We Need to Talk about Antisemitism

Paris, France elections poster for self-described anti-semitic candidate Adolphe Willette: "The Jews are a different race, hostile to our own... Judaism, there is the enemy!" 

The atrocities Hamas has carried out against the people of Israel—along with the support Hamas has gotten in the Free World and on top of the rising surge of antisemitism since the attacks—have been something of a system shock to me.

These sets of revelations are second in shock only to election night 11/8/2016. The feelings of betrayal are second to the worst night of my life as well.

I know this is strange for someone who is not Jewish themselves, but it has been a long time since I have felt betrayed like this.

Fact of the matter is that despite the cost, I support primarying members of the Squad and other Democrats who make excuses for America’s enemies overseas, primarily Representative Rashida Tlaib of the Michigan 12th Congressional District. Her refusal to correct lies about a hospital strike helped an already bad situation get much worse, and I suspect that the murder of Rabbi Samantha Woll is an antisemitic hate crime Representative Tlaib helped to fuel. Pretty damning no matter how you look at it.

By the way, it turns out that the explosion in the hospital parking lot was due to Hamas being careless with its rockets and lying, killing dozens of Gazans, not hundreds.

Tragically, all of this Jew hate lead to a murder in Los Angles by pro Palestinian demonstrators. His name is Paul Kessler. Remember his name.

But why let little things like facts, context, and empathy get in the way of bashing Israel and Jews more broadly?

It turns out there is an explanation.

Comparing Antisemitism and Anti-Black Racism

Before we begin, it is vital to point out that substantial differences exist between these two oldest systemic prejudices in the Western world.

For starters, the ugliest stereotypes about Jews and Black Americans are quite different, though no less repugnant.

It is not helpful to ask which is worse because both types of racism have resulted in some of the worst crimes in human history, in particular the transatlantic slave trade and the Holocaust. However, I would argue that in the United States and the Western Hemisphere more broadly, African Americans have taken much larger hits from anti-Black racism because of how institutionalized it is and the legacy of slavery. This is not to say that antisemitism lacks institutionalized roots in the United States; it’s just that anti-Black racism runs deeper and hits harder. For all the discrimination and systemic racism that Jews have faced in the United States and the Western Hemisphere more broadly (and, it turns out, continue to face), they have never faced genocide or chattel slavery in the New World (unlike in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East, where they have faced genocide).

But I selected racism against Black people primarily because it has a number of vital similarities with Jew hate and it’s a frame of reference most people will understand, if only on an intellectual level.

For starters, both of these types of hate are foundational to the far right and White supremacist ideologies. They see both groups of people as foundational threats that need to be eliminated, albeit in different but equally vile ways. With the rise of this repulsive system of beliefs, it is important to understand that both groups are primary targets for terrorists.

But the most vital similarity between the two types of institutionalized discrimination is that both attract people who will damage themselves to pursue this type of prejudice. Not only does it explain historically how the worst policies the United States has enacted that have hurt Black people received popular support (and still do) among White people, it also explains why there are LGBT groups that exist to promote the Palestinian cause, along with feminist groups who ally with Hamas. Their antisemitism is so strong they will ally with monsters in their hatred for Jews. This applies to both the far left and far right.

Fundamentally, Antisemitism Is Irrational

Just like all types of bigotry, prejudice, and racism.

Don’t get me wrong—people make material gains out of prejudice, along with using these prejudices to gain/hold power. But at the end of the day, there is no basis in reality for the stereotype that Jews secretly rule the world, are exceptionally greedy, or are otherwise responsible for the world’s problems.

People who work to attack Jews know what they are doing. They just don’t care about the costs to themselves or others.

Being for Hamas while being LGBT, a woman, and especially a Jew is like being a chicken for KFC.

Painful as it is to admit, there is a serious antisemitism problem among America’s higher ed institutions and social justice circles. Signs calling for the genocide of Jews and chanting for Jews to be gassed in both cases by a disturbingly large number of people can’t be dismissed out of hand.

In addition, we have Democrats in office (along with the entire Republican Party) who don’t value Jewish Americans or Israeli lives despite what Republicans might say. It will shock you to learn that these Democrats tend to be members of the left flank, in particular the DSA.

What To Do about This

Based on various factors on top of the antisemitism that has proliferated, I would support defunding Ivy League schools who permit the call for Jews to be wiped out or permit harassment of Jewish students, staff, and faculty. Donors are already taking these types of steps for institutions like Harvard. That money should instead go to state universities, historically Black colleges, and community colleges. Law and medical schools could use the money too.

Unfortunately, many groups that claim the mantle of Black Lives Matter must also be defunded for this exact reason.

To be clear, the work to eradicate systemic racism against Black Americans must not be set back because some people who claim to be fighting for Black lives have horrific judgment (if I am being generous). The same goes for efforts to improve access to reproductive health care and support for the LGBT community. So instead of defunding these causes entirely, we need to be more careful about which organization we lend support and money to avoid funding antisemites.

More discretion is required, not pretending that the problems of systemic racism in the criminal justice system don’t exist.

As for the folks of a generation younger than me, it’s clear many don’t understand the gravity of what the Holocaust entailed or the shameful history of antisemitism, both at home and abroad.

Judaism as an ethnicity, legal system, and religion has a ton of fascinating insights and ways of looking at life, not to mention being the precursor to Christianity and Islam. It is a topic we should all learn more about.

I ask you all to look for candidates aiming to primary Representative Rashida Tlaib, chiefly because she has proven to be such a headache that I would argue she is worth the trouble of getting out of office. There are plenty of arguments for the other members, but her actions in these last few weeks have made her the official who needs to be booted out of office the most on the Democratic front. In the meantime, I will keep my eyes open for other primary challengers for the Squad and their adjacent travelers.

Do not spread images of the crimes that Hamas has committed against the people of Israel. Not only are they revolting, but they can serve to traumatize Jewish people even further. Think about how many Black Americans said that seeing videos of Black people getting brutalized was traumatizing, then apply that to Jewish people when it comes to Hamas and its atrocities. The press has been treating these atrocities like a Hollywood film, which shows even further rot.

It’s more evidence for the prosecution that the Fourth Estate (along with social media) is beyond redemption.

Terms like genocide, colonialism, and apartheid are not just words you can throw around; they are real-life horrors that too many people trivialize in the name of demonizing the state of Israel. It is evident that much more education on real-life instances of genocide is sorely needed, including the genocide of Native peoples in the Americas. In addition, the Free Palestine movement clearly does not understand what Jim Crow laws in the American South actually entailed (along with other forms of anti-Black racism in the Americas), along with the system of apartheid in South Africa. Neither do they actually appreciate the real harm that systemic racism still does today.

In the meantime, make sure to follow Jewish people and listen to what they have to say. One of my favorite people on this front is sexuality educator and former TV personality Dr. Logan Levkoff. Not only do I wish she had been my sex ed teacher in high school, she has done so much to open my eyes about the reality of antisemitism in America and the world.

The rise of antisemitism must be fought back against.

No more sitting on the sidelines.

Postscript

Representative Cori Bush of the Missouri 2nd Congressional district has a challenger, and an excellent one at that, Wesley Bell. I will give a full introduction later, but his story and record are incredible. More information is coming soon. For now, here is the usual. 

Wesley Bell, Running for the Missouri 2nd Congressional District: Website | Donation | Facebook | Twitter

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