In a recent social media conversation about the affect that demonstrations were having on the Jewish community, one person asked me what considered to be the parameters of antisemitism, in other words, how did I define it?
I think the reasoning behind such questions is that the context of the marches and demonstrations has been the war in Gaza. The concern I’ve heard many people raise is that accusations of antisemitism are levelled in effect to silence criticism of Israel, particularly in regards to her treatment of the Palestinian people.
Now, I have consistently argued that Israel is not above criticism and it is not antisemitic to critique specific Israeli regimes, policies and individuals. Nor incidentally do I think it is antisemitic to disagree with Judaism, either as an entire religious system or specific aspects of it. Indeed, I’m cautious about the conflation of religious disagreement with racism. For the same reason, I find the label “Islamophobia” unhelpful. We should be able to challenge and critique Islamic teaching and practices freely, just as Christians should welcome scrutiny too. The issue with Islamophobia is that sometimes attacks on Islam are used as cover for prejudice against Middle Eastern and South Asian people groups. This is similar to the way in which “anti-Zionism” is used as a cover for antisemitism.
So, I thought it would be helpful to write a refresher on what antisemitism is and isn’t. First of all, it is important to be clear that the word “antisemitism” was coined specifically to refer to “Jew-hate”, it is racism against one specific ethnic group. Whilst there are other ethnic groups that use semitic languages, this is not what antisemitism is about, although there can be racism targeted against such groups, these tend to take on specific forms.
The Jews have particularly been the target of conspiracy theories, and this has been true throughout history. Rumours have abounded that they exercise undue, shadowy and malign influence and power. Jews then find themselves blamed for many of the ills in the world and society. Christians must bear some responsibility as at times in history, Jess have been held responsible as a race for the rejection, persecution and death of Jesus, even though Scripture makes it clear first that all humanity are culpable and secondly that it was “the Lord’s will to crush him.”
Antisemitism has been seen throughout history with Jews being persecuted and expelled from various countries. European countries including the UK have a poor track record and whilst we particularly think of the holocaust as the most egregious example, it is not the only one and nor did persecution of Jews end with the defeat of Hitler. In fact, in the late 1940s, Jews were expelled from Iran and a number of Arab world countries too.[1]
The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA offered this working definition of antisemitism in 2016 which has been widely adopted.
“Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.”[2]
Note that antisemitism can be targeted against individuals and institutions, people and property. It is possible to direct it against non-Jews too. This is because as I have observed and even experienced, there is a presumption at times that anyone who holds particular views on matters such as Israel or speaks up against antisemitism may find that others assume this is because they are Jewish or under the aforementioned malign, shadowy influence of shadowy cabals.
The working definition goes on to provide some descriptive examples of what might amount to antisemitism These are as follows.
- 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.[3]
Some of these examples are overt and obvious. Some may not be so obvious but a little bit of thinking can help us to see why. To compare Jews and their institutions to the Nazis is in effect to weaponise their own suffering and persecution against them in a way that cheapens and belittles the suffering they experienced.
Points 6 and 7 are perhaps the most controversial. It is at this point that you will hear people say that they are not “antisemitic”, they are “anti-zionist.” Yet, this strikes at the heart of the issue. To deny a people their right to self-determination and nationhood is to treat them materially different to all other people groups. It is to treat them with suspicion as though we believe that there is something about their nature which makes it impossible for them to self-govern. It is to demean their culture and to deny their history.
This is in fact what frequently happens. Since October 7th, I’ve frequently seen people re-writing the history of Israel and Palestine to erase:
- The continuous presence of Jews in the land for 3000 plus years up until 1948.
- The impact of the Ottoman and other prior empires on Jewish people
- The 1947 UN agreement regarding the territory under the British Mandate.
- The attempt by surrounding nations to thwart the UN’s decision concerning Israel and to ethnically cleans Israel from the land.
- The ethnic identity and heritage of European Jews with the conspiracy theory circulated that they were not true Jews. This is despite there being no logical reason for a mass conversion of Europeans to an identity which would lead to their persecution and that there is no historical record of such.
- The fact that other surrounding nations such as Egypt and Jordan were also culpable in the failure to establish a two state solution.
In this context, chants such as “From the River to the Sea” are an example of antisemitism because they deny the reality of a Jewish nation and its right to exit.
Antisemitism may be expressed overtly and directly. However, we have become increasingly aware of how racism may be systemic/structural and how people may have unconscious bias towards an ethnic group. We should be alert to the ways in which antisemitism may be systemic/structural and how people may have unconscious bias towards Jewish people too.
If you are against racism, then you should be against antisemitism. This also means that instead of us asking where the parameters are so that we can push the boundaries, our aim should be the opposite and to think in terms of how we can act positively towards Jews and Jewish communities.
[1] Jewish exodus from the Muslim world – Wikipedia
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