On Monday 28 April 2025, members of the SAJFP were subjected to a display of typical Zionist violence. Megan Choritz, a published novelist and SAJFP member, had been denied an invitation to participate in the Jewish Literary Festival at the Gardens Community Centre in Hatfield Street, Cape Town.
The reason organisers gave for rejecting her popular book was that her views are “too extreme”. As a vociferous opponent of the genocide currently underway, Megan Choritz does not mince her words. One wonders, however, what kind of objection, given the circumstances, could be too extreme. Well over 61,000 Gazans have been killed since October 2023. More than 65,000 children have already been hospitalised (in what hospitals remain) for malnutrition due to all food and aid being withheld at the border. There have been thousands of amputations without anaesthetic or any painkillers: Gaza has more child amputees than anywhere else in the world.
With Amnesty International just being one of multiple independent organisations to conclude that a genocide is underway, one wonders what could possibly be extreme about Megan’s views. Surely maintaining a polite and neutral stance in the face of such horrors is what’s truly extreme?
In fact, Kevin Bloom observed in the Daily Maverick that four sessions at the festival focused on Jews as victims while none addressed immediate allegations of Jews as perpetrators — making one question the stated neutrality of the event.
In protest at her exclusion, Megan accordingly placed a table with her books and two chairs on the pavement outside the Centre, about 25 metres from the entrance, and offered to engage with anyone who might be interested. She was accompanied by another SAJFP member, Jared Sacks.
Dozens of persons entering or exiting the book fair had friendly conversations with Megan, and several expressed surprise to learn that she had been excluded for political reasons. There were a few snide comments from Zionists passing by, but the reaction was overwhelmingly positive.
However, throughout the course of the day, members of the South African Police and Metro Law Enforcement arrived, called by someone who took offence at the peaceful protest. They tried to stop the protest, but Megan and Jared cited their right to protest according to the Gatherings Act. Still, Megan was made to put away the stack of books she had on the table. They claimed that publicly displaying Lost Property, her excellent novel, was against the City’s bylaws.
In total, during the course of the day, at least five more groups of police and Law Enforcement officers confronted them. They continued to harass Megan and Jared, despite the innocuous nature of their small protest. In a city where it can take hours for police to respond to an actual crime, they seemed to be on speed-dial for this event.
A Zionist Attack
The steady stream of police that arrived, however, did nothing to protect Megan and Jared from the only actual violence that occurred. One attendee, Neil Phillips, approached the two peaceful protesters, first swearing at them and then throwing one of the chairs across the street. Security pulled him away as he began threatening physical violence.
On his way out, however, he approached again. This time he assaulted Jared before taking forcible possession of his cellphone and deliberately smashing it. Under the threat of arrest at the police station, he agreed to a public apology, donating the cost of the phone he destroyed for Gift of the Givers to send to Gaza.
Later it emerged that the name he had given, Neil Murray, was not his own, nor was he the owner of a billion-dollar tech company called Mimecast, as he claimed. An identity check revealed him to be Neil Phillips, put on probation by a US Federal Court for currency manipulation of the South African Rand. He continued trying to blame Megan and Jared for the incident despite the apology and donation.
Zionism is Rooted in Violence
This incident was a perfect illustration of the violence, deception, and victim-blaming which are all essential elements of Zionist ideology. Denying Megan Choritz an invitation to participate in the book festival because of her opposition to the genocidal violence underway in Gaza implicitly condoned this very violence. It was in itself a violent decision.
Furthermore, it would seem to be unlawful discrimination in violation of Sections 15, 16, and 17 of the Bill of Rights. The unprovoked attack by Neil Phillips was both violent and criminal.
Zionism needs violence to survive. It was born out of violent colonisation, the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians, and seeks to amplify this violence until no Palestinians are left. It is also significant that the South African Zionist Federation makes no effort to discourage its supporters from violent conduct or abuse. We conclude that it is hoped that those demonstrating against Zionism will be provoked into retaliation.
When retaliation does occur, Zionists habitually attribute blame to those who have been provoked. This is merely an echo of the way Palestinians have repeatedly been vilified for their own responses to ethnic cleansing and genocide.
Ultimately, Zionism runs on the twin engines of violence and deception – what occurred on Monday 28 April could not have been a more textbook example of its true nature.
Media inquiries: [email protected], or phone: +27 62 491 1948