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I've seen a lot of posts on this site that are leaning into anti semetic tropes while criticizing Israel. I want to point it out so that folks can recognize it.

First, because I have to say it:

Israel is a colonial outpost of the United States. It was created by Britain and inherited by the US. The US gives Israel ~3,000,000,000 USD in aid every year. As a colony, it should be the goal of every socialist to destroy it, just as we seek the destruction of the US, Northern Ireland, South Korea, Canada, the Phillipine state, etc.

But! Israel is also a safe haven for Jews. This is seperable from the colonial nature of the state. Israel could have been created in Germany or Siberia or frankly Florida for that matter (in fact, annexing Florida to create a new state of Israel is what I mean when i refer to "the one state solution"). In many ways, the US with its civil rights act serves the same purpose, and in fact, most Jews live in the US.

Many of us had ancestors in Germany or Poland during the holocaust who did not stick around after the war. They saw Israel as their best shot at safety in the wake of the holocaust. Many Israelis are liberals, hoping to vote out Likud, stop supporting settlements, and negotiate palestinian statehood. These people are advocating half measures, sure, but they are not our enemies.

So I wanted to point out some anti-semetic tropes I've seen on this website and call them out so you can recognize them.

Conflating Jews in Israel with Zionists.

This can be done through omission. If you aren't clear whether you're talking about jews or a specific institution (for example, the I"D"F or the settlements or Likud), many people will read your statement as being about Jews. Be careful with the word "they"

erasing the ambivalent position of jews within colonialism / conflating jewishness with whiteness

The zionist entity is not a Jewish colonial project, but an Anglo colonial project. It was created by the British and now is funded by the US Americans. Jews are an oppressed minority whose oppression is leveraged against other oppressed peoples. Similarly to how the US uses Kurds to Balkanize Iraq or The Hmong to wage counterinsurgency in Laos, it's uses Jews to destabilize the Levant.

Outside of the US, jews are largely understood as a racial group and oppressed on that basis. Especially in the Arab world where the Islamic hyper nationalism has gained ground in response to colonialism and been funded further by colonialists to their own ends (google "the safari club" or "Israel funds Hamas")

Blood Libel

This one is the assertion that Jews are uniquely bloodthirsty / murder non Jewish children. The classic example of this myth that people are familiar with is Runplestiltskin.

It is true that the IDF under the direction of Likud and the US state is murdering many Gazans, the majority of whom are children. but! be careful to specify. When people talk about "jews" or "israelis" generally as perpetuating the murder of children, they are engaging in the blood libel trope. Again, be careful with the word "they" and specify which entities you're talking about.

calling for ethnic cleansing

Okay, wtf ya'll. It's not jews as an ethnicity that are oppressing Palestinians, it is US imperial power. Jews have always lived in Palestine and the occupation only began in the 40s as part of a British initiative.

Jews will always be part of a palestinian state, and frankly need protections as ethnic and religious minorities. We do not seek the expulsion of Jews from Palestine, but their integration into it as citizens.

Jews are safe in the US not because its a colonial state but because of civil rights protections and generational wealth. If we can create civil rights protections in Palestine and a social safety net (ideally communism but I'll settle for social democracy), then jews will be safe in Palestine.

Jewish control of America / protocols of the elders of zion

America controls Israel and not vice versa. APEC is not a cabal brainwashing otherwise Nobel Christian politicians. US politicians support Israel because they're colonial politicians and Israel is our colony. APEC exists because lobbying is how power is exercised in the US, but if we had patronage instead, APEC' functions would be carried our by a governor or an ambassador or whatever.

conclusion

Recognize the role of the US empire in Palestinian oppression. Recognize that jews are in an ambivalent racial category and are an oppressed people. Be specific when criticizing Israeli colonialism. Name who you're criticizing, is it the settlements? The IDF? Likud? The US military Industrial Complex? Stop calling for ethnic cleansing of jews if you've been doing that. Don't equate jewishness with whiteness / the Nazis. White people are white people, the US is the Nazis.

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[-] SexMachineStalin@hexbear.net 48 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

"Antisemite" is basically another word for "whataboutism". Also actual anti-semites get the barbara-pit too

And since the Apartheid in South Africa ended 30 years ago, accusing anyone critical of apartheid rule of being a communist sympathizer grew out of fashion, so there was an "urgent" need to find a new label

say the line, bart

Semi-joking aside, I know where to not point the finger at. On the contrary also, it's the people who make this accusation who themselves let it slip. The irony isn't lost when the likes of Miko Peled and Ronnie Kasrils, along with groups such as SAJFP, JVP and B'tselem consistently get pelted with the "antisemite" accusations on the regular.

[-] Nagarjuna@hexbear.net 13 points 1 year ago

Do you think I'm acting in bad faith?

[-] Vncredleader@hexbear.net 49 points 1 year ago

Instead of a callout to nothing in particular, report specific comments or give examples. Cause I've seen nothing of the sort here

[-] Commiejones@hexbear.net 8 points 1 year ago

We have the best mods don't we folks?

[-] Hexbear2@hexbear.net 41 points 1 year ago

bad faith

Yes. 100%.

Concern Trolling; False assumptions based on lack of foundation; Lib shit moral grandstanding; probably propaganda.

[-] hotcouchguy@hexbear.net 24 points 1 year ago

I think that through no fault of the left, this are a lot of hidden dangers to be aware of.

First, there are actual antisemites around. I expect there's not many on hexbear, but we can't let our guard down.

Next, fascists use so many tropes and dogwhistles and euphemisms that one can easily stumble into using one accidentally. And even when avoiding those, one can easily be misinterpreted by people who are understandably on alert. And we can also be intentionally misrepresented by zionists or imperialists or others acting in bad faith.

In this context, a post like yours could be read as an accusation or a slander or an attempt to start conflict. I don't think that's your intention and I think you were clear in your writing so it would be hard to read it that way. But most of us have experienced a lot of bad faith accusations this week (often from people with power over us) so we're on guard for that as well.

[-] Catradora_Stalinism@hexbear.net 22 points 1 year ago

yes, maybe even unintentionally, but still bad faith

[-] ilyenkov@hexbear.net 20 points 1 year ago

I think you're being a disgusting lib, even if you're being 100% sincere

[-] SexMachineStalin@hexbear.net 18 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Nah mate. It's pretty well-written in case someone doesn't know how to properly approach these points, so they don't make the mistakes listed (and unintentionally giving the "opponent" ammunition).

[-] berrytopylus@hexbear.net 16 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

I think it's a good post honestly, main critique is that it feels accusatory like "I gotta teach you all to not be anti semitic because you currently are" ya know?

But I'm not sure how to get rid of such a tone so maybe it's unavoidable. I totally agree with you though that this shit is messy and you need to be hyperspecific in criticisms.

this post was submitted on 17 Oct 2023
142 points (100.0% liked)

chapotraphouse

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