Carleton student Zane Colt, city-wide president of the Israel Awareness Committee, has temporarily resigned from his position because of a tweet he sent Jan. 8.
“The tweet said I was frustrated that it took less than 30 seconds to see a keffiyeh on campus,” Colt said.
A keffiyeh is a square scarf traditionally worn by Arab men, but has also been adopted by Israel resistance groups.
“Some people understand the keffiyeh primarily as a political statement against Israel and other people clearly interpret it as a symbol of Arab identity and pride. That’s something Zane didn’t fully appreciate at the time he sent the tweet,” said Emile Scheffel, the Israel committee’s advocacy co-ordinator.
Colt, an undergraduate student in public affairs and policy management at Carleton, said he began receiving negative and threatening tweets within a few days.
On his own accord, Colt issued an apology on Facebook and linked his Twitter account to the message on Jan. 10.
“My original interpretation was the political symbolism of the Palestinian struggle against Israel. I’m a believer in two states for two people, a free Palestine alongside a free and democratic Israel. But now I realize the cultural insensitivity, that you can wear keffiyehs and be supportive of a two-state solution as well,” Colt said.
“To those people it was offensive and I apologize.”
When drafting his online message, Colt said he decided to issue a temporary leave of absence from the committee.
“I needed some time to reflect and I didn’t want the club to be involved with my actions,” Colt said.
Andrea Sarkic, the committee’s Ottawa University president will be filling in for Colt.
Although Colt said he has plans to return as president soon, Scheffel said the committee hasn’t made a decision as to whether Colt will be returning as president before the end of the semester.
