Antisemitism

It's very sad that we still need to explain what this is...

Years ago, I taught a class on modern Jewish history/Israel/Zionism, and US history/law/politics. This essay came about simply because I was astounded how simple antisemitism is in practice but how the world finds it so hard to define. I am reposting my article. (I have updated some parts of the post to reflect the current world, but sadly very little has changed beyond the fact that things have simply gotten worse. The blog it had been attached to is no longer active, but can be found on The Way Back Machine)

Antisemitism. It is a word that conjures up the oldest bigotry known in human history. You may even think that there is a consensus about the meaning of this word. However, you would be wrong. In fact, there is more controversy about this word today, then when it was first coined in the late 19th century. (By the way, the first sign you are an antisemite is if you decide that antisemitism means Arabs can’t be antisemites, because they like Jews are semites.)

Now if you go to the dictionary here is the definition of antisemitism:

 hostility toward or discrimination against Jews as a religious, ethnic, or racial group

If you want to actually break it down, this is how it would look:

Anti = hatred

Semite = Jews/Judaism (it actually had to do with the racial theories that were prevalent in Europe at the end of the 19th century)

Ism = a school, movement, idea: also an explanation

This was an attempt at the time to give anti-Judaism (aka, Judeophobia) a more academic face. In other words, there was a desire by the highly educated to make it a respectable way to view the world, rather than the rantings of an out of control mob. Of course, we all know how those ethnic/racial theories worked out: The Holocaust.

In the decades following the end of World War Two, there was a fairly universal belief that the underlying hate that created the Holocaust was something that the world needed to do away with. And for a while, antisemites actually tried to hide their antisemitism, by taking all anti-Jewish dog  whistles and applying it not to individual Jews, but to the only Jewish State.  They would say that they are not antisemitic, but anti-Zionist.

In response to this perversion of reality the Jewish Agency, run by human rights legend Natan Sharansky came up with the concept of the 3Ds to show when criticism of Israel descends into antisemitism:

Demonization. When the Jewish state is being demonized; when Israel’s actions are blown out of all sensible proportion; when comparisons are made between Israelis and Nazis and between Palestinian refugee camps and Auschwitz – this is anti- Semitism, not legitimate criticism of Israel.

Double standards. When criticism of Israel is applied selectively; when Israel is singled out by the United Nations for human rights abuses while the behavior of known and major abusers, such as China, Iran, Cuba, and Syria, is ignored; when Israel’s Magen David Adom, alone among the world’s ambulance services, is denied admission to the International Red Cross – this is anti-Semitism.

Delegitimization: when Israel’s fundamental right to exist is denied – alone among all peoples in the world – this too is anti-Semitism. (cite)

Moreover, this antisemitic assault against the only Jewish State has led to the new International definition of  antisemitism. This definition has been adopted by several European countries, the USA, even the new Secretary General of the UN. (Here, Here, Here, Here) At present it should be noted, that a bill is presently stalled in the US Congress adopting this definition for the purpose of hate crimes legislation, and to provide civil rights protection for Jewish-American students in the US.

Manifestations might include the targeting of the state of Israel, conceived as a Jewish collectivity. However, criticism of Israel similar to that leveled against any other country cannot be regarded as antisemitic. Antisemitism frequently charges Jews with conspiring to harm humanity, and it is often used to blame Jews for “why things go wrong.” It is expressed in speech, writing, visual forms and action, and employs sinister stereotypes and negative character traits. Contemporary examples of antisemitism in public life, the media, schools, the workplace, and in the religious sphere could, taking into account the overall context, include, but are not limited to:

§  Calling for, aiding, or justifying the killing or harming of Jews in the name of a radical ideology or an extremist view of religion.

§  Making mendacious, dehumanizing, demonizing, or stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as collective — such as, especially but not exclusively, the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy or of Jews controlling the media, economy, government or other societal institutions.

§  Accusing Jews as a people of being responsible for real or imagined wrongdoing committed by a single Jewish person or group, or even for acts committed by non-Jews.

§  Denying the fact, scope, mechanisms (e.g. gas chambers) or intentionality of the genocide of the Jewish people at the hands of National Socialist Germany and its supporters and accomplices during World War II (the Holocaust).

§  Accusing the Jews as a people, or Israel as a state, of inventing or exaggerating the Holocaust.

§  Accusing Jewish citizens of being more loyal to Israel, or to the alleged priorities of Jews worldwide, than to the interests of their own nations.

§  Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor.

§  Applying double standards by requiring of it a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation.

§  Using the symbols and images associated with classic antisemitism (e.g., claims of Jews killing Jesus or blood libel) to characterize Israel or Israelis.

§  Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis.

§  Holding Jews collectively responsible for actions of the state of Israel. (cite)

Interestingly, these modern antisemites even got away with it for awhile, until they couldn’t help themselves, and they simply showed their true face. Antisemitism is on the rise globally.(This artcile was written years before October 7) It is not simply the Right, that so many in the progressive world would like you to believe.

Remember the Soviet Union was one of the most antisemitic nations in modern history, and the propaganda that they preached did not simply disappear with the demise of their totalitarian state.

The ultimate interesting question about antisemitism is why in fact does it endure? It is over 2500 years old. What is it about Jew-hatred that it rears its ugly head in every generation? It may evolve. It may morph into another “ism,” but there is always the idea that the Jew is the ultimate outsider, hell bent on domination and destruction.

People tend to need to scapegoat for their own failures. The question is why the Jews?

Scholars attempt to answer the questions: “why antisemitism,”  “where does it come from,” “who is an antisemite,” and “what is it about antisemitism that makes it so attractive to so many people?” How antisemitism portrays itself in modern political discourse when it comes to Israel and Zionism.

Remember, Zionism is simply, the right of self-determination of the Jewish people in their ancestral homeland. In fact, it is the only successful indigenous rights movement in history.

Yet somehow, the antisemitic world has decided that the Jew, among all the peoples of the world, have no right to their own freedom. According to the antisemite, the fact that the Jewish people not only took the right to their freedom, but flourish because of it, is a sign that the Jews are evil and  nefarious. For them, Jews asserting their freedom is a zero sum game. For these people, they cannot be free if the Jewish people are free. Personally all I can think of is that this is such a sad way to live, and to exist. Such hatred can only lead to war, poverty, hate, and despair. What a sad way to raise your children.

Part II

Truly, it’s almost as if we are living in some sort of purgatory. People who are fighting racism, homophobia, xenophobia , every kind of  hate-phobia, somehow have no problem with being antisemitic, or holding antisemitic attitudes. In fact, if you point it out to them, they  accuse you of racism, or this inane idea that “punching up” is not as bad as racism. Punching up, by the way, is attacking those who are considered the elite or power brokers in the world. These advocates of the “punching up” theory have decided that the world is controlled by Jews, so when you attack Jews or use antisemitism, its not as bad as if you hold racist views towards persons of color. Ignoring the historical fact that for eons Jews were marginalized in society, and it is a new phenomena in the USA that Jews are represented throughout society in every strata, field and profession. (Today they spout the oppressor versus oppressed mantra. As if that is applicable to every situation ad infinitum. We can talk about the US illiberal Left colonizing international issues in another post.)

It is truly amazing how people can justify their Jew-hatred. Somehow the progressive left (not to be confused with classical liberals, Liberals in general, or even Teddy Roosevelt progressives) has decided that since they want to make society better, of course it’s only what they think society should be, then the manifestation of medieval antisemitic dogma that is the calling card of their movement, cannot mean they are antisemitic. It means they are “woke” and see the world for what it truly means. That they are actually trafficking in nazi symbolism when it comes to the Jewish People is completely lost on them.   And of course, when you point out how they are being hypocritical, there is the “but Israel” defense of the Leftist progressives. In other words, they resort to antisemitic type immediately upon being reproached.

The truth of the matter is that antisemitism is on the uptick world wide. In fact, Jews are once again leaving Europe for greener pastures. An interesting note is that there are more Arab citizens of Israel, then there are Jews living in the entire continent of Europe. A truly sad revelation and one that is indicative of genocide. There are basically no Jews left in the Arab middle east, as they were all ethnically cleansed in the late 1940s after an upsurge of antisemitism in those countries. It was never easy to be a Jew in a Muslim country, contrary to what the Islamists will tell you. The Mizrahi Jews, like their Ashkenazi fellows, just had nowhere else to go to escape the hatred until Israel was reborn.

The interesting thing that many point out about this phenomena is that the antiIsrael advocates, those that want to destroy the Jewish state, those that make life so untenable for a Jewish community that they force the Jews from their nations around the world, these Judeophobes by holding onto antisemitic conspiracy theories and tropes, only prove the actual need for Israel.

Then of course, there is the double standard directed at Israel. Especially when it comes time for Israel to defend herself. (Gaza and the Hamas propaganda so readily accepted by the mass media and nations of the world is the case in point) This only shows that the Jews, once again, have nothing to learn from the world, and should not ever listen to any voices but their own. See, the antisemitism thrown at Israel is merely the latest evolution of antisemitism in our time.

Antisemitism, Judeophobia, Jew-hatred, anti-Judaism, keeps mutating to fit the reality of the given moment for the Jewish people. From a persecuted people that refused to accept being conquered by their “betters” aka Ancient Rome, to religious codas and proclamations (the Church, protestantism, and later Islam), to nation building conspiracisms (Protocol of the Elders of Zion), to racial dogmas, to scapegoating in general, and now to imbuing the Jewish State with all the negative attributes once saved for individual Jews, the world has merely proven once again that Jews need a safe harbor and that ultimately, we cannot rely on others to provide it for us.

That is the true irony of those that work to eradicate the Jewish state. By manifesting and trafficking in antisemitism in their movement, by belittling the antisemitic tropes that they hold dear, by singling out Israel, among all 193 nations of the world, for destruction, even when there are true gross violators of human rights around the world (China, Russia, Syria, Iran, Yemen to name just a few), they basically prove why there needs to be an Israel.

It is an interesting phenomena really when you think about it. Just how easily the world falls back into antisemitic type. Could it be that humanity is simply wired this way? Could it be that antisemitism, and racism for that matter, is passed on through our genetic code. (Junge would have a field day with this theory.) Now that doesn’t mean that hate mongering can’t be fought, and eventually eradicated. What it means is that it is not that easy and evolution takes time. It does not happen overnight.

But of course evolution is a biologically based reality. The question becomes how can we manipulate our DNA to fix our own ignorance, and manifestations of the worst of humanity? Can we even do it? Heck, is it biological in nature? Or, is antisemitism  so systemic throughout society that unless we decide to rebuild society from the ground up, it will always be with us? Historically though, every time society was on the decline either economically, religiously or politically, antisemitism and racism reared their ugly heads. So I am not certain that a dystopian future culminating in a new Eden is truly the answer, or should be the goal, in dealing with our issues.

Interesting questions with absolutely no answers. But what I do know is that antisemitism is not unique in our world. How it manifests itself is not unique in our world. What is unique is the refusal of so many to think of themselves as antisemitic, and to do something about it merely 70 years after the Holocaust. The excuses used for antisemitism are astounding, whether on the right or on the left : for the AltRIGHT the Holocaust either didn’t happen, fewer people died than is reported, or it wasn’t successful enough, and for the WOKE LEFT the Holocaust wasn’t the worst thing to ever happen to human beings, oh, the Palestinians-“add negative happenings here, just make sure you make it Israel’s fault”, and/or Jews are not indigenous to the Land of Israel, and even if Jews are, it’s been 2000 years so Jewish indigenous status means nothing.

Its funny, in a  not haha kind of way, that these two diametrically opposed political theories, white supremacy and “woke” progressivism, have one thing in common: they blame everything on the Jews, either as a people or as a nation state. Note to the otherwise wise: When you start agreeing on any topic with those who see you as a lesser human being, it is perhaps time to rethink that part of your philosophy that mirrors your haters.  Just a thought….

So in the end my take on antisemitism in our world is as follows: people have become embolden with their antisemitism. While some still try to hide it in their antiZionism, which in and of itself is antisemitic ab initio, the majority of Jews haters have come out from under their rocks and the slimy pits where they have lain for decades.  It is time to take notice. It is time to do more than whine about it. But mostly, and this is very important, it is time that Jews remember that they do not need others’ blessings in order to survive. It is our human right to live free. The fact that in the year 2024 (originally the year was 2018), we still have to explain that to the world, is what is so sad about society today.

"Never believe that anti-Semites are completely unaware of the absurdity of their replies. They know that their remarks are frivolous, open to challenge. But they are amusing themselves, for it is their adversary who is obliged to use words responsibly, since he believes in words. The antiSemites have the right to play. They even like to play with discourse for, by giving ridiculous reasons, they discredit the seriousness of their interlocutors. They delight in acting in bad faith, since they seek not to persuade by sound argument but to intimidate and disconcert. If you press them too closely, they will abruptly fall silent, loftily indicating by some phrase that the time for argument is past." - Jean-Paul Sartre