An open letter to Piers Morgan

Dear Piers,

You’re probably scratching your head right now, wondering what on earth just happened. How someone who prides himself on being balanced, outspoken, and unafraid to challenge any orthodoxy could suddenly find himself labelled an enemy of the people—a people toward whom you hold no animosity.

It might sound strange, but I’m going to suggest that this is—at least in part—the fault of Greta Thunberg.

Yes, really.

Let me explain.

Greta is a performative activist. She latches onto fashionable causes like they’re oxygen, often without nuance or depth. To her, these causes are identity, purpose, and platform all rolled into one. She is, in many ways, a creature of the age: reactive, symbolic, and shielded by a media all too happy to platform passion over substance.

But most importantly—she is heard.

That’s what stings.

Because for supporters of Israel, being heard is a constant uphill battle. We’re routinely shouted down, dismissed as biased or bought, accused of being state mouthpieces, or simply told our voices aren’t worth the airtime. The BDS movement doesn’t just oppose Israeli policy—it seeks to erase Jewish voices altogether from campus, culture, and conversation.

They’ve had alarming success.

My own experience is a painful case study. As a long-standing columnist for South Africa’s largest news site, I often wrote about Israel—sometimes critically, always thoughtfully. After October 7, 2023, I understood I no longer had the luxury of neutrality. I had a duty. And I fulfilled it carefully. My readership was wide, my voice moderate—but that, it turns out, made me harder to cancel. So they waited.

Eventually, I was removed after a post about an Israeli operation against Hezbollah was deemed to be “glorifying violence.” That was the excuse. Meanwhile, columnists who routinely demonised Israel faced no consequence. My voice, like so many others, was shut down.

So yes—we’re sensitive.

When someone like you silences a Jewish voice, especially someone as articulate and composed as Natasha Hausdorff, it triggers something deep. You may not have intended to do so. But the optics mattered: every time she tried to speak, she was interrupted, shut down, brushed aside. She wasn’t aggressive. She wasn’t inflammatory. She was simply trying to be heard.

And in the very same week, Greta—uninformed, theatrical, and wildly amplified—once again dominated global headlines.

The contrast could not have been starker.

So, no—it doesn’t really matter whether I believe you’re antisemitic. I don’t. Nor do I think you hate Israel. Quite the opposite. Your platform is important, engaging, and—usually—fair. But in this instance, something went wrong. And I hope you can understand why the response was so fierce.

It’s not just about you. It’s about all of us who are tired of being silenced.

It’s Greta’s fault.

Warm regards,
Howard Feldman