HonestReporting launched a Facebook group after we found that, although the Golan falls under Israeli law, residents of the region wishing to write "Israel" in the Hometown section of their profiles were not given the option.
Instead, residents of Jewish towns, including Qazrin, Ramat Magshimim, Geshur, Mevo Hanna, and Had Nes were only given the option of writing "Syria" in their Hometown section.
We stated that it is not for Facebook to decide the national origin of Golan residents. At the very least, Facebook must include the option of writing "Israel" in the hometown section, as it has done with Jewish residents of the West Bank.
In only some two weeks, over 2,500 of you responded by joining our Facebook group calling for a change of policy and Facebook heard your voices. Thanks to all of the members of this group, Facebook has changed its settings and now applies the same policy for Golan residents as it does for the West Bank. When people scroll down, they will see the name of the town with Israel written below it, identifying it as part of Israel.
However, just as with the West Bank, Golan residents still cannot choose to have the word Israel appear in the Hometown line.
Despite this, HonestReporting congratulates all of the members of the group for bringing about an important change. We thank everyone for taking action and showing once again that individuals can make a difference, particularly in new Social Media frameworks.
See the first part of our Social Media in a Nutshell series for an introduction to Social Media as well as our downloadable Internet Activism Guide (PDF format) to find out more about how you can help Israel online.
And don't forget to check out and join HonestReporting's own Facebook page!
REVEALED: HRW RESEARCHER'S BIZARRE BACKGROUND
Human Rights Watch's Marc Garlasco has appeared regularly in the media, touted as a military "expert". Garlasco played a prominent role in promoting the 2006 Gaza Beach Libel, which wrongly blamed Israel for a "massacre" of Palestinians. (See HonestReporting's interactive Big Lies presentation for more on this story.)
But what does Garlasco get up to when he isn't producing one-sided reports attacking Israel? The Mere Rhetoric blog reveals:
There are two Marc Garlascos on the Internet. One is a top human rights investigator who, having joined Human Rights Watch after several years with the Pentagon, has become known for his shrill attacks on Israel. The other is a Marc Garlasco who's obsessed with the color and pageantry of Nazism, has published a detailed 430 page book on Nazi war paraphernalia, and participates in forums for Nazi souvenir collectors.
Both Marc Garlascos were born on September 4, 1970. Both have Ernst as their middle name. Both live in New York, NY. Both have a maternal grandfather who fought for the Nazis. I've put links and screenshots on all this after the jump, and you can click through for full-sized versions. It's hard to escape the conclusion that both Marc Garlascos are the same person.
Read the full story here.
We and many other blogs that have picked up this story are certainly not suggesting that Marc Garlasco is a neo-Nazi or engaging in anything illegal. However, some, including Elder of Zion, have received a response from HRW accusing them of doing just that.
Irrespective of this, as the Elder says: "It is extraordinarily bad taste and truly offensive that the same person who habitually castigates the Jewish state to a worldwide audience has a creepy obsession with the symbols of those who tried to destroy all Jews."
Garlasco joins other colleagues at HRW with unsavory backgrounds such as:
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Joe Stork, who
has a long history of support for Israel's destruction and Palestinian terrorism. -
Sarah Leah Whitson, who tried to fundraise from wealthy Saudis by highlighting battles with "pro-Israel pressure groups in the US, the European Union and the United Nations". -
Lucy Mair, who previously wrote for the anti-Israel "Electronic Intifada" propaganda site before working for HRW.
Yet the media still looks unquestioningly to HRW and its staff as virtuous models for addressing univeral human rights.
A new NGO Monitor report Experts or Ideologues: Systematic Analysis of Human Rights Watch examines HRW's activities related to the Arab-Israeli conflict, and particularly on Israel -- including analysis of key HRW staff members.
