Anti-Zionism Versus Anti-Semitism: Is an Anti-Israel an Anti-Jew?
Introduction
The Jewish state of Israel is comprised of one quarter of one percent of the Middle East landmass and only 1.58% of its population; however, this state has been the target of anti-Semites and anti-Zionists since its conception in 1948 (Puder 1-3). As a result, anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism have been grouped together as synonyms in media sources and conversation across the globe, yet these two terms have very different definitions. Anti-Semitism is the hatred of Jews, while anti-Zionism is the opposition of Israel; however, these terms have been used interchangeably in many modern media sources. Despite this, there are ways to distinguish anti-Semitism over anti-Zionism
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One of the techniques used to differentiate anti-Semitism and criticisms is the 3D Test of Anti-Semitism, which was created by Natan Sharansky when he was the Israeli minister of Jerusalem and diaspora affairs (Berenbaum 336). The test features three different forms of anti-Semitism in media: demonization, double standards, and delegitimization. The first ‘D,’ demonization, refers to instances when Israelites are seen as Nazis and Palestinian refugee camps are compared to concentration camps from the Holocaust; this isn’t legitimate criticism because it only serves to display Zionists in a negative light. The second ‘D,’ double standards, can be found in sources that single out certain information on Israel that only presents a ‘half-truth,’ such as the ousting of human rights violations in Israel while ignoring similar violations in neighboring countries like Syria and Iran. The third ‘D,’ delegitimization, as discussed earlier, is seen in works that believe that Israel doesn’t have the right to exist. Irwin Cotler also proposed a set of specific qualifications that distinguish anti-Semitism from criticism of …show more content…
They publicly call for the destruction of Israel and the Jewish people. This is the case with the covenants of Palestinian terrorist groups (the PLO and Hamas) and some militant Islamic legal rulings (fatawin), as well as the Iranian threat to annihilate Israel ("genocidal anti-Semitism").
2. They deny the Jewish people's right to self-determination, de-legitimize Israel as a state, and attribute to Israel all the world's evil ("political
The author believes that the struggle of Jews vs anti-Semites is really just another form of the “rich vs poor struggle” which is existent through many societies in our modern era. The anti-Semites will take out their aggression against the Jews because Jews are an easy target. It is easier for an anti-Semite to accept that he works a hard job for little pay just to make a factory boss rich. However, the question is raised of what good would that do? The anti-Semite needs the job, so he can't quit, and causing an uproar towards his boss would only make him even more unhappy so instead, he channels his hatred in manageable ways, such as toward Jews.
According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, anti-Semitism is hostility toward or discrimination against Jews as a religious, ethnic, or racial group. There are two main types of anti-Semitism: classical anti-Semitism and modern anti-Semitism. Classical anti-Semitism is the hatred and intolerance towards Jews because of their religious differences. According to remember.org,
Anti-Semitism is the hatred and discrimination of those with a Jewish heritage. It is generally connected to the Holocaust, but the book by Helmut Walser Smith, The Butcher’s Tale shows the rise of anti-Semitism from a grassroots effect. Smith uses newspapers, court orders, and written accounts to write the history and growth of anti-Semitism in a small German town. The book focuses on how anti-Semitism was spread by fear mongering, the conflict between classes, and also the role of the government.
Anti-Semitism, hatred or prejudice of Jews, has tormented the world for a long time, particularly during the Holocaust. The Holocaust was a critical disaster that happened in the early 1940s and will forever be remembered. Also known as the genocide of approximately six million European Jews during World War II, an assassination by the German Nazis lead by Adolf Hitler.
Winter, J. (2002, Jan). The Death of American Antisemitism by Spencer Blakeslee. American Sociological Association. Retrieved Mar 2, 2014, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/3089419
Throughout history Jewish people have been discriminated against relentlessly and while one may think that the world has finally become an accepting place to live in, unfortunately the battle against discrimination still exists even in countries such as the USA. Different opposing groups such as the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) and the Knights Party have not only discriminated against people of non-white races, but they have helped promote anti-Semitism in the United States. Anti-Semitism is the hatred of or discrimination of against Jews, which according to Efron et al. “anti-Semitism was born of modern racial theories and political ideas, or for that matter with Christian anti-Semitism, fueled by distinctive theological ideas unique to Christianity” (Efron et al. Pg. 68).
Before the nineteenth century anti-Semitism was largely religious, based on the belief that the Jews were responsible for Jesus’ crucifixion. It was expressed later in the Middle Ages by persecutions and expulsions, economic restrictions and personal restrictions. After Jewish emancipation during the enlightenment, or later, religious anti-Semitism was slowly replaced in the nineteenth century by racial prejudice, stemming from the idea of Jews as a distinct race. In Germany theories of Aryan racial superiority and charges of Jewish domination in the economy and politics in addition with other anti-Jewish propaganda led to the rise of anti-Semitism. This growth in anti-Semitic belief led to Adolf Hitler’s rise to power and eventual extermination of nearly six million Jews in the holocaust of World War II.
On November 29, 1947, the United Nations voted for a partition resolution that led to the establishment of the nation of Israel in May, 1948. This was great news for Jews in Palestine and the diaspora as it meant the fulfillment of the quest for the rebirth of their nation in their previous homeland after many years of wandering (Pappe, 2006, p. 12). However, their Palestinian Arab counterparts opposed to the establishment from the start felt cheated by the international community and remained categorical that the final answer to the Jewish problem would only be solved in blood and fire (Karsh, 2002, p. 8).
Thus, anti-semitism is a way to link the Oceanian people together, especially during the Two-Minutes Hate, where Emmanuel Goldstein, a Jewish man, is ridiculed and harassed through the telescreens: “The dark-haired girl behind Winston had begun crying out ‘Swine! Swine! Swine!’ and suddenly she picked up a heavy Newspeak dictionary and flung it at the screen. It struck Goldstein’s nose and bounced off; the voice continued inexorably” (pg. 14). As well as being a derogatory term used against Jewish people for years, the use of the word “swine” barbarizes Goldstein, and by extension Jewish people, further by comparing him to an uncivilized animal (ironic, considering how in Orwell’s novella Animal Farm, pigs are the most civilized creatures on Animal Farm). In fact, Goldstein is often referred to in animalistic terms, like on page 12: “It was a lean Jewish face...a clever face, and yet somehow inherently despicable...It resembled the face of a sheep, and the voice, too, had a sheep-like quality.” The connection to sheep invokes the feeling of docility and a tendency to “go with the crowd”. In sum: Goldstein’s arguments are invalidated, tired, and ultimately, hogwash. The Party uses this anti-semitic nullification of Goldstein’s arguments and dehumanization of the Jewish people to unite the masses, and allows them to feed into the
There are many factors which lead to the Holocaust, however anti-Semitism was the greatest cause of the conflict. Anti-Semitism is the common name for anti Jewish sentiments. During Hitler was in power, anti-Semitism was used by the Nazis too carry out the Endlosung, which means “final solution to the Jewish Question” (“The Roots of the Holocaust”). However, anti-Semitism was not something that was created by Germany. Through centuries, Jews were a persecuted people. Jews have faced heavy discrimination throughout the Middle Ages, 1800s and mid early 1900s.
Greene, Ron. "Chiune Sugihara." Jewish Virtual Library: Everything you need to know from Anti-Semitism to Zionism 1995 - 1997. n.pag. Web. 18 Mar 2014.
Gottfried, Ted, and Stephen Alcorn. Deniers of the Holocaust: Who They Are, What They Do, Why They Do It. Brookfield, CT: Twenty-First Century, 2001. Print.
They have been blamed for countless economical and social problems simply because of the predisposition towards anti-Semitism that most have. To understand this predisposition is easy. It has come from years of unwillingness to assimilate by the Jews. Because of this unwillingness, the Jews have come to be recognized as different and therefore bad, because, as discussed in class, most identify easiest with what is different with the automatic assumption that it is bad. I think another reason for this assumption is the fact that it is easier to judge people than to understand them, as we can clearly see gentiles have done continuously throughout history to the Jews.Consequently, throughout history, the anti-Semite has come to adopt an "idea of the Jew", of his nature, and of his role in society.
"The Sources of Anti-Semitism - Anti-Semitism, News from the Middle East - SPME Scholars for Peace in the Middle East." SPME. The Filmmakers Newsletter, n.d. Web. 05 May 2014.
This group was created in 1978 and continues to expand its power today. It began as a branch of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood. This terrorist group has several goals ranging from creating a Islamic state to continuing the armed struggle against Israeli occupation of Palestine territories. Their acts of terrorism to date have included suicide bomb attacks against Israeli civilians to attacks on suspected Palestinian collaborators.