceled.

By way of clarification, November 29 is the date on which the United Nations (U.N.) agreed to the creation of the Modern State of Israel.  Israel accepted its creation and the boundaries proffered.  The U.N. offered Arabs a country on the same date, but they refused it. 

Thus, the illusion of a two-state solution was dead on arrival.  Yet for three quarters of a century, this failed solution has been falsely posited as “The Solution” to the Arab-Israeli conflict.

By way of further clarification, the U.N., in 1977, created an “International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People” and celebrates the day annually.  The event always morphs into a barrage of hate against Israel, a huge distortion of history, and the repeated lies that Israel is an apartheid/racist entity and an occupier and oppressor of the Arab people.  That the library board members sit idly by while the libraries and librarians facilitate hatred is mystifying. 

For the past few years, some Philadelphia city government officials have attended functions standing in solidarity with the “oppressed” Palestinians.  It is interesting to note that Sheryl Parker, Philadelphia’s new mayor, has not attended these events.

On November 29, the Philadelphia Library is hosting, at two of its branches, activities in sync with celebrating the Solidarity of the Palestine People Day.  One is being held at the Queen Memorial Library, where the children are taught about the fruits of Palestine and drawing pictures of the Palestinian Flag, using the correct colors.  Brainwashing?

Not as benign-sounding is the event to be presented on the same day at the Cecile B. Moore branch of the Philadelphia Free Library: “Watermelons and Kaffiyehs,” where topics such as insurrection and resistance will be discussed.

These events come on the heels of the library’s longstanding policy of selling pro-Palestinian books to kids, presenting story hours equating Israel to oppressors, occupiers, thieves, and murderers.  There is no concomitant discussion of Hamas butchery or books on Jewish history and religion.  Keep in mind: this is a public institution facilitating the Palestinian world code of mayhem and murder. 

These events are also being presented during an epic atmosphere of overt anti-Semitism.

Philadelphia’s city government is even worse.  This year, the mayor’s office has moved its Day of Solidarity with Palestine festivities from City Hall to the awe-inspiring steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum.  These are the steps, made immortal, where Stallone, in the movie Rocky, raced up and raised his hands in jubilation.  That association of hard work and eventual success with a band of butchers is sickening.  Here we see the Muslim misappropriation of a classic American rags-to-riches odyssey in favor of a death cult celebrating rapes, beheadings, torture and burning of babies, and kidnapping.

And this deceit and alignment with butchers and murderers comes on the heels of the University of Pennsylvania’s Palestine Writes weekend, held in late October.  Billed as a cultural weekend of authors and poets, it quickly devolved into a Palestinian hate fest toward Israel.  Coincidentally, this hate fest occurred a mere two weeks prior to the October 7 atrocities in Israel.

The violent Arab Street is now welcome in William Penn’s and Benjamin Franklin’s City of Brotherly Love.  What a misnomer.  The City of Philadelphia no longer has love for the Jewish people — unless incoming Mayor Parker reverses course. 

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