As a Jewish student on campus and a regular reader of The Daily Illini, the last few days have led me to question the standards of the DI as it covers the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. 

First, Sarah Fischer’s column “Gaza conflict rooted in myriad of issues,” in the Nov. 27, 2012 edition of The Daily Illini, with blatant misinformation, and then, in the Dec. 4, 2012 edition, a cartoon appeared that truly demonizes Israel and presents her only as a monster. The choice to run these two pieces leads me to believe that The DI has clearly chosen a side. 

The DI must not understand the power of this kind of imagery, which, while provocative, can easily be offensive, particularly to me as a Jewish student and supporter of Israel. There are ways to express one’s political views without bringing offensive prejudice into the mix and drawing the ire of readers. 

Our campus just held an apolitical peace vigil, but the publication of the Fischer column and this offensive cartoon led me to believe that the program had no effect. The only result of this cartoon is polarization.

Jennifer Lang,

senior in LAS