Thank you Roger! I can think of nothing to add.
12
Thank you, Roger. Clearly and movingly articulated. The stench of historic British anti-Semitism infesting so much of what should should be rational legitimate criticism of successive Likud-led Israeli governments only reinforces the worst fears and instincts of the Israeli Jewish majority which strongly supports Bibi and his demagogic demonization of not just Palestinians, but the large significant and proudly Zionist minority of Israeli Jews who genuinely believe in a two-state solution still as Israel's only option for survival as a secure majority-Jewish democracy.
6
Far from being antisemitic, criticizing Israel is the most "Jewish" thing a person of any religion can do. It is incumbent upon Jews and all moral peoples to criticize and bare witness to the actions of the powerful.
Insisting that Israel does not have a right to exist, or that a Jewish State (sitting in the midst of many Islamic Republics- some of which won't even admit Jews) is somehow immoral, is unquestionably antisemitic. The essence of racism and bigotry is holding one group to a different standard than another.
There are many countries who do reprehensible things and should be held accountable for their actions. But only Israel's legitimacy- it's very existence is routinely called into question.
11
Leftists can find racism when kids look at a Native American the wrong way, but they refuse to see anti-semitism when it is right in their faces. As a Jew, I am scared for my future in the United States. Thank God Israel exists and can defend itself.
20
Is this about the vagaries of human nature ? Hamas, the PLO, and the belligerent sector of the Palestinians spawned Nentanyahu. (By the way, when I was growing up the term "Palestinian" meant "Jew"). Now, Nentanyahu and the belligerent (religious) sector of the Israelis have spawned a resurgence of the anti-Semites (no, it doesn't take much to bring them out of hibernation).
1
So you're going to label the entire labour party as anti-semitic? ok....
6
Israel doesn’t exist in order to provide the world with some Kumbaya notion of ‘good Jews’. Israel exists to restore the right to self-determination of the Jewish Nation upon their own indigenous ground...a refuge from centuries of persecution, dhimmitude, and genocide.
As their country is surrounded by hostiles who aim to reenact their forebear’s 7th century conquest of the Levant, Israelis do what they must to defend themselves and their sovereignty. There’s not a nation on earth that would tolerate for even 1 year what Israel has had to endure for more than 70 years. The United States certainly wouldn’t ....and didn’t!
21
"a two-state solution.... to escape the insidious moral corrosion of dominion."
Here's the conundrum. The state of Israel is the fault line that bedevils the Left. She is everything "progressives" loath about the past (sovereign, militaristic, rightwing), and yet, because of familial connection to the Holocaust, commands the allegiance of the Jewish Left. Israel, for the EU (the latest incarnation of Leftwing ideology), is a constant irritant (there is no pro-Israel block anywhere in Europe), the unwanted stepchild foisted upon them by the Holocaust. This resentment is the cause of the eruptions that vent with increasing frequency. The Program simply cannot accommodate a smaller version of all they loathe in regressive America. Enter the new crop of "progressives" in Congress. Israel represent everything they loathe about America, and they have the closest kinship with Corbyn Inc. "Progressives" see the world as "evil-neutral", lacking only the right "Deal" to set things right. Like the EU, they are embarrassed by the insidious moral corrosion of "sword-bearing," the dirty work of governing, not realizing that the hand that rules the US must swear to use the Button when necessary. Here is already the greatest abdication of progressive values. Obama could have prevented the death penalty by pardon. He chose not to. But "social justice" and identity politics cannot dismiss the Palestinian cause and remain credible.
1
If the time ever comes that there are no Jews anywhere to be found, anti-Semites will still be found and will find a way to blame a minority (say anybody with a great-great-great-great grandparent who was Jewish). The human monster will always need a scapegoat.
8
There’s no mistaking Antisemitism from the right. But the Left’s Antisemitism is much more insidious given that they attempt to disguise it behind the shield of fashionable anti-Israel rhetoric. University campuses across the US and Europe are showcases for this mendacious ideology.
Israel’s enemies, having failed to destroy the country militarily, have been quite adept at advancing their agenda via terror, ahistorical cultural appropriation, and propaganda....and the Left has bought into this sinister narrative lock, stock, and barrel.
16
There are anti-semites in the world, and when they open their mouths and opine about Israel, to suggest that all of a sudden they become enlightened and lose all prejudice is beyond absurd.
10
As a life-long anti-racism activist, I have for years been correcting the language of friends and colleagues who criticize the acts of Israel by referring to the "Jews" and telling them how racist that is and that they should instead criticize the Israeli government or the Zionists. Now, it has been confirmed by the powers that be that to be "anti-Zionist" is just as racist as being an "anti-Semite". We need to invent new vocabulary. Am I racist for being in solidarity with the people of Gaza? In any case, the policies of the Netanyahu government are minimally equally responsible for the increase of any world-wide sentiments of "anti-Zionism" (henceforth known as "anti-Semitism"). Why doesn't Roger Cohen mention Netanyahu's political alliance with the openly racist Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Strength) party as just the latest Israeli contribution to the growth of "anti-Zionism"?
10
Israel claims - as the 'Jewish state' - to be the true manifestation of Judaism and Jewishness. Does any mayor Jewish organization object? Does Roger Cohen object?
Therfore its logical that an attack on Israel and her policies is anti-Jewish / anti-Semitic.
3
Focussing on "Jewish oppression of Muslims" and not "Arab oppression of fellow Muslims", or "Chinese oppression of Muslims" or "Serbian oppression of Muslims" is, by definition, anti-Semitism. This is the trap liberals in the Western world have fallen into, neatly set for them by Palestinian strategists. Israel is wrestling with complex existential problems for which there are no obvious answers. Eventually the BDS movement will persuade liberals that Israel has no right to exist. Jews will be expected to lay down their arms and surrender, a repeat of their surrender to their terrible fate in Europe in the 1930s and 1940s. Should a Jewish state disappear, Jews will live, assimilated, as citizens in other countries, until their fellow citizens decide they dont want Jews there any longer, as will inevitably happen, as it has always happened. For this short period in history, Jewish existence and safety is anchored by the state of Israel. Let liberal Jews who are drawn into questioning its existence beware: the very existence of themselves, their offspring, and their offspring's offspring, is under threat. One expects all liberal Jews will have studied the events leading up to the European Jewish Holocaust. In particular, the fact that Jews, going about their daily business, hard working, many professionals and academics, many having served in their countries's armies during WW1, became "undesirables " in the apparent safety of their home countries....
16
As is often the case, the Brits are a little bit ahead of us. Corbyn's wink and nod anti-semitism is a first cousin to the left in this country refusing to criticize those who support Farrakhan who has called Jews termites, dogs and pigs.
As Farrakhan's vile utterances are the very definition of rabid anti-semitism, the argument from the left was we can't let the right divide us, so we have to respect those who support him or refuse to disavow him.
When a sitting Congresswoman criticizes American Jews for dual loyalty (anti-semitism 101 which has stood the test of time) the left shrugs. But not to worry, I am sure we will catch up to Corbyn and his ilk soon enough. This is America after all.
13
A Jewish homeland already exists. It's called Israel.
4
It surprising that Mr Cohen should have decided that most of the racist anti-Semitism that he relates comes from “the left” and from a Party whose previous leader was Jewish and whose leading candidate for the next leader, should Corbyn falter, is also Jewish.
6
Anti-Israel is not anti-Semetic!
8
World's Jewish population Sept. 1, 1939: 16.8 million of 2.2 billion total world population.
World's Jewish population May 8, 1945: 11 million of 2.2 billion worldwide.
World's Jewish population March 1, 2019: 14.9 million of 7.6 billion world wide.
If all of us Jews stayed up 24 hours a day and worked 7 days a week, every week, even month, every year, we could not do what those who hate us say we do or achieve the influence they claim for us.
We remain, in places like Poland which once had 3 million Jews and today has perhaps 30,000, the excuse for everyone else's failures and the object of their own self-hatred.
So, yes, Jeremy Corbyn, a man whose politics have always been marked by anger, bitterness and alienation -- Jeremy Corby can say what he wants but he is a gut-ignorant Jew hater because that is what we should call anti-semites.
14
Same Anti-Semitic problem is happening in the US in the so-called Progressive wing of the Democratic Party.
14
I'm not surprised about what is going on with Labour; despite constant attempts by liberal journalists to conflate right-wing populism with anti-semitism, the vast majority of populist parties and voters are pro-Israel, and anti-Islam, especially the AfD in Germany. Which is an inevitable combination for an informed person because Islam is inherently anti-semitic and a substantial majority of mainstream muslims openly hate jews as is proven by poll after poll after poll in every islamic country and even more so(!) among second or third generation muslims in Europe.
And leftists, especially the European left, are extremely sympathetic to Islam, including radical islamists, and strongly supportive of muslim mass immigration and the palestinian cause, including violent militancy.
So there is a budding alliance between native left-wing jew haters and the growing number of islamic immigrants with their culturally inherited and deeply ingrained hatred of jews. Those people are now the main danger to jews in Europe, although there certainly are anti-semites on the right as well.
4
Bravo, and about time. Unfortunately in our current victim/oppressor culture one is only allowed to sit on one side of the binary. Hence the widespread designation of Jews as "white" - which is nonsense not only historically, but now. You don't see hate crimes against "whites" rising 74% in a year, and you don't see Nazis in Charlottesville chanting "whites will not replace us."
It's a trend that comes from the US, with its poisonous combination of a) insistent racialization of every discourse, b) incapacity for complex thought, i.e. holding more than one idea in mind at the same time, and c) belief that its own local problems are universal. Isn't it weird that, when it comes to the Palestinians, Americans (Jews and non-Jews alike) think that their local version of "civil liberties" is the only way a country can or should work? That these are universal values? What extraordinary hubris.
5
Anti-Zionism does not equal anti-Semitism; I have seen Hasidim at the UN protesting the existence of the State of Israel because it wasn't established by the Messiah. Anti-Semitism is independent of a Jewish Homeland and always will be. Being surprised that Christian Europe hasn't relinquished 2 millennia of anti-Semitism is like being surprised that the American South is still bigoted against Blacks. Jeremy Corbyn and the Labourites (sounds like a 1960s British Invasion band) are merely following tradition in a continent that only 80 years ago slaughtered 6 million Jews. The United Kingdom couldn't even stomach the reason for the creation of the European Union; to integrate Europe in an effort to prevent any future European wars. And you expect them to give up a 2000-year-old tradition of hating the Jews?
5
Well said Barry, and not just because of "Jeremy Corbyn and the Labourites (sounds like a 1960s British Invasion band)." I am especially appreciative of you taking note of the very troubling disintegration of the "European Project."
In case you're interested, here's a comment I made on the subject.
"The European Project was a truly noble experiment to fundamentally alter the circumstances that had produced the incredible carnage of World War II. Slowly, transnational institutions were formed to create interdependence, while making clear the advantages of such. Unfortunately, the leadership missed the signal of the Balkan wars that all was not working, and so when the challenges of mass migration, terrorism, and disconnected monetary and fiscal policy struck, leaders were unprepared. Nor did they realize that the imperatives WW II had created meant little to younger generations.
Meanwhile, the Brexit vote should have been a wake-up call for the Democratic Party that there were things going on below the surface in the West that leaders had been missing. Ditto for Western Europe. However, the out of touch, generally globalist elites were so busy talking to each other that they simply missed what was happening with their own nationals. Thus Trump in America, nativist autocrats in Eastern Europe, electoral dysfunction in Southern Europe, and the advancing electoral far Right in Northern Europe."
3
In 1947 the Palestinians were given a homeland as was Israel. The Palestinians along with the Arab allies went to war and lost. They went to war in 1967 and 1973 and lost. They use their children as suicide bombers. They could have turned the Gaza strip into the Singapore of the east Mediterranean. Instead they used the aid given them to turn it into a rocket factory.
The Palestinians have dictators for leaders who loot their own people. How much money did they find in Arafat's Swiss bank accounts? 3 Billion.
France and Germany were mortal enemies until the end of WW2. When Germany became a democracy the antipathy ended. Now you go form France to Germany and there is no formal border. That will happen when the Palestinians embrace democracy and stop vowing to obliterate Israel. Israel is a democracy, a flawed democracy but still the Palestinians in Israel have more freedom than the Palestinians in Gaza.
10
As Bernard Henri Levy has pointed out for decades the new Antisemitism started back in 1967 after the six day war and has blossomed into three main themes.Holocaust denial,anti Zionism and victim competition.Most Antisemites are anti zionists.Anti Zionism is used as a recruitment for antisemites on both the left and the right.As we all know Jeremy Corbyn is openly anti Zionist.The apologists who defend Mr.Corbyn are also the same people who decry Donald Trumps racism in which they are correct.
Some time in the mid 1970s Muhammad Sid Ahmed wrote a book,After The Guns Fell Silent,in which he explained the Arab point of view what right do you have to create a non Arab,non Muslim state in the Arab nation,in the house and the holy sanctuary of Islam.Most people believe this conflict is over land.If they took the time to read the Arab discourse they would find out it is about whom.Much of this discourse has been and continues to be anti Semitic.
Sari Nusseibeh in his beautiful book once upon a country tells how Arafat walks
away from the agreement worked out by the Israelis and Palestinians."I will not be the first Arab to cede Arab land”.
So we find ourselves 19 years later with settlement expansion,the same obstinate ideas now from what’s left of the Israeli right.A holocaust denying Abu Mazen,a corrupt PA.Hamas with a charter to exterminate Jews,not just in Israel but all over the world.Not to mention mass corruption inside of Gaza.The Palestinians deserve better leaders.
7
Strong words, Mr. Cohen. But, while impugning the nation which brought us Disraeli, you don't identify any slur against yourself personally, or about which you have personal knowledge. ITV, Sky and BBC are equally vague on the subject. Also, for your allegations of anti-semitism, you seem to conflate these imaginary slurs with concerns within Israel about the growing tide of Kahanism as a threat to international and regional roadmaps for peace, and peace for Israel. Are you calling these Knesset Israelis anti-semitic? Since the essence of Kahanism and its influence on the several right wing parties in Israel is anti-arab, and arabs are a semitic people, perhaps you correct. I expect that a more tempered Roger Cohen of 30 years ago would be horrified to read your missive. I recommend you publish a correction.
2
It's about time Corbyn is called out for what he is, a blatant anti-Semite. The fact that Britain tolerates him, and anti-Semtism at all, is worrisome to say the least. France, I can understand- they are almost 20% Arab Muslims at this point and in one generation the 'yellow-vesters' will look more like hooligans at the Gaza border flying burning kites than Frenchmen with baguettes.
But England- the original land of refinement, to allow such a lecherous character as Corbyn such free reign is shameful. The Brits need to do some serious soul-searching.
6
Racial and ethnic hatred permits scapegoating. Clowns like Corbyn, etc., [you fill in the additional other names] persuade the downtrodden that the cause of their pain are Jewish people or people of color, refugees, etc. The Corbyn types rather than improving the lot of the majority of folks who live in the countries the Corbyn types profess to love, they constantly seek to divide all people. The effect of such clowns upon the soul of any country cannot be rejected wholesale because its always built upon half truths, stupidity, conspiracy theories and just plain crazy pettiness. Apparently every 70+ years, somebody must fight World War 1 and 2 because these types keep rearing their ugly, disgusting heads. The entire world of various indigenous folks deserve a homeland and there is enough space on the earth to make it so, however, life would be better if we all learned how to respect and live with one another, absent stupid Corbyn type hype and rhetoric.
1
Ever since 9/11, liberals have been adamant that even using the term “Islamic extremism” is racist. They insist that ordinary Muslims must be protected against any vague association with terrorist groups or repressive regimes and their brutal Sharia Law practices.
But when it comes to Jews, the attitude is to point at Israel, shrug, and say “hey, what do you expect”?
3
Well noted, Max!
In case you are interested, here is my own somewhat parallel comment.
"I have a thing about consistency of claimed principle. When I don't see it, I wonder whether there is an agenda other than principle behind the claim.
I can't help but wonder how many of those who voice their support for BDS of Israel, would be willing to give up their made-in-China gadgets through which they voice their BDS support. China, a major ethnic oppressor and occupier of others' lands, and not just Tibet. In fact, all one has to do is ask anyone not of the Han majority, such as a Muslim Uighur.
Is there a BDS movement against Turkey and the other countries which violently prevent Kurdish hopes for a homeland? How about Syria, Muslims killing Muslims, which makes Israel/Palestine look like heaven?
The treatment of Muslims in America has been far from ideal. However, I do not see claims in these pages that anti-Muslim words and actions here are the result of Muslims massacring around forty people in Somalia the other day or the ongoing, highly organized killing by Muslim groups in the Sahel."
Roger Cohen sees this inconsistency as anti-Semitism. I am open to other plausible explanations, but unless and until I see one, Cohen's analysis and conclusion stand.
5
I am English and Corbyn is a terrorist sympathiser...he has entertained many terrorist murdering groups.
The Labour party is full of members who hate the Jews and he has done nothing to stop this...the man is a disgrace.
Looking at a post on here it stated that the Labour party membership has surged...many of these were back in 2017 when he dangled carrots in front of the noses of Students with free University.
Today the polls are showing that if there was another General Election Labour would not win with Corbyn as leader and that the Tories will still get in.
The British will no way vote Corbyn in...he is not fit to lead anything.
4
Jew hatred is the European mainstream. And has been for almost 2000 years. Anti-anti-semitism was nothing but a late 20th century fad.
It's nothing personal. Jew-hatred is most virulent in such Judenrein places (or nearly so) as Poland and Spain.
4
No Brexit people can keep it from happening by getting the usual people, like Cohen and other editorial writers to foment division in the labor party. referendum comes within the next 4 weeks from the Labour Party. A group of hooligans that got Brexit to pass is at it again, to make sure it will not reverse. Thanks NYT op ed guy, for joining the band wagon. I could argue that 6 MP in Labor are Jewish, just not zionist.
1
Unfortunately anti Zionism is too often linked to anti Judaism. After the pogroms in the pale area of Russia, the Zionists began looking for a home land. They set their eyes on Palestine. With the backing of the Balfour declaration thousands of foreign Jews moved to Palestine,and that’s how they were viewed by the indigenous Arabs -as foreigners. The Palestinians of today resent the fact that their homeland was taken from them by these foreigners. This is not anti Judaism.
5
a white working class die-hard class warrior who voted for Brexit ( too many migrants in the country) said this to me :" I just don't get this antisemitism thing...nobody talks about the Jews or semitism anywhere down the pub or anywhere. Never ever . In all my life Ive never come across anti-antisemitism or a word said about Jews"
Yet here we are reading this article.
Corbyn has always fought unpopular but ultimately validated battles ( eg Sinn Fein contacts) . The establishment never cared or found a problem until he has become a credible possibility. Now all of a sudden we are told that they have a deep rooted problem . Baloney. You can almost divide the Western political World into those that supported the wars in Libya , Syria and Iraq ( and the chaos they created) and those that were against them ( Corbyn). Anti-semitsm is the mud the old guard is trying to get to stick to Corbyn to halt him in his tracks. Really desperate stuff. And to build an article and argument around it like Cohen has done is simply worthless.
56
@Javaid Akhtar -- Hear, Hear!
There has been a growing number of people who consider themselves liberal progressives who would never in a million years think or act in an anti-semitic manner, not actively or passively, and it is these people who are frustrated, angry and becoming outraged at neoliberals and neoconservatives playing the anti-semitism card.
Not unlike the gentleman who says he hasn't heard of any such bigotry at the pubs, I have heard progressives complain that "playing the anti-semitism card" is a viral public relations strategy cooked up by Zionists. It is renowned that Zionists fear progressive liberals will care equally (or more!) for the Palestinians. Zionists do not appear to fear right-wing christians will care for the Palestinians, ever. Indeed, right-wing citizens of Europe and the U.S. are the strongest backers of the Zionist cause.
Even writing this comment is considered nowadays extremely risky because Zionists will attack me as being anti-semitic. I reject that. The Zionist cause is a political movement, Jews are humans who are like all other humans in every way. Disagreeing with the Zionist cause does not also say Jews are different as humans, disagreeing does not say they should be treated differently than any or all other humans, disagreeing says I do not believe hurting others such as the Palestinians and then denying that oppression to achieve the Zionist cause is acceptable.
It's anti-semitic to play the Semitic card.
10
What does it mean, to be anti-Semitic?
As far as I can tell, the accusation that Jeremy Corbyn hates Jews is supported mainly by the facts that Corbyn has attended the same events or otherwise associated with other persons who have been accused of being anti-Semitic. That's a mighty low standard of proof.
There are no racist or bigoted comments from Corbyn to suggest he hates Jews. Mostly, it seems like he cares about Palestinians because of their suffering. Maybe Roger Cohen doesn't sympathize with Palestinian suffering; nothing in this columns shows compassion for Palestinians.
I hope the condition of Palestinians may improve in the near future.
7
If the Liberals in Britain want to show honor in their rejection of antisemitism, they will boot out Korbyn. He has crossed so many lines he cannot be rehabilitated as a liberal leader.
3
The crux of the matter is that the author defines anti-semitism as a denial of the right of a jewish homeland in Palestine.
Labor can live with that.
2
The question is not whether Jews should have a homeland, but whether they should have SOMEBODY ELSE'S homeland. Why not give them Nevada or Mississippi?
2
Please explain how this is Palestinian homeland. Palestine was named that by romans after 70 ce after they defeated the Jews who lived there and burnt their temple. Arabs arrived in 7th century ce. Please explain how Palestinian Arabs ruled anytime in history
8
Mr. Cohen links criticism of Israel with anti-semitism but he fails to link Israel's behaviour with anti-semitism. There would be a whole lot less anti-semitism around this world if the flagship of the Jewish people stopped violating international law and started respecting human rights.
4
If you really want to understand the nature of Labour's problem with anti-Semitism, Google "Seumas Milne". Corbyn's most trusted advisor makes Jeremy seem like Moshe Dayan.
Bravo for a well done critique of both Corbyn/Labor and Israel. The problem is, that when it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck... it's a duck. It is most definitely the same old anti semitism rearing its ugly head yet again. We should continue to point out the evil done in Israel and also realize that this is a thousand years (actually more) of racist behavior. Roger Cohen has given a fair analysis. It's up to all people to act.
Israel deserves criticism for its treatment of the native Palestinian people. Criticizing Israel for this is not anti-semitic.
3
@odiggity
Arabs are indigenous to the Arabian Peninsula. They are not the ‘native’ to the Levant.
4
The rise in anti-semitism both in the USA and Europe has corresponded quite closely with Israel's spectacular growth of occupied settlements, the building of their wall, the drastically worsening of living conditions of the Palestinians (particularly in Gaza)
3
It is regrettable that the Palestinians who lost their homes, farms, orchards at the creation of Israel were not compensated for their loss. Prof. Tony Judt once said that whenever Israel behaves badly it is bad for all Jews. Since the founding of Israel the Zionist goal has been the territorial expansion of the state and the expulsion of the Palestinians. Israel has been aggressively, brutally, succeeding in that pursuit. The U.S. is seen as aiding and abetting. In all the peace talks the Palestinians have only been offered the crumbs Israel was willing to give. Holding Israel accountable would do much toward diminishing anti-Semitism.
5
Why should what Israel does or doesn’t do have any effect on antisemitism.Do we hold any other ethnic group for accountability based on grievances.Why should a synagogue be attacked in France because of what Israel does.I for one do not blame Muslims in America for what terrorism occurs here or in Europe.This is exactly what Mr.Cohen is talking about.No group should be condemned for there nationality or religion based on violence or politics elsewhere.Jews always seem to be the exception.There is no excuse for hate.
5
Yes , Jews need a homeland and they have one , albeit one that removed Palestinians from their land . This is Israel’s original sin.
Israel is the stronger party and needs to give the Palestinians their due. Problem solved .
4
I grew up not defining a person by race. I graduated in a class 800 who were my fellow classmates and friends and did not know race. I grew up with much sympathy for the holocaust and the atrocities committed.
"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities." - Voltaire quotes
The government of Israeli has been committing artocities in the peoples name and the US has for some odd reason supports these atrocities. It is not the Jewish people nor the American people, but it is done in our name by our governments and respectively by pundits like yourself.
Two wrongs do not make a right. Palestine government actors do the same.
2
"Jeremy Corbyn has allowed a demonological view of Israel "
Cohen joins the team insidiously trying to link criticism of Israel with anti-semitism.
Jeremy Corbyn champions the enforcement of international law and the guarantee of human rights. Israel is in flagrant violation of international law and engages in human rights abuse on a daily basis.
Trying to silence those that fight for justice; this is what should be demonized.
4
What Mr. Cohen failed to mention is that anti-Semitism has reared its ugly head in the mouths and actions of our own political “leaders” in Washington. The newly elected representative from Minnesota is just one example. “Anti-Zionism” has been the justification for Jew-hatred for years. Now it is becoming the norm in the halls and meeting rooms in Congress. And the silence of the leaders of both parties is deafening.
4
"Europe’s gathering Jewish question"
There is nothing new about this question. It has been around for several hundred years as 'la question juif' or 'die jüdische Frage'.
What's new is the Israel question. Israel was supposed to be a solution to the Jewish question. Obviously it isn't.
1
Zionism is a political off shoot of Judaism believing that Land of Palestine historically and religiously belongs to Jews. British Empire used it to create a political hot bed in ME. It is very simple fact, regardless of any religion belief. The land BELONGS to Palestinians. Period! Disagreeing with State of Israel and its barbaric practices against Palestinians since 1945 must be condemned forcefully ( I know it is a childish dream). This has nothing to do with Jews, because it is a political issue and not a religious problem.
We have the same issue in US with BDS movement where Israel supporters are trying to paint it as anti-semite. This has been a rotten practice by Israel's supporters to mask regime's practices.
As an interesting observation, I see Mr. Cohen and many other commentators jump to voice their concerns, but I have not seen this much support when US Muslim congresswomen go under attack by Trump and his cult.
3
@Bruce Cash
Ahistorical nonsense. The territory was a backwater province of the Ottoman Empire for 500 years...NOT ‘Arab Land’ then, and never was. The local Arab population, themselves the descendants of imperialist invaders, colonists, and 20th century economic migrants, got more than their share of the spoils after WWl. It’s called Jordan...the defacto Arab Palestinian state, occupying nearly 80% of the territory formerly referred to as Palestine.
8
Antisemitism today?
In a world in which many nations are going through powerful left/right wing tensions (trot out all the symptoms/signs of economic, political, global tension) Jewish people by circumstance find themselves in somewhat of the situation of people in the political middle or the nonpartisan, everywhere.
Jewish people as a whole are something of a "spread", something almost quantum in difficulty of description, like a citizen who refuses, in a society swinging wildly between left and right impulses, to align, to demonstrate loyalty anywhere, and therefore is suspected by all. Obviously Jewish people are not at fault here, historical circumstance is the case, but they find themselves accused on one hand of weakening nations with left wing impulses (perhaps Marx the most famous example) but on the other hand are accused of extreme right wing impulses in their forms of perpetuation (religion/marriage rites/exclusivity) not to mention in their actions as a nation, Israel.
Add the third hand, the Jew as global citizen and you get an almost mythological creature with three heads which just can't be accurately described and therefore, for that reason alone, must be defeated. People will despise something just because they can't understand it, and it certainly doesn't help the Jewish cause to have a genius like Freud explaining that to you. What a pity for the world that it cannot understand that this description of the Jew I have given is also that of the genius.
I do not think there should be a Christian country, an Islamic Republic, or a Jewish state. The combination of religion and nationalism is doubly toxic.
I
1
Roger Cohen is just beginning to wake up to the notion that excessive criticism of Israel or supporting the BDS movement leads to anti-Semitism. His argument that cricism of Israel is fair game, but Jew hatrad is not, is nothing but rubbish and very naive. Throwing Israel under the bus to save diaspora Jews does not work as history has proven again and again. Time to wake up and smell the “coffee”.
Let’s take a mature look how Israel’s behave in light of Palestinian and Arab rejectionism of Israel’s right to exist under any piece or land. The same can be applied to BDS activists and supporters who deny Israel right to self-determination. Sure Israel is not always totally and hundred percent right, but neither is any other nation on earth including the U.S. and the U.K. Just look back at the history of of Imperialism. It’s time to grow up and temper criticism and realize what it does and what it produces.
Years ago, I was very friendly with a British colleague and his girlfriend. I thought the world of them. They were quite progressive on virtually all social issues- women's rights, civil rights, environmental issues, etc. Was I blown away when one day pretty much out of the blue he asked me why "Jews don't have real jobs, like my relatives'
families who worked with their hands, coal miners?" and then his fiancée wanted to know why English lives had to be lost fighting in WWII to save the Jews...really
blew my mind... they did not think they were antisemites, I was too dumbfounded to fully answer their libels.....
4
Remarkably, many here take Cohen to task (or rather viciously attack him) for not considering the plight of Palestinians when the primary focus of Cohen’s writings for decades has been ardently pro-Palestinian, and which many considered biased against Israel. Cohen routinely wrote of how fears of anti-Semitism were "mired in the past," and how Israel, because of its actions, had lost any claim to "exceptionalism" and was "delegitimizing" itself.
So, is this is a different Roger Cohen? No. What has changed is not so much Cohen, but the world, and especially the political left to which Cohen has dedicated his life. For most of his career, Cohen either accepted or ignored a level of anti-Israeli rhetoric which many had trouble distinguishing from anti-Jewish rhetoric. However, now with the rise of violent, pervasive, and institutional anti-Semitism, it's impossible to do.
It is why Cohen reasserts all previous advocacy for Palestinians and Palestinian statehood but writes that "anti-Zionism" having crossed "into anti-Semitism should also be obvious: dehumanizing or demonizing Jews and propagating the myth of their sinister omnipotence."
It may be strange to read Roger Cohen write: "Jew hatred has re-entered the European mainstream. It makes an irrefutable case for the need for a Jewish homeland." However, it is evident Cohen has hit his limit. He'll not support a political left which embraces blatant anti-Semitism and calls for the vilification and destruction of Jews.
5
Thank you,Robert,spot on.That was a very clear and concise post.I have always felt Mr.Cohen has certainly spoken up for Palestinian suffering and Israel’s bad policies.Im afraid it has taken him a little to long to read the writing on the wall.These posts seem to confirm what he’s written.
1
To quote one of my favorite British authors:"rem acu tedigisti", Mr. Cohen!
Great article. The elephant in the room, not mentioned here, is that another factor in the rise of anti semitism here in Europe is the large influx of muslims here. And Jeremy Corbyn has yet to meet a violent islamic extremist, he wont happily call his friend
5
As the Christian descendant of a Jew, I share the doubt about this accusation. It is perfectly true that extremist left-wing politics has since the French Enlightenment fostered a hatred of Jews. As Emile Fackenheim said so forcibly in recent decades, that hatred of Jews was promoted by the efforts of the philosophes to father on Jews their hatred of Christianity, which they saw as an obstacle to their utopian fantasies. Fackenheim rightly drew a straight line from this view to Nazi anti-Semitism, and so have other historians who are conversant with the enormous complexities of modern European history. What I just cannot accept is any effort to ignore or slam away at those who see and condemn Israel's own persecutions as they become increasingly harsh and visible to the world. That inescapable fact is creating an enormous crisis of conscience for those who as I once did clamored for Israel's protection at all costs. I just can't do that anymore. Neither can a lot of other people. That is a reality nobody can wish or curse away.
35
To continue from my previous post,let me state unequivocally that the Palestinians need a state of there own.Deserve a state of there own.They must though find in there hearts to accept Israel and Jews.They must work to build relationships for peace.They must strongly speak out against there leaders who engage in hate as Jews do inside and outside of Israel.Instead of BDS on campuses,find peace programs build bridges for understanding and see each other’s pain and narratives.To work together on ideas for a two state solution.Love each other and build peace not hate.
3
That Jews need a refuge that will take them in is indisputable. Over all, immigration policies today are not that different from the 1930's. My father went to Vienna to get his medical degree in the 1930's, because of the quotas on Jews in universities in the United States. He returned just before Anschuß. Most of our Austrian relatives did not have that option. One can freely admit this and still be for the two state solution, which was negotiated in 2000.
2
I have not read anything that Corbyn said would be even remotely considered anti-semitic. If we accept that "Zionism is the nationalist movement to create a sovereign (self-ruling) homeland for the Jewish people in the Land of Israel." then Corbyn is not anti-Zionist either because he has never expressed any sentiment against the legitimacy of Israel as a Jewish State. IMO, no sane person can be against the legitimacy of Israel as a Jewish State. Although, generally, I would have difficulty in justifying a nation created solely on the basis of religion, Israel is an exception because of the historical oppression of Jewish people. The irony is that it is the Christian nations, especially in Europe, who senselessly persecuted Jewish people while praying to Christ, a Jew, as the son of God!
If the Western nations wanted to atone for their sins against the Jews then they should have carved Israel out of Germany instead of in Palestine . According to Wikipedia, "In 1914 Palestine had a population of 657,000 Muslim Arabs, 81,000 Christian Arabs, and 59,000 Jews." It was estimated that there were 542,000 Jews in Germany in 1933. Morally and logically Israel should have been created out of Germany. Britain itself systematically oppressed Jews but made the Balfour declaration not in earnest but in deceit just as they did in 1947 partitioning India to create Pakistan as a Muslim country. India has never declared itself to be a Hindu Republic though!
2
I find it worrisome how easily our journalists recognize anti-semitism elsewhere, but the rise of it in this country is so often neglected (e.g., "Jews will not replace us"). The same is true for rightwing extremism. They recognize it in Poland, Hungary, Austria, but not in the White House. Biased analysis leads to ineffective responses.
34
@Peter Schaeffer Why do you see it only on the right, when it it so visible in the Progressive wing of the Democratic Party? Why do you turn a blind eye to left wing Anti-Semitism?
9
Corbyn is a disgrace to UK politics.
It is perfectly possible to criticise and oppose Israel's politics without being antisemitic. Corbyn is not a very clever man and, coupled with his rigid thinking which hasn't matured since he was 18, he fails to understand that distinction. He may not say overtly antisemitic things but he goes out of his way to excuse or even befriend those who do.
He excuses his past links with his "friends" (his words) Hamas, Hezbollah etc as being his efforts to find a peace process but he never talked to the Israelis. He did the same with the IRA, which shows his inability to even grasp that a peace process requires the involvement of all the involved parties.
All polls show that people think he is unfit to lead the country and his popularity is limited to a very small percentage of the electorate. If he can't reach the top of the polls now, with Brexit underway, that really shows how unpopular he is.
To most Brits he is just an embarrassment and we wish he would spend more time on his favourite pastime - making jam.
1
One of the most highly recommended posts, 192 so far, is by OKAJ stating "But the problem with the idea of a Jewish state and Jewish homeland is that it, or at least interpretations of it, gives Jews rights and privileges not given to non-Jews". That is 192 NY Times readers, which means among the most liberal and educated in the country, are totally misinformed or willfully antagonistic to Israel.
Arabs living within the current state, as well as all other minorities, have total rights. While it is true that not all of the Arab population chooses citizenship (it is apparently voluntary for them) - those who do serve in the parliment, the courts, the military and have full voting rights. Arab/Muslims - even those who chose not to become citizens attend the same universities, get treated by the same doctors at the same hospitals... they can vote in municipal elections and receive social security.
Are they second class citizens in some ways? Yes. But so are millions of US citizens too as is the case in most capitalistic societies.
When offered citizenship beginning in 1967 with the capture of Jerusalem, most Palestinians chose not to become citizens. Don't blame Israel for that.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-almost-entirely-halts-citizenship-approvals-for-east-jerusalemites/
4
I have a thing about consistency of claimed principle. When I don't see it, I wonder whether there is an agenda other than principle behind the claim.
I can't help but wonder how many of those who voice their support for BDS of Israel, would be willing to give up their made-in-China gadgets through which they voice their BDS support. China, a major ethnic oppressor and occupier of others' lands, and not just Tibet. In fact, all one has to do is ask anyone not of the Han majority, such as a Muslim Uighur.
Is there a BDS movement against Turkey and the other countries which violently prevent Kurdish hopes for a homeland? How about Syria, Muslims killing Muslims, which makes Israel/Palestine look like heaven?
The treatment of Muslims in America has been far from ideal. However, I do not see claims in these pages that anti-Muslim words and actions here are the result of Muslims massacring around forty people in Somalia the other day or the ongoing, highly organized killing by Muslim groups in the Sahel.
Roger Cohen sees this inconsistency as anti-Semitism. I am open to other plausible explanations, but unless and until I see one, Cohen's analysis and conclusion stand.
Note to some here: the political agendas of Trump, AIPAC, and Netanyahu do not bear on the legitimacy of Israel or the reality of anti-Semitism any more than the NRA defines the Constitutionality of the contested right to have a gun or that Operation Rescue defines the reality of the lives of pregnant women.
3
Well said, on the need for a Jewish home.
My only question is why should it be built on the bodies of the Palestinians? As an aside, I am sure the Palestine's feel the Mr. Cohen pain.
Looking ahead to the day when all the Jews flee the unconscionable western antisemitism, will we accept the expansion of the Jewish homeland to include Jordan and the areas not currently occupied by Israel, or why not Egypt (the area from which the Jewish people were thrown out? Hope this does not happen given the wide open spaces in Australia, Canada and the USA.
An outstanding piece by Mr. Cohen. The best that can be said about Mr. Corbyn is that he is often extremely indifferent to antisemtiism and antisemites.
I think it's quite sad when it's said that Jewish people need their homeland because it's implying that the rest of us cannot educate the populace to the benefits of having Jewish people among us, and just like us in every respect. Where's the effort to educate and value all the people's of the world, and love and respect our neighbours?!
The problem with standing with Israel is that its acts are at the expense of another people. Having a homeland and a connection with the land is not disputed. As Peter Beinhart said, "Zionism is what Israel does." What Israel does is increasingly discriminatory and a denial of the human rights of Palestinians.
3
Historians of 1948 should not be forced to take a politically correct line out of fear of being charged anti-Semitic. Few states could withstand a close inquiry into the justice of their origins. But they all eventually become legitimate through time and custom. Israel has followed a path to legitimacy the way all states have. Playing the anti-Semitism card to protect its origins from historical inquiry is coercion designed to thwart free inquiry. We accept the United States as fully legitimate, but we still study the dark sides of our history.
2
What has me confused is people claiming anti-Zionism is not anti-semitism. I had four Jewish grandparents. I could be a citizen of Israel. I loathe Netanyahu's policies. I believe he's responsible for fueling the rising anti-semitism of the left. I believe in Israel's right to exist and I believe in a two-state solution. I believe the West Bank settlements are a travesty. But still, I'm somehow held responsible for the transgressions of the current Israeli regime. To be a Jew in the diaspora is to be held accountable for the abuses of the Israeli state. I denounce those abuses, but I didn't cause them! That's my experience of anti-semitism.
49
@Molly: Even the Balfour Declaration of 1917, which formed a basis for establishing a Jewish homeland in Palestine, noted that the status of Jews elsewhere should be unaffected. You are correct: you should NOT be "held accountable for the abuses of the Israeli state". But it is almost axiomatic in the Israeli political culture that diaspora Jews are obliged to support Israel, regardless of their citizenship. Numerous organizations that "support Israel" claim to speak for American Jews; others, "single-issue" in their focus, do the same. American politicians, down to absurd local levels, are held to a litmus test in this regard. When demands are made on candidates for the town council to renounce the BDS movement it's no wonder that anti-Zionism gets confused with anti-Semitism.
4
While Luciana Bergers experiences are deplorable. I dont think it has anything to do with Corbyn. There are a lot of silly people who will say offensive things on social media. I would add that the real divide in the party is a Left-Right divide, regarding supporters of former PM Tony Blair and supporters of the Corbynite Left. A Labour frontbencher last night on BBCs Question Time pointed out Corbyn had led a counterdemonstration against an anti semitic march in the 1970s. The dilemma for Corbyn is that Berger and others who have made these accusations, such as Ruth Smeeth MP, opposed Corbyn from the very beginning, as so are vulnerable to criticism that they are just criticising him for criticisms sake in a Left-Right battle.
2
Well, when you equate your government with your religion, you're asking people to be a lot more subtle and nuanced than they usually are when they're deciding what's a criticism of policy and what's a criticism of creed.
How to resolve it? I'm not sure if humanity would get along any better if organized religion were abolished, but it seems like it'd be worth a shot.
2
Jews have lived in many countries all of which have to one extent or another been inhospitable at various times -- no matter how assimilated the Jews might be. You know, as in Germany before WWII.
Synagogues usually reflected the vernacular architecture of the region; ditto food. The only thing that set the Jews apart was Judaism.
That's why Israel is a Jewish state.
Not understanding that is a willful disregarding of history.
2
Anti-Semitism is a terrible thing, and still persists in the classic forms that have nothing to do with the existence of Israel, and is intertwined with legitimate criticism of Israel. In all that I agree with Cohen. I don't know enough about British politics to totally accept his analysis of Corbyn and the Labour party, but I can't reject it out of hand.
All that said, I simply can't follow his reasoning when he says that the State of Israel is making the Jews of the world safer. If anything, the logic seems to perpetuate the anti-Semitic stereotype, that the Jews of Paris or Atlanta should think of themselves as only conditionally French or America: that their real, ultimately secure home is Israel. I understand that some Israelis promote the notion, that the whole diaspora is in some sense an error.
While I hate the idea that a Jew should feel threatened as an an outsider anywhere in the world, I think the line to fight on is the for the right of Jews to live safely where-ever they please, perfectly at home in Paris or Atlanta or Moscow. And I'm afraid that Israel is not going to be able to help a Jewish family feel safe and at home in their neighborhood in Paris: Israel can only provide a refuge when the dangers of Paris are too much. Probably sometimes fleeing to a refuge is the correct move. What a nightmare.
1
@John Bergstrom
" I think the line to fight on is the for the right of Jews to live safely where-ever they please, perfectly at home in Paris or Atlanta or Moscow."
Didn't work out too well in history, especially in places like Moscow, Paris....or Berlin.
1
"Jew hatred has re-entered the European mainstream. It makes an irrefutable case for the need for a Jewish homeland."
Just not one that engages in systemic collective punishment, and uses dog whistles during elections about the concern its Arab-Israeli population is voting...
Yes its *VERY* frustrating when anti-semitism is conflated with the policies of the *Jewish* State. However given it's long serving right wing government's constant attempts to assert its Jewishness at the expense of its minority population (and even Reform and Conservative Jewish movements, which apparently aren't Jewish enough...) combined with destructive wars against large civilian populations every couple of years -- one might excuse the outsider for not exactly understanding the difference....
It would be incredibly naive to believe the Netanyahu government doesn't facilitate anti-semitic feeling among the general population in the same way the Iranian and Saudi governments illicit similar anti-Islamic feelings. It's unfortunately a practical reality that the separation is not fully appreciated. A new, less blatantly nationalist government in Israel actually interested in engaging in a peace process would most likely modify current perceptions for the better of Israel -- and Jews, who are indelibly associated with it.
...And before any accusations of anti-antisemitism for being critical -- I was a Yeshiva boy (Orthodox) for 12 full years of my education...
8
Mr. Cohen makes an irrefutable case; Israel is made indispensable by the perennial recrudescence of anti-Semitism. That case could be even more persuasive if it omitted references to trivial (or merely alleged) incidents and to the calculated or careless comments and actions of politicians. Jeremy Corbyn resembles no one more than Donald Trump; if anything Corbyn is subtler in his excuses and denials. But racism exists everywhere, including, notably in reference to this article, in Israel. Unfortunately its current prime minister, responding to foreign anti-Semitism or criticism with Jewish triumphalism, for his own ends, only fuels the fires. There is always room for pragmatism; "proud Zionists" (to use Ms. Berger's and Mr. Cohen's phrase) should avoid daring even their enemies to knock the chips from their shoulders: Israel is necessary, but it is not sufficient.
3
Im concerned that Israel—the way it is now, hard-right, settlements, the Palestinian situation, alliance with Trump—is making the world less safe for Jews, and enabling demonization of Jews. The situation is an absolute mess.
Another concern or question, since we agree that criticizing Israel and its politics is not itself antiSemitic, why include opposing “self determination for Jews” in list of examples of antiSemitism, when the phrase is usually interpreted to mean “occupy Palestine” or Zionism? “Self determination” for Russians has at times included invading neighboring countries, sending residents to gulag or killing them on the spot, and moving in ethnic Russian settlers to replace those removed. The phrase “self determination” can be dicey because of how it can apply to morally dubious actions.
1
Bruni writes "There’s nothing anti-Semitic about sympathy for the Palestinian cause or support of Palestinian statehood or disdain for the rightist government of the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and its kick-the-can policies to prolong or eternize the occupation of the West Bank. That should be obvious."
Well, it's not obvious to AIPAC, or to spokespeople and diplomats for the Netanyahu regime, who readily and frequently conflate any criticism of Israeli policies with anti-Semitism.
Bruni is right in condemning the sorts of drivel, emanating from British Labour or elsewhere, that trades in anti-Jewish tropes or argues that Israel has no right to exist.
To the extent that the BSD movement is protesting Israeli government policies that oppress Palestinians, as opposed to wishing Israel and/or Jews to disappear -- a distinction that BSD supporters should make strongly and often -- Bruni should support, or at least accept, that movement's advocacy.
3
Given his position, Corbyn is the most significant--one could say the "chief"--antisemite in the UK.
Making it worse is his much-used ability to make statements that only appear to promise something, but when closely analyzed place such restrictions on the promise that it is of very little value.
But gladly his time is up. Those who have split from Labour are just the beginning.
The final curtain would fall on the antisemitism If only the trade union leaders who support Corbyn would follow the trade union commitment to support all workers including Jews.
2
How about "Jeremy Corbyn's Pro-Justice Labour Party".
It's all in public perceptions. The pro-Israel lobby wants you to perceive the "Anti-Semitic Labour Party" with a goal of silencing criticism of Israel and its unjust policies.
3
There has been a rise in anti-semitism for sure, though perhaps much of it is now instigated by pro-Muslim factions, rather than from the traditional source of deeply embedded anti-Jewish strains within Christianity. A few days ago I witnessed a socialist and ardent anti-Zionist FaceBook friend posting that weary and deeply ignorant idea about the Rothschild's controlling every central bank. By such methods the age old vision of money lending Pharisees is revived and will not to be curtailed by my socialist friend's acceptance of her error and apology.
But here's the rub. Just because Jews might need a homeland, or even deserve one, does not logically justify it being in a place that was dwelt in by non-Jews and was usurped by a combination of legal methods and by force of arms, creating thereby a de facto reality. One reflects upon Ari Shavit's acknowledgment of his early settler forbear's looking out on the land and not seeing the Arab villages. Israel, per se, is an ethical nightmare that the never happening two state solution will not resolve. The 2000 year old claim presents us with a reasoning that would open up virtually every piece of land in the world to prior ownership, including the American Southwest, annexed from Trump's much reviled Mexicans. Two states is an obfuscation and a fantasy and will resolve nothing between Jews and Arabs.
2
I would strongly recommend Ari Shavit’s My Promised Land: The Triumph and Tragedy of Israel in which it is recognizing that the founding of Israel was a colonial project but that Its existence is necessary and deserving of support though not unequivocally.
1
I'm curious to learn why people accuse the state of Israel of human and civil rights abuses. Accordingly, I would appreciate it if someone with first hand knowledge would kindly detail the derogation of human and civil rights suffered by Palestinians in the state of Israel and especially in the West Bank.
My current understanding is that the Pals in these lands have more civil rights than non-Muslims have in any sharia or muslim majority country.
5
@David Darman: You are setting the bar extremely low. Israel is supposed to represent an advanced democracy, not just another repressive theocracy. If you accept it as a repressive theocracy, sure, they are far from the worst, at this point. But what a come-down!
1
Roger,
Please write a column in some Israeli newspaper stating that the Israel's policies towards its minorities puts all Jews outside Israel in a difficult situation, since most places Jews are a minority. Guilt by association is never right, but it is unavoidable in practice.
3
NIcely written. Only the 2 state solution is not a goal anymore by the Arabs in Gaza or Judea/; they wish the destruction of Israel completely. That is what they tell their people.
4
@Howard: Nor has it been the goal of Israel for a while now. Some lip service, maybe, but the continuous expansion of settlements makes it more and more meaningless. Maybe something can be salvaged, but nobody seems very motivated.
1
Corbyn is no better than Farrakhan, except he leads a major political party and therefore has a responsibility to actively oppose anti-semitism. No one is fooled by his lies.
6
Anti-semitism is pernicious and a reflection of sick minds. However, the question also arise about Islomphobia
of the Jews?Pam Geller, Daniel Pipe, Frank Gaffney,Sheldon Adelson,etc. have openly made anit-Muslim statements or funded programs to demonize Muslims.Americans are denying jobs and firing Muslims who don't sign on against Disinvestment, Boycott of Israel campaign If Jews don't like being criticized they should also rid of phobias of other religious and ethic groups.
2
The need for a permanent Jewish homeland was established by the Holocaust
4
@alank: Right, but tragically, the idea of a homeland was also an acceptance of one of the principles that led to the Holocaust: the principle that every person has a essential national identity, and belongs in a homeland along with the others of that identity. By that principle, the Jewish Diaspora was an intolerable danger: people were living in Russia or Germany or France who weren't "really" Russian or German or French. There was (and is) another principle: that a Jew can live securely in France as both a loyal French citizen and a good Jew. That seems to be a principle worth defending, although it is under threat.
Anti-zionism is not anti-semitism. I do not deny that anti-semitic rhetoric exists in the Labour Party, but it makes it awfully convenient for anti-Labour pundits to then conflate any instance of anti-zionism or simple criticism of the Israeli state as anti-semitism. It's lazy and misleading.
31
@Pete
Academically, anti-Zionism may not be antisemitism, but in reality there is too often no functional difference between the two.
13
Pete, there are a range of anti's. We can dialogue about their dimensions.Implications. Outcomes of their harmful associated words. Stimulated actions. How does one choose to contribute to making a difference which can make a sustainable difference in altering our toxic WE-THEY culture, globally, which enables violating created, selected, targeted, "the other(s)?" Anti-semitism is but one example of infectious anti-menschlichkeit. Which, with other "anti-THEMS," in anchored scenarios of personal unaccountability, is associated with willful blindness about what is and should not be. Never, ever. Wilfull deafness to existential pains, Wilfull ignorance as the world drowns in data goulashed as facts, fictions and fantasies.Anti-semitism, anti-THEM, is enabled by a diverse, complacent US who choose not to go beyond words. When Muslim children starve to death in Yemin. When Latino children are "kidnapped" from the arms of their parents in the USA. When antisemitic words are uttered, and shruggingly we note-just words. The Ten Commandments are just words. Right?
1
@S.Einstein it is 96% of the time.
1
I am a member of the U.K. Labour Party. I am not an anti-Semite. Mr. Cohen needs to choose his words carefully. With over 500,000 members, the party is bound to have people with views that differ from the majority of members. To my knowledge, rightly so, these people are removed from the party or leave of their own choice when their views become known.
27
I agree with you Roger we do need a two state solution; what we don’t need are people like Sir Phillip Green( who absconded with British Pensioners funds) and Irene Rosenfeld( who lied about closing Cadbury in Britain, costing 400 British jobs and the loss of a storied British Company as she took home $21,000,000.00 that year)nor Blankfein, Fuld, seemingly most vulture capitalists and Kushner representing us in America, not to mention the problems Israel has caused the world for decades whether its fault or not, people are tired of us and we can expect to be targets of hatred, do you honestly think any other group would be given a free pass, if it were Ecuador causing a continual state of conflict in the region, other nations citizens forced to flee war, trillions of scarce tax dollars for its defense , thousands of lives lost and millions driven from their homes, this as primarily Ecuadorian Bankers set off a financial crisis in America and Ecuadorian vulture capitalists, not Zell nor Schwartzman nor K.K.R. bought company after company , firing millions and stripping their assets, don’t you think those Ecuadorians would garner the animosity of many. Quit playing the victim, start policing our ranks.
2
@Ted: It sounds like you are doing what the Trump administration does with immigrants: picking examples of crimes committed by your target group, to create the illusion of a pattern. Typical demagoguery, whoever does it.
1
Mr. Cohen makes very valid points regarding the differentiation between neutrality in the Israel/Palestinian issue, including leaning toward a legitimate and intellectually allowable pro-Palestinian view as expressed by Mr. Corbyn to a much darker element.
Which is using that we're-for-the-oppressed attitude as cover for a deep-seated anti-Israel (by definition), anti-semitic and anti-Jewish ingrained philosophy that permeates Mr. Corbyn's attitude and perspective. It is really up to Labor to cast him aside if they expect any future
3
@irv wengrow: With all due respect Irv: Just like it’s Israels responsibility to “ cast aside “ Netanyahu, and the right wing extremists as well as to create a two state solution, not play bully in the region knowing big brother America will always have your and by extension the Saudis back. Recent events from Israels ally the Saudis and Israels continued expansionary policies are doing permanent harm to Israel's image and the world including America has grown weary of continued problems emanating from the region. Enough already.
1
One wonders what the billions poured into Israel would have accomplished for the inhabitants of our own indigenous and formerly enslaved populations who were also subject to genocide. Most Jewish people I have met seem to being doing quite well. Perhaps if they came out en-masse for higher taxes that ameliorate the conditions in this country that make life so miserable for so many, attitudes towards “the chosen people” would tend more to sympathy than towards rancor. Cards eventually wear out, no matter how well they are played. A cautionary tale for all those who embrace identity politics.
2
I appreciate when those on the mainstream Left, like Roger Cohen, recognize the Jewish right to a homeland. Many on the far Left don’t, though they don’t deny Christians their 42 countries and Muslim their 29 (see the 2005 Harvard study on state religions). Palestine would also be a Muslim country according to its charter.
So what is it about Israel?
It’s not the Palestinians. They turned down a state in 1937, 1947, 2001 and 2008. Jordan didn’t even offer them one when it controlled the West Bank and E Jerusalem between 1948 and 1967.
So why do many on the far Left object to the one tiny democratic Jewish State surrounded by a sea of Muslim states?
I’m not convinced it’s anti-semitism. That’s more in the domain of the far Right.
Maybe I’m going out on a limb here, but I think the far Left is seeking to curry favor with large swaths of Muslims and Arabs, who disdain Israel for obvious reasons. But why? Because Jews are a tiny percentage of the world population, and outside of Israel and New York, have very little power.
This may come as a surprise to many, but the Jewish population has not yet returned to pre-Holocaust levels, and is further eroding due to assimilation.
These are scary times. But they are also wonderful, especially as compared with WWII.
I remain optimistic. What else can we do?
6
@Steven Roth: to go into theory a little: I'm not sure which 42 countries you are counting as "Christian", but I've always liked the American approach, where we have no state religion. The US may have a lot of Christian citizens (although the number is diminishing) and there is a strident minority who would like to see us as a theocracy of some sort -- but it's deeply imbedded in our founding principles that we aren't a Christian state. If there are what seem to be official prayers, those are glitches, not part of the design.
Britain may in some technical sense be a Christian state -- I think the Queen gets to pick the Archbishop of Canterbury, or something. But in daily reality, they are about as secular as you can get.
That's the enlightenment ideal: the state shouldn't be institutionally involved in religion, and vice versa.
Even Israel maintains this ideal, as I understand it: there is a kind of paradox, where it is a Jewish State at the same time as being a secular democracy. How this will work, over the years, is a real question.
Mr. Cohen says: "I, too, like Berger, am a proud Zionist."
So, obviously he immediately follows it up with : "A homeland for the Jewish people, which is what the State of Israel was created to be, can’t be majority Palestinian."
He says they can be a minority. OK, so what do the folks in the majority do when the minority grows to big for the majority to feel comfortable? Hmm? What!
Right now, the U.S. is headlong into a change where there will be no majority ethnicity or race by 2050, and Europe is struggling with its historic "white" heritage as immigrants and refugees pour across borders. The U.S. fought a terrible Civil War over race issues and Europe has had two world wars recently, both preceded by a couple thousand years worth of internal wars.
So it's OK for Israel to institutionalize an ethnic based policy of quotas, but try that in various European nations, an abhorrence in my opinion, and there is a righteous backlash against xenophobes. The U.S. is renowned as a melting pot of races and ethnicities and religious diasporas, and currently there is a xenophobic movement to denigrate and vilify refugees and desperate people from entering across the southern border. This abhorrent policy of the Trump administration, backed up by his base, is widely regarded worldwide as proto-fascist.
Zionism, the State of Israel and the Likud party can be legitimately critiqued. To conflate these institutions with Jews to stop such critique is a cynical form of anti-semitism.
4
Antisemitism emanating from left wing political parties today?
Antisemitism emanating from right wing parties is rather easily understood: Right wings, insular, constantly trying to preserve an identity along racial, ethnic, religious, etc. lines despise what they perceive as contamination by outsiders, any outsiders, not just Jewish people.
Antisemitism emanating from the left is more difficult to understand, but becomes clearer when we sit and think about it for a moment. Let's reflect on one of the greatest reasons for antisemitism historically: Christians against Jews. Here you have Jews resulting in Jesus (Jesus was a Jew) and outsiders (Gentiles) following Jesus and hostile to Jews who did not follow one of their own. Now notice this striking parallel, in fact evolution of preceding pattern: The Jews result in Marx (who was a Jew) who was most responsible for modern left wing political movements but it has been outsiders again who have mostly followed Marx and not the Jews...
In other words, antisemitism emanating from the left is a replay and evolution of Christians hostile to Jews and striking evidence that for all secularity of left wing movements they are not so far removed from religion in feeling, fanaticism. And what's even more rich is that the elements making up left wing parties are themselves more often than not hypocritical, not following Marx any more than the Jews, and instead just trying to gain advantage for their own minority identity in the world.
1
How about a homeland for both Jews and Palestinians? One constitutional state guaranteeing the inalienable right of both people to Israel-Palestine/Palestine-Israel. This zero-sum game of all or nothing will never, ever win. Think big, think collectively and think how brilliant and progressive and dynamic a joint state would be where all of its residents would have equal rights and responsibilities to peace and security. Jews can call it a Jewish Homeland and Palestinians could call it Palestine and you'd both be right.
1
@David: There are people working on the one-state solution: it might turn out to be all that's left if the expanded settlements make the Palestinian state impossible. The problems will be enormous: the Jews will have to give up having a majority Jewish state. But there might be original ways of working it out, some sort of bi-national system sharing the same territory... that may be the future.
I am presently in the U.K. in MP Berger's constituency just up the road from Penny Lane of Beatles fame. Corbyn and his core of fellow travelers are playing to a so-called "base" - much the same as President Trump does.
Whether or not Corbyn is anti-Semitic is almost beside the point. What he knows is that a great deal of Brits at street level are and they happen to vote Labour in this neck of the woods in particular.
Yet, wait! There's more!
Across the realm here you also have East Asian haters, especially if the targets are Muslim from Pakistan. You have hard core hatred of Blacks. You have deep disdain for anyone from Eastern Europe.
Simply put, the Whites are divided by class and defined in their respective tiers by money. Where they seem to span the political divide between Labour and Tory is in a type of blanket suspicion running toward open hate in some quarters toward non-White, non-Christian people.
Therefore, it's not just the Jews being singled out. Many of Corbyn's party want to see a Palestinian state for no other reason they don't want any more Palestinians coming to the U.K.
They don't want anyone coming here as refugees. They make this clear in conversation.
There is a whole lot of tension in the air here regarding this rather obvious racial climate. You need be quite careful about politics and calling out people regarding their views on people who are not like "them."
MP Berger is bang on about what she sees - but it is the tip of the iceberg.
4
@John Harrington: Interesting: I guess you're saying that British anti-Semitism should be seen as one part of the a whole pattern of racism and isolationism. That goes along with the American pattern, too. The serious haters tend to be both anti-Semitic and racist, and anti-immigrant, with various priorities and paranoias thrown into the mix. So probably when we discuss any one of these hatreds, we should look around for others in the vicinity. Interesting.
Yes, the Two State Solution is the best path to take. But by building thousands of settlements throughout the West Bank, Netanyahu and his followers have destroyed that possibility. It is no longer feasible to dismantle the infrastructure the settlers have created there. Furthermore, the settlements have never been about providing a safe haven for Jews. They've been about religious extremism, and Jewish domination of a the West Bank because of its religious significance. It is this mentality which now dominates Israel's political climate and raison d'etre, not a safe haven for all Jews. Netanyahu's refusal to allow Jews who support BDS, his alliance with known anti-semites such a Viktor Orban make this obvious. What options now are left? As a Jew who once passionately supported Israel, I am left bereft of any hope for its future as our democratic, free homeland.
1
Let’s not forget that there were no settlements between 1948-1967. Despite that fact, Arab countries initiated the ‘67 war by shutting the Straits of Tiran to Israeli ships and removing all UN security forces from the Suez Canal. It’s easy to say that the settlements are the reason for a lack of peace in the region but the truth is that Palestinian leadership, for over 70 years, has rejected every offer for their own state. At some point, reasonable people must begin to question whether it is their own state or simply the disappearance of the state of Israel that is most important to the Palestinians.
5
Roger Cohen says that the Jews need a "Jewish" state because of growing antisemitism in Europe, and that as such, the only solution for achieving human rights for Palestinians is a two-state solution. He takes any solution off the table that would result in one, democratic state for Jews and Palestinians alike.
The only problem with this formulation is that the only “state” for the Palestinians that has ever been discussed at all has been physically compartmentalized, criss-crossed with Israeli controlled roads, surrounded by Israeli-controlled territory and even riddled with Israeli “military listening posts”. The Palestinians would not be allowed to control their own borders or airspace. It appears that the Israelis have even demanded that the school cirriculums in the Palestinian State be “monitored”. No state even contemplated by the Israelis so far has begun the qualify as anything other than a de facto occupation.
Here is the transcript of a workshop that was held at the Brookings Institute in 2002 after the Camp David Summit. It was attended by Israeli and Palestinian representatives. Please click on the link and read section where the Israelis laid out their bottom-line conditions, entitled:
SESSION TWO: ISRAEL’S CORE SECURITY REQUIREMENTS IN A TWO-STATE SOLUTION.
Please read these “requirements” and think about whether they are compatible with the concept of a “state”.
https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/ipworkshop.pdf
:
1
I'm an American Jew, and I lay some of the blame on the Israeli government for their concerted effort over the last few decades to market themselves as the mouthpiece of the Jewish diaspora. They are now reaping the rewards: when someone criticizes their policies (I am no fan of Israel these days), that person is called anti-Semitic. Israel then gets to claim that anti-Semitism is on the rise, and that they are the protector of our people.
That said, to expect all diasporic Jews to denounce Israel's policies isn't exactly fair, seeing as many Jews do no think of themselves as represented by present-day Israel; if they are expected to denounce Israel, it validates Israel's claim that the diaspora and Israel are linked, and in my mind, they're not.
Of course straight up anti-Semitism *is* also on the rise, but pulling the threads apart--anti-Zionism, anti-Semitism, anti-Zionism & anti-Semitism--is becoming incredibly difficult, and even contemplating that exercise depresses the heck out of me.
36
@Greg
Stuff and nonsense, Greg. It's "difficult" to distinguish between "anti-Semitism" and "anti-Zionism" because they are indistinguishable in purpose and effect.
5
Corbyn's behavior often frustrates right wing of his party--sorry! the 'centralists' in his party--who forget that it wasn't founded as a moderate or centralist voice, but as a vehicle for the left.
These same members tend to insist on a party cast in their own image, which acts out in a top down fashion, assuming that everyone in it is just like them. They are anti-Brexit, for example, so the party must be anti-Brexit. The reality that Brexit was, and is, supported by large numbers of the rank and file is one of those inconvenient truths they'd just rather not admit.
Where Corbyn and Labour stand on Israel's occupation of Palestine is playing out in this context. As leader Corbyn is giving a platform to views the Left has actually held for some time, but have been rejected by self-described moderates, who have adopted the same views as the Tories.
I am not saying that this debate should be placed within the context of who controls Labour's future, but I am saying that this is the context within which it is happening. It is not a coincidence that those who attack Corbyn on this issue also attack him on Brexit and used to argue he couldn't win an election. Behind the allegations of anti-Semitism is the question of whether the future of Labour is to the right or left and at this point it doesn't look like the former can be sorted without sorting the latter first.
"The denial of the millennial Jewish link to the Holy Land and the dismissal of the legal basis for the modern Jewish state in United Nations ... as a means to argue for the abolition of the Jewish homeland and portray it as an immoral, colonial exercise in theft often flirts with anti-Semitism."
No. It does not "flirt" with anti-Semitism, it is anti-Semitism. Both the IHRA guidelines and Natan Sharanky's 3D test (delegitimization, demonization and double standards) make that clear.
But this might be confusing to someone who still imagines that the Palestinan Arabs in the West Bank and Gaza are in any way entitled to the rights of Israeli citizenship, particularly when their own government has a law making it a capital offense to sell a home to a Jewish person. This alone should prove to anyone that the West Bank is a distinct entity, even if its final borders are in dispute.
Blaming Netanyahu for stagnation in the peace progress while ignoring Abbas's rejection of Barak's and Olmert's offers, and Abbas's refusal to meet with Netanyahu without getting his demands met in full before the conversation begins, as well as the Arab League's absolute refusal to recognize Israel for nearly half a century, is the very sort of double standard that Corbyn and others utilize. How unfortunate that the author could not avoid doing so here.
10
Many of my fellow leftists have an incorrect position on Israel based on three misunderstandings.
1- That history started in 1948 and nothing that happened before that date counts.
2-That allies of the US should be held to higher standards than other countries.
3-That the Principle of Intersectionality should tilt Leftists toward sympathizing with the Muslim, rather than the Jewish point of view.
Once these misunderstandings are cleared up, the Left will will establish a more comprehensive view of the situation.
67
@Neil
I think you're spot on with point #3; I think #1 is a wash but #2 is up for debate.
If we hold ourselves to be the "greatest country on earth"; the "city on a hill"; the "arsenal of democracy" or whatever superlative we choose, then why shouldn't we hold high standards for our friends too? It seems reasonable to expect our allies to behave well enough to at least comport with our values - especially if we heavily subsidize their defense budget.
(For the record I think Israel does comport with a lot of our values - for instance, the Netanyahu government, which has been rather thuggish and not always a good-faith ally, is on the verge of collapse due to corruption charges brought by the Israeli authorities. The system is working like a democracy should.)
3
@Neil
"...allies of the US should be held to higher standards than other countries."
Isn't that the battle cry of the Western Democracies? That they are the beacons of freedom and all other virtues of a liberal democracy?
2
@Subhash C Reddy Saudi Arabia is an ally of the US.
1
Jeremy Corbyn is an anti-Zionist but not an anti-Semite. Like Cohen, so many commentators claim that they are not actually objecting to criticism of the state of Israel - but whenever anyone does criticise it they label them an anti-Semite. The claim that Labour is anti-Semitic has been contrived by members on the right of the party who resent the rise of Corbyn, do not support his social democratic agenda, and want to make the party appear unelectable under his leadership. As for the claim that Corbyn rules the party “by diktat” - Momentum, the grassroots organisation within Labour that supports Corbyn, has 40,000 members and is growing by 1,000 per month. Membership of the Labour Party has surged to 550,000 since Corbyn became leader. The Conservative Party has only around 110,000 members. I’d say that makes Corbyn quite popular.
49
@Maria Ryan
Exactly. That's why separation of Church and State is a really good idea.
2
@Maria Ryan
Just being "popular" never made any politician right, decent or moral.
5
@Maria Ryan: If Corbyn doesn't want to be mis-labeled as an anti-Semite he should avoid words and actions that understandably make people suspicious, and he should welcome opportunities to denounce such words and actions of others. It isn't that hard. If, however, he has calculated that appearing to sit on the fence, or appealing to anti-Semitic sentiment through coded behavior helps his cause, he doesn't deserve the benefit of the doubt.
14
A country based on race? I understand it, but it is hard to square with liberal democracies. And the problem is not Israel, it is for all, all countries with an ethnic dominance. I do not have a solution, but I find it conflicting, very conflicting. That goes to the Armenians, Lithuanians, etc.
There is the core of the question, what is a country? A sophisticated tribe? A set of principles to which all citizens abide regardless of the tribe? Or a mixture of the two? A condition in which the tribe setting the terms of the game gets the (logical?) right to avoid a different tribe changing them? Not easy, and tensions flare.
I've seen a worrying amount of anti semitism along the Left in the last couple of years, and a lot of people who turn a blind eye to it. Most of the anti-semitism links being a British Jew in some way with support for the State of Israel.
An article that insists that Jews must support Israel seems to be playing the same game as the anti-semites. Jews should be no more required to commit to support for Israel as they are required to commit to opposition. To be a Jew is not necessarily to be either a Zionist or anti-Zionist, it is to be Jewish. Their rights are not predicated on their attitude (if any) to Israel.
3
Mr. Cohen,
You are quite clear on the dangers of rising anti-semitism and you are quite clear on the illegal and immoral acts of the State of Israel. But you do not link the two.
The danger we face is an exponential rise in anti-semitism BECAUSE of the policies and actions of Israel. The world's Jewish community is too frequently associated with the violations of international law and the human rights abuse committed by Israel. This is what has to be changed, and the onus is on the Jewish community to do so.
Stop talking about how awful the symptoms are. Start curing the disease.
64
@Greg Yours is very twisted thinking, Greg. The disease is thousands of years older than the State of Israel. It's long had a name: Hatred.
13
Greg,
Your comment shows a deep, unacknowledged prejudice. Why would the onus be on the world’s Jewish community to challenge Israel’s policy? Would you feel the same about Russians living in your neighborhood regarding Putin? Indians?
There is an implication that Jews are an “other”. Not really French, American, etc. AND they don’t belong in their ancestral homeland. Whatever befalls them is ultimately their fault for not really “belonging”.
15
Thanks for clearing that up. Now we know that anti-Muslim rhetoric is justified based on the repression of women, gays and journalists that is rampant in Islamic counties.
13
If criticism of Benjamin Netanyahu is instantly equated with anti-Semitism, how far are we from criticism of Donald Trump being equated with anti-Americanism?
It is true that for some people, criticism of the Israeli government is a cloak for hatred against Jews in general.
But this cuts both ways. In the United States, the House Un-American Activities Committee was not abolished until 1975. Criticism of the U.S. government has long been demonized in certain sectors, and the U.S. system of law enforcement has long been infiltrated by the KKK and other organizations whose larger goal is to silence dissenters.
A State is by definition more powerful than those who dissent from its authority, and its amoral politicians can be very quick to co-opt moral arguments in favor of the status quo, especially when theology can be twisted to their advantage.
Is this really where we want to go? Donny and Bibi as the arbiters of American-ness and Jewishness?
Roger Cohen has lost the plot here. In his eagerness to confront anti-semitism, he sides unwittingly with the right-wing zealots who are in fact Israel’s greatest enemies. And America’s too, just in case we needed reminding.
3
Roger Cohen has written an exceptionally thoughtful and brilliant op ed piece that moved me to tears. Indeed, the embrace of anti-Semitism by Jeremy Corbyn and the British Labour Party reminds us of what propelled the European Jews to advocate for a state of their own in the first place. Classic Zionist thinkers such as Leo Pinsker and Theodor Herzl wrote extensively of how legal emancipation did not mean social emancipation. Anti-Semitism is deeply rooted. And no matter what Jews did to express their loyalty to the nations in which they lived, they were not accepted as full citizens. Israel has thankfully become a refuge for the Jewish people. I further commend Roger Cohen on his advocacy of a two-state solution. That indeed is the only ethical and moral path forward for a Jewish state. May the next leader of Israel have the wisdom to truly make Israel a "light unto the nations."
11
I just don't understand how a culture that can produce Nobel laureates far out of proportion to its population, that brings the joy of music and literature to people around the world, that has an unbelievable ability to make fun of itself....how such a culture cannot figure out a way to make peace with its neighbors, no matter how ignorant or evil they are, after 70 years of statehood.
2
First, they have made peace with Egypt and Jordan. But if they can’t “figure it out” it’s because the only thing their neighbors want is to see them destroyed.
5
Dear JPE,
The other side must have an equal desire for Peace. That has never been the over riding concern for the Palestinians. Their goal has always been the elimination of The Jewish State of Israel, which to this day they continue to reject. Israel is not perfect. But, it has the ability to change through legitimate elections. That possibility does not seem exist within the Palestinian body politic as long as the likes of Hamas continue to spew hatred. Externally, Iran and its Hezbollah client pose the same threats.
Btw, I write as a secular Jew without any religious axe to grind. Still I proclaim Am Yisroel Chai!
6
Mr. Cohen's column raises a question for me, and it is an honest question derived from his reference to his own vies as a zionist.
From my reading zionism from its very inception presumed the expulsion of the Palestinian's. Doesn't that create a moral dilemma?
And this is not explicitly an issues for Jews. In the US we have repeatedly and forcibly expelled native people in the name of 'America's manifest destiny' and have yet to truly address that moral question.
I'm not suggesting that Israel turn the clock back to 1948 or that America reimagine itself in 1776. But does that simply leave us with might makes right? Is there no other way forward?
3
Roger Cohen has nicely explained the British Labour Party's transition into an antisemitic one - there can be not doubt about this. Ironically, Labour reflects the far right along several issues in the UK, particularly its racist views and tropes, and the surrounding opacity on Brexit. Cohen should now write a second part to his analysis, reflecting upon the post mid-term shift in the US to similar positions on Israel, Zionism and anti-semitism. The implications are potentially immediate. If Bernie Sanders were to become the leading presidential candidate of the Democratic Party, he will likely follow in Corbyn's path. So, we too in the US have to look carefully into the mirror and confront it ourselves, perhaps sooner than we wish . The Republican Party knows this issue and is again waiting for the Dems next misstep.
3
Roger, as a Jewish person, I'm alarmed by your last paragraph. Americans who are Hmong, Kurdish, K'iche (I could go on, but you see the pattern here) lack nation states and have histories of oppression and diaspora not unlike our people. Are they not "just fine" simply because they lack states? On that matter, how does the existence of Israel, more than 7000 miles away from me, protect me from antisemitism any more than living in a liberal, pluralist society?
Thank you Roger. Jews and Israel are conflated in the eyes of the world. Thus, Israel's actions have a potent effect in the perception of Jews. I am tired of explaining how I love Israel but hate the current government and its policies. I am exhausted explaining that a lot of Jews, a LOT, deeply object to the oppression of Palestinians and the Settler Movement. I am also angry that any American politician supports the clearly anti-Semitic BDS movement.
Under Netanyahu Israel is on its way to becoming an apartheid state. There are far worse countries in the world, far more oppressive of minority rights, but Israel is no longer a country that represents the best values of the world.
Embracing Arabs as fully equal citizens in a Jewish state was always a difficult balancing act. But the movement rightward that began under Menachem Begin has continued and the country has become dangerously unbalanced.
Maybe Netanyahu will lose in the upcoming election. Maybe Israel can then head down a better path. I hope so.
3
Thank you Mr. Netanyahu for:
-- remaining alert to the threats posed to the existence of Israel by Iran, Syria, Hamas, Hezbollah and Mr. Corbyn
-- promoting the interests of freedom and democracy in the Middle East
-- working to maintain Israel as a place where women's rights, gay rights, freedom of the press and freedom of religion and speech are valued and flourish
-- helping to combat anti-Semitism in the world wherever it exists
-- providing a safe haven for Jews fleeing from assaults and discrimination in Europe and other places in the world
-- helping to make Israel a place where people of all races and religions can live a safe and decent life
-- standing with the United States wherever our interests and values are threatened
-- helping to make Israel a world leader in medical and scientific research that provides new cures and medical treatments for people everywhere
-- freely sharing the important military and political intelligence that Israel gathers with the U.S.
-- combating the spread of terrorism in the Middle East and elsewhere
-- working tirelessly to prevent Iran from developing nuclear capabilities that would threaten Israel with nuclear annihilation and result in a massive nuclear arms race in the Middle East
-- and for always remaining open to the prospect of a negotiated settlement with the Palestinians that would provide an independent demilitarized state for them alongside a Jewish State of Israel with secure and permanent borders
4
In theory, anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism are different. In practice, not so much. It's an old lesson, but it seems to need relearning with some frequency.
45
As soon as a religion becomes a state religion they are hard to keep apart. But that is a problem for a nation with a state religion, not the critic. Anybody who criticizes Israel will conveniently be labeled an anti-Semite and an anti-Semite conveniently can claim to just speak out against the Israeli government.
3
Israel has been trying to create 2 states. It will try again when it approves of Trump's peace plan. That is the case if Netanyahu or Gantz is PM.The Palestinian leadership have never accepted a Jewish State within any borders. They have lost battles but the war continues. It's their national identity at stake. Jaffa and Hevron are the same. At present its's a Jewish State with a less than perfect democracy. In the minds of the vast majority of Jews and Arabs it is preferable to any acceptable alternative. If Trump can change that he will deserve the Nobel peace prize.
4
The simple reality is that the desire to protect the “Jewish character” of the state of Israel is the exact political equivalent of the desire to protect the white Christian character of America or the UK.
Israel was established by the British invading the Ottoman Empire, detaching Palestine and granting it as a colony to a European political movement.
The local people didn’t matter and were not given a say because European colonialism had no interest in the opinion of non-Europeans.
That has been the dominant attitude to the Palestinians ever since. The idea that Jewish people can’t share a state where they have equal rights with Palestinians is as racist as the claim by white South Africans and Rhodesians that they could not share a state with black Africans as equal citizens. It is based on the concept of the fundamental inhumanity of non-whites.
There is a growing problem with anti-Semitism in Europe and America. It is fuelled by the internet opening the Pandora’s Box of all the traditional slurs and myths. It is driven by the hard right, but adopted by people of all political stripes, including the left.
But the fact anti-Semitism is rarely far from the headlines demonstrates that it is not acceptable or mainstream. The fact that hundreds of Jewish Labour members have defended the leadership suggests that there is a degree of opportunism in Berger’s claims, not of the real abuse she has suffered, but the extent to which it is the leadership’s fault.
7
Thank you. This is an important piece. As a white guy, non any religion, I’ve always believed in Israel in this way mr. Cohen has presented, but I do need reminders of the way to convey this belief.
Seeing white supremacy folks on television ranting frightens me. The synagogue murders frighten me. The Oklahoma City bombing frightens me. Where do these people and their beliefs come from? How can these people and their beliefs live in my country?
I’m tired of hate.
3
Although not having an intimate knowledge of the Labour Party, I suspect that the root of its alleged "Jew hatred" comes from the fact that in recent years its membership has been enlarged by the membership of young activists who vote for the leader and are sympathetic to the Palestinian cause. This partisanship can be mistaken for anti-Semitism and has been interpreted as such by Zionists and the Israeli government which has called anti-Zionism the new anti-Semitism. As Cohen says, there is a fine line between support for the Palestinians and anti-Semitism which is exploited and misunderstood by some Jews. In some cases criticism of Israel is a reaction to the obvious Arab hatred that exists in Israel and is used to justify Israeli policies toward the Palestinian people. Was it David Ben Gurion who called Palestinians "two-legged beasts"? Roger Cohen is absolutely right to say that Israel's future must involve a two-state solution to assure a homeland for the Jews, but he might have attempted a little balance by pointing out that racism is a two-way street in the Holy Land.
38
@John McDermott...
You might want to explore, sir, the way that the Arab world perceives the Palestinian...
Not to put too blunt of an edge on it, they neither like them nor are willing to help them solve the problematic existence that is now their lot.
7
@John McDermott
And where would that 2nd state be? Israel currently plans to settle 2 million more people in the West Bank and the map shows a series of bantu stands for Palestinians with a new high speed rail (which Palestinians cannot access) cutting across the West Bank and a new apartheid highway.
3
The question that no one is asking is why anti-semitism is increasing in U.K. politics?The sociologist would probably find that the increase of Muslims in the electorate is the cause.All politicians say and do what they see is beneficial to their careers-----just look at the current President.Full-on endorsement of himself for 2020,that after no agreement in Vietnam"I can wait,their is no rush."
1
Mr Cohen, you mouth fine words about criticism of Israel not being the same thing as antisemitism. Your arguments, however, belie your assertion of belief. They trend wrong, as the historical record will show.
Israel was, frankly, late to the party in establishing a state along classic European colonialist lines. It was arguably the last such phenomenon. One need only read the writings of Ze'ev Jabotinsky and David Ben-Gurion to understand this.
There is no moral justification for an ethnocracy existing anywhere, anytime.
5
Among those who hate oppression, there are many who love to oppress.
1
There is some anti-semitism in the UK. One reason is an aristocratic feudal landed gentry disdain for "trade", whose natural home would be the Tories, not Labour. Another is a substantial increase in the largely Pakistani origin Muslim population, which forms a significant part of the Labour base. There is no natural historical hostility or fault line between Pakistanis (or South or East Asian Muslims in general) and Jews. The hostility arises from the Pakistani sellout to rich Gulf Arabs at national, societal, military, theological and personal levels. That sellout means adopting Gulf Arab causes as their own.
Of course, the fact that there are far fewer Jewish people in the UK (290,000 - 370,000 of a 60m population) vs. the US (5.7m - 10m of 330m), and they are not as financially or politically powerful, means that they have proportionately less clout to deal with anti-semitism.
You note, “The eternal Jewish ogre resurfaces — a convenient scapegoat for economic resentments, precariousness, fear, frustration or Israel’s oppression of Palestinians.” And then there’s a set of people who ought to be free from all but the last of those concerns, which need not have overflowed into anti-Semitism: prominent British actors and other artists who have taken to promoting boycotts of all things Israeli, including a theater group.
Any attempt by those activists to distinguish between anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism fails on two counts. First, their anti-Zionism penalizes people and groups simply for being from Israel. Second, as far as I know, they are comparatively — if not absolutely — silent about other states that oppress minorities, such as China.
So it seems that the resurgence of unthinking age-old prejudice coincides with the flourishing of a new pseudo-intellectual anti-Semitism as the latest incarnation of Radical Chic. That, at least, is something we should be able to skewer and deflate with proper attention.
4
@Longestaffe Whataboutism, a classic KGB tactic, is on display here. "Hey! China is doing bad things, so why are they getting away with it while we aren't?" Two wrongs don't make a right and your argument, rightfully, falls upon deaf ears.
1
The heart of this article is that Roger Cohen believes that there should be a Jewish State. By definition, a Jewish State means that people who are not Jewish are second class. This is the essence of Zionism. Lots of folks, including people of Jewish ancestry like myself, believe that assigning second-class status to a group based on their ethnic or religious identity is a bad thing, and is arguably racist. We don't think this should be supported. I applaud the British Labour MPs who denounce Zionism, just as I applaud the new congresswomen in the USA who do the same. This has nothing to do with anti-semitism.
By conflating anti-Zionism with anti-semitism, Cohen implicitly legitimizes the latter.
Cohen may be sincere in his concern about Zionism's opponents. But in Britain, the defenders of Zionism and self-proclaimed opponents of anti-semitism in the Labour Party are cynically doing an end-run against Corbyn and the leftist Momentum movement that made him the leader. After repeated failed attempts to prevent his victory, and then to oust him, they are resorting to this scurrilous campaign of false accusations. Even Cohen succumbs to their fairly obvious purpose by describing Corbyn as running the Labour Party by "diktat" instead of recognizing that he represents a broad leftist majority in the Labour Party.
53
@David A. Your comment seems to reject the two-state solution; you don't mention either it nor Cohen's embrace of it; and you don't say why...
1
@sjepstein At best, two states mean establishing two co-equal exclusivist states, a Jewish and a Palestinian one. A Palestinian state where Jews are second-class and/or are barred from living in say, Hebron, is just as bad as Jewish one. In reality though, in a two-state arrangement, Israel would dominate and bully the Palestinian state economically, politically and militarily.
6
@David A.
"By definition, a Jewish State means that people who are not Jewish are second class."
I think not. That may be your definition. Then again, and to that point. are Christians and Jews really first class citizens in Islamic or Hindu states? Have they ever been? Come to think about it, Jews historically have seldom and only on a temporary basis, been first class citizens in Christian nations- if permitted in, or allowed to stay. Get real.
13
At the end of the day, Corbyn is only partially responsible for the changes we've seen in the Labour party. The shift in the party is more accurately attributed to demographics, which is to say, the demographics of the voters Labour is courting, and also the demographics of the Labour candidates who are elected to parliament. Britain has undergone a very profound demographic shift in the past 30 years (a function of immigration and birth rates), and British Jews now face something very different from the more "polite" forms of British anti-Semitism that they had been familiar with for generations.
1
Thank you Roger Cohen for expressing this so well. Unfortunately, we are on our way down the same path.
5
We had the great privilege of touring Israel a couple of years ago and spent much of our time with Palestinian Christians in east Jerusalem. We were deeply impressed with the dignity of the Palestinian people who are living on a knife edge of despair that makes a mockery of our American psychodrama. But, we came away with an equal respect for the deep suffering of the Jewish people as well.
We have a well worn copy of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. One of the stories is so profoundly and shockingly anti-semitic, that we can never forget. We pray for a way out of this tragic historical tragedy.
3
The USA Democratic Party is going the same way. I know that my left-wing friends disagree with this statement but I only ask you to recall this discussion 10 years from now.
10
Where is your evidence for that claim?
3
No one likes a high achiever except another high achiever. Much of the disdain for Jews in general and Israel in particular is rooted in what we now call "the forgotten class". These are the large swaths of people who are being left out of the changing economic conditions of the modern world. This is the angst that Trump has tapped into. It's everywhere. It's all over the Europe. The result of it is the hollowing out of the middle class.
The age old reaction to the achiever class is "my suffering is caused by your success." Blame the immigrants. Blame the Mexicans. Blame the Jews.
Due to the high percentage of high profile, highly successful Jewish people in the world, they form a convenient target for the blame somebody else crowd. Many titans of show business, the arts, finance, business and media are Jews.
The same goes for Israel. The surrounding Arab nations are impoverished, backwards, unstable, and oppressive. In a few decades, and under enormous pressure, Israel has grown into a modern, high functioning, successful state. The Arabs can't stand that. They are the true believers of the true religion of Islam. If they are not successful and Israel is, then Israel must be powered by Satanic forces. It must be gotten rid of.
By colonizing the West Bank and not pushing for a two state solution, Israel has set itself up to be viewed as evil. This idiotic land grab gave the Jew haters the excuse they needed to come out of the closet.
19
As a an active member of the Labour Party in the UK and also Jewish I can say that it is a huge smear that we are in way an antisemitic party. Indeed, it is the left that has long led campaigns against all forms of racism.
The truth is that this is a proxy issue used by the right in labour and outside to stop our fairly moderate shift to the left, which was very popular at the last general election.
Several people have indeed been jailed for racist abuse of Luciana Berger, but they are all on the far right. I've never seen any antisemitism in Labour in all by many years as an activist, and neither have my family and Jewish friends. We know that there are a lot of fake accounts on social media purporting to be Labour people.
It is also, as Cohen rightly says, about Israel. But labour supports a two state solutions s he does. Personally, as a Jew, I do not support any state that favours one ethnicity over others as Israel does, and this is a view shared by many Jewish people. I would much prefer one secular state, eventually.
8
@Mark, UK
"it is the left that has long led campaigns against all forms of racism."
That's true and that's why the left now campains against what they see as Israeli racism whereas the right wing parties in Europe embrace Israel.
1
@Mark, UK
Many thanks for your comment, it's great to hear Labor Jewry coming to the defense against this calumny.
Personally, I believe Zionist ideology will have much to answer for in the future annals of history, not just for its lack of humanistic regard for Palestinian Arab human beings, but also for the toxic defamations it has fueled in places like UK and US.
There is no safe place for the 15M or so jews in the world. Anti semitism is endemic and its manifestation waxes and wanes over the decades and centuries.
The State of Israel as a safe refuge is threatened and is only maintained as a ward of the United States. The US is gradually retreating into isolationism and at some point it will be apparent that Israel will be on its own.
Finally, the religious foundation of Judaism is attenuating globally.
One part of my Family immigrated from Russia (at the time) to Britain in the 19th Century. They were successful merchants but within two generations had converted to Christianity. In this generation most are secular citizens and do not feel subject to anti semitism.
Mr Cohen and others may regret this but this problem will disappear in the fullness of time.
4
@wjth
As a psychologist and educator, I have to say:
you are completely wrong. The Orthodox Jewish population in the USA is booming as never before
in history. There are now 110,000 Jewish children
in private Jewish day schools in New York City, more than Catholic children in Catholic schools, and the number continues to rise. Is this the sign of a community in retreat or rather thriving and flourishing?
3
I am a vocal supporter of the Palestinians and a vocal critic of Netanyahu and the Israeli right wing. But that could change at any moment. The more threatened I feel, the less sympathetic I will be towards the Palestinian cause. Don't Corbyn and his minions get that? And don't they understand that since Israel is a nuclear power, they will - ultimately - decide for themselves how to resolve the situation?
@thebigmancat
You touch upon a key, critical point here that, with all due respect, points to the flaws in your outlook.
Right is right and wrong is wrong - regardless of how threatened you are, real or imagined. To believe that how threatened you are, or think you are, gives you a license to start dispensing with what is good and true points to the heart of what is wrong here.
1
The headline reads, unequivocally: "Jeremy Corbyn’s Anti-Semitic Labour Party".
There are approximately 600,000 members of the UK Labour Party, which has procedures to investigate accusations of antisemitism. And to provide data on the issue.
According to a recent report :
673 complaints of anti-Semitism by Labour Party members were received - about 0.1% of the membership.
96 members were immediately suspended and 211 were told they would be investigated
146 received a first warning, 220 cases did not have sufficient evidence of a breach of party rules for an investigation.
Of 307 suspended or notified of an investigation, 44 left the party.
96 were referred to the party's anti-Semitism Disputes Panel. of whom 16 members were issued with a formal warning from the National Executive Committee, 6 cases were referred for further investigation, 25 members were issued with a written warning), 7 members' cases were closed as the full evidence suggested no further action should be taken.
The panel referred the other 42 members to Labour's National Constitutional Committee (NCC), with 5 members leaving before their cases were reviewed
Of the 37 cases referred to the NCC, 12 members were expelled and six received sanctions, while the rest await their outcome
I doubt if this record justifies the headline. If Roger Cohen has 'alternative facts' he should provide them.
21
We have this statement: "Not all the anti-Semitic slurs have come from within the party, but the volume of attacks from the left has convinced Berger she had to quit Labour."
The article is strong on examples of serious antisemitism, but weak on those from within the Labour party. The statement I have quoted appears to be an admission that the author cannot list any that are convincing. I am willing to consider the case that the Labour party is antisemitic; why not? Antisemitism in general is increasing, and a part of left is involved. However, a convincing argument attaching the label to the Labour party requires direct evidence without confusing the case with irrelevant examples.
11
Israel has lived under existential threat since its inception. Its several attempts to offer statehood to the Palestinians were spurned. As Abba Eban famously declared, "The Palestinians never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity."
The right-to-life movement is not about the rights of the fetus. It is about keeping women in their place. That’s why it arouses so much passion on the right. Likewise, the anti-Zionist movement is not about the rights of Palestinians. It is about keeping Jews in their place. Both movements rally under a similarly false flag.
Life in Israel is manifestly different and more dangerous than that portrayed by the B.D.S. crowd. Israelis live with this reality daily. The cosseted and privileged members of the anti-Zionist movement have no idea of this reality. Theirs is a displaced anger, surviving from early, unreconciled conflicts with parental authority.
Israeli Arabs, both men and women, occupy responsible positions in the Knesset, in government, in public institutions, and even in law enforcement. Where is there a Jew in such a position in any Arab country? Israel is painted by her critics an offending the rule of law and democracy. Compared to the authoritarian regimes around her, she's a shining example.
Where is the B.D.S. against authoritarian Egypt, another huge recipient of U.S. aid? Where is the B.D.S. against dozens of other repressive countries? Make no mistake: Israel is targeted because she is Jewish, and for no other reason.
32
So in England left is our right? Is that from driving on the other side of the road?
2
What is the solution? (A) One state comprising all of Israel+West Bank+Gaza, with (now) roughly 12 million people about evenly divided between Israelis and Palestinians; or, (B) Two states, each with about 6 million people.
(B) is clearly the solution: "Two independent and secure states." The "one state" solution can't work, and neither Israelis or Palestinians want it. What are the minimum, basic elements of the two-state solution? First, unqualified and full-throated recognition of Israel, forever, as an independent and legitimate country by the Palestinians. Second, acceptance by the Palestinians of its external border security being controlled by Israel, along with acceptance of no Palestinian military forces beyond those required for internal security within the new Palestinian state. In return, acceptance by the Israelis of borders between the two states that allow only minimal incorporation of some of the new Israeli settlements inside Israel, with the remainder of all land including most of the settlement areas becoming part of Palestine. Finally, acceptance by Israel of East Jerusalem being part of Palestine. This seems to be the basic outline. Assuming it produces the desired result of two secure and independent states, can each side swallow enough pride to agree?
2
@C.L.S. No. It's a simple answer. And it's not just pride, it's also money. Greed. The occupation and resultant development has been very profitable for some. They don't want the gravy train to end.
3
@C.L.S.
And why will Palestine accept its borders controlled by a foreign power? Will Israel?
@C.L.S.: except that the Palestinians have never, ever accepted the permanence or legitimacy of Jewish statehood, and on the evidence they never will.
"A homeland for the Jewish people, which is what the State of Israel was created to be, can’t be majority Palestinian."
That's what it's all about. Thanks for stating that so clearly. Israel must apparently do all it can, with your cheerleading, to ensure that Palestinians not overtake Jews in population, the so-called "Demographic Problem." Keeping them behind walls works so well.
17
Sometimes "I am not an anti-Semite, I'm anti-Zionist" is just a mealy-mouth way of saying "I am an anti-Semite."
Zionism means that Jews have a right to their own state. As the daughter of a Holocaust survivor, I totally agree. Are critics not aware of centuries of anti-Semitism? Jews were kicked out of their native lands, murdered, tortured, or, if they were "lucky," confined to ghettos.
On the other hand, Israeli politicians are not beyond reproach (ahem, Mr. Netanyahu). But that doesn't mean I don't support Zionism.
25
@Raye,
The problem is when the bullied become the bully.
2
It should be recalled - and it rarely is - that the 1947 foundational UN resolution terms Israel a "Jewish state" 30 times.
And have the French assailants of Alain Finkielkraut made themselves aware of the irony of demanding that he go back to Tel Aviv?
13
A text w/o a context is a pretext. The (re:) rise of real anti-semitism (I mean the kind that almost destroyed human civilization) is overwhelmingly coming from the scoundrels on the right--not the left--holding a burning cross and waving a fascist flag of nationalism.
Having said that--yes by all means let's get rid of all the creeps who find anything admirable in bigotry of any kind--in Labor--too yes maybe especially--that needs to merge a new deal for the commons with the Earth-conscious Greens to work for a better world, for every one--with no one excluded.
1
Cheap attempt to smear Corbyn. Can't have a viable Socialist in one of the largest "democracies" - sets a bad example. Dovetails nicely with conflating resistance to Netanyahu and jhis fellow right wingers as some new strain of Jew hatred.
Anti-Zionism and solidarity with oppressed Palestinians is not Anti-Semitism.
This piece is especially ridiculous. Trying to somehow blame Corbyn for whatever random internet vitriol targeted at this one MP - treacly described as a pregnant mother and pictured seemingly ready to go into non-political labor - is a new low even for apologists of the current Likud regime.
Shame on the writer and on the Times.
25
Where is the comparable angst among these saviors of Palestinian privilege for the lack of food in Sudan, the lack of womans' rights in Saudi Arabia, the lack of any rights in Syria, the lack of democracy in Egypt, the "king's" power in Jordan, the tyranny of Hammas and Hezbolah? Why do these blithering liars only choose to pick on the one democratic country in the mid-east? Hmmm...let me guess...
27
Straw men belong in corn fields. Who but the left campaigns against weapon sales to the Saudis and their ongoing genocide in Yemen? Who else supports the current anti-regime protests in Sudan, of which you do not even seem to be aware?
You are confusing your indifference and ignorance with theirs.
3
and don't forget Israel is a country that is attempting to hold it's Prime Minister accountable. Can you name any countries in the region who would publicly attempt to hold their leader accountable for relatively minor infractions?
2
Ah, the ‘New Antisemitism’....just like the old Antisemitism, repackaged for modern consumption by the Left, in sympathy with the PLO and Hamas et al....whereby only Jews are denied the right to self-determination and self-rule upon their own indigenous ground.
Meanwhile, Jordan....the defacto ‘Arab Palestinian’ state occupies nearly 80% of the former Ottoman backwater province, aka ‘Palestine’....created exclusively for the benefit of the region’s Arab population (the majority of whom are, themselves, the descendants of invaders, colonists, and 20th century economic migrants to the British Mandate).
The mendacious hypocrisy and sinister bigotry surrounding the ‘Anti-Zionist’ narrative is absolutely breathtaking.
Excellent article. Thank you.
27
sorry but this is the usual and wrong identificatiion of being against the policy of the Israeli government (which is at least dangerous for the midle east) and being antisemitic. Probably this comes from the idea that Israel is a semitic only State, like the Likud wants to make against the UN mandate of its formation. Just think at what Albert Einstein wrote regarding the foundations of a Israel. Einstein, not Arafat.
7
I have a thing about consistency of claimed "principle." When I don't see consistency, I wonder whether there is an agenda other than principle behind the claim.
I can't help but wonder how many of those who voice their support for BDS of Israel, would be willing to give up all their made-in-China gadgets through which they voice their BDS support. China is a major ethnic oppressor and occupier of others' lands, and not just Tibet. In fact, all one has to do is ask anyone not of the Han majority, especially the Muslim Uighurs.
Is there a BDS movement against Turkey and the other countries which violently prevent Kurdish hopes for a homeland? How about Syria, which makes Israel/Palestine look like a walk in the park?
Obviously I could go on, but adding other examples would not increase the validity of my point for those (probably few) who are willing to consider it as an arguable proposition.
Roger Cohen sees this inconsistency as anti-Semitism. I am open to other plausible explanations, but unless and until I see one, Cohen's analysis and conclusion stand.
13
So unless we follow the narrative that is partial to Israel and their AIPAC apologists, we are all antisemites. If Jews choose to associate themselves blindly with morally corrupt Israeli actions and oppression of the Palestinian people they will create a backlash of their own making.
16
I passionately feel Israel has a right to exist in peace with its neighbors. In the meantime, the right wing government that likes Orban!, treats Palestinians brutally, allows the Mossad to kill people all over the world (book about by an Israeli has been published) and orthodox rabbis who say it is not wholly wrong to kill non-Jews even children! makes me sick.
Jeremy Corbyn is no anti-Semite, and I believe Cohen's column is nothing more than another disguised frightened neo-liberal rant against the growing popularity of democratic forms of socialism.
18
Same old recycled claims of Corbyn's antisemitism, all of which have been addressed in the past. The main reason why those MPs resigned is the direction the party is moving in, not this alleged antisemitism. But for Israel's propagandists it's as good as any occasion to invoke the same old rhetoric about why Israel is needed.
But racist insults aside, Israel has been, since 1948, by far the most dangerous place for Jews, where to date more than 20,000 have died in violence, more than the rest of the world during this period, combined. The idea that Israel is a safe haven for Jews is as preposterous as the idea that a two-state solution is still viable and would ever be allowed by Israel to come to fruition. Netanyahu's policies are well within the norm for Israel in its 70 years of existence and are relatively mild compared to the excesses of the Olmert and Sharon administrations, or to the bloodshed and mass expulsions of the 1967 and 1948 wars. That's why to just have "disdain" for Netanyahu and ignore the rest of that country's history is either hypocrisy or self-delusion.
12
Howard Jacobson, it seems, has a fine sense of English irony.
"A video turns up showing him on Iranian TV, arguing that there is a bias in the BBC toward saying that Israel has a right to exist, which can only mean that to an unbiased person Israel does not have a right to exist. It’s only anti-Zionism again, but this time the ideology is manifestly springing a thousand leaks. A nonexistent Israel equates to a lot of nonexistent Jews."
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2018/10/jeremy-corbyn-labour/572464/
2
Firstly, anyone talking of two-state solution today have not seen the map of Israeli settlements in West Bank today. Israeli population in West Bank is something like 800K. You are either making them citizens of Palestine or relocating them.
Secondly, Corbyn’s “anti-semitic” supporters are Blacks and South Asians who believe the creation of Israel is wrong and is built on the “debris of Arab Palestine, the destruction of its society and the dispossession and disenfranchisement of its indigenous population”. [Quotes from an article by Ahmad Samih Khalidi in The Guardian of London]
The solution is discussion not vilification and name calling.
7
@Deep Thought: if someone denies your right to exist, "discussion" is not the solution. Force is.
Anyone who says Jews should depend on the nonexistent goodwill of the Palestinians is imply arguing for slaughter and genocide.
About every seventy years or so (a "long generation," meaning the average lifespan of a human being), Europeans get uppity about their Jewish citizens for some reason or another. And, then they go to war among themselves. In the upcoming decade, we shall all see if the United Nations really works as designed.
5
Take a look at a blog of a British Jew name Tony Greenstein who was thrown out of the Labour Party for his strong and righteous criticism of Israel. He notes that one Labor MP supported Israel when it killed 50 or so people in Gaza last March. This man is not thrown out of Labour while the hunt is on 24/7 for someone who says something critical of Israel or mentions the undeniable fact that enthusiasts of Israel lobby governments to support Israeli policy. https://azvsas.blogspot.com/2019/03/murder-in-gaza-un-film-of-israeli-war.html
7
Will Jews ever question their own actions and words for whatever rising anti-semitism there is? I've recently had the "anti-semitic" accusation thrown at me for two Facebook comments two Jews I don't even know dug up from the past on my Facebook page. Neither was anti-semitic, but can you imagine what that did to my feelings about Jews? Throwing that label around is enough to create anti-semites. Maybe it's time to create a term for being anti-Christian so we have the equivalent to anti-semite name-calling.
2
@MEB The term you need is Christophobic/Christophobia - it is quite suitable.
And of course it relates to many different demographics.
So...something two people did has changed your feelings about 15 million people? And you claim the posts they saw as anti-Semitic were not meaningful and you do not have a problem?
There are people who are quick to claim anti-Semitism - and anti-Christian”ism” - but your post makes me think where there’s smoke...
It should not be forgotten that what cemented the Zionist case for a Jewish state was that the two major outlets for Jewish refugees -- Great Britain and the United States -- were essentially closed AFTER the Holocaust. Had our two countries welcomed those refugees immediately after the war, history may have been written differently.
10
@PED is that true?...I thought plenty of Jewish people settled in the US after the war...
Cue all the “criticizing Israel is not antisemitism” non sequiturs.
Not only does Cohen explicitly say the same thing, but if criticizing Israel were antisemitic, most Israelis would be deemed antisemitic.
Can we just stop with this tired obvious strawman?
Cohen is calling acts of antisemitism antisemitic. He gives examples. And they aren’t mere “criticisms of Israel”.
11
The author says "the State of Israel was created to be, can’t be majority Palestinian."
How does he imagine the Jewish majority will be preserved in perpetuity? Assuming Palestinians procreate faster at any point, what measures must be taken - limit Arab Palestinian births? Expulsion? You need to think about the price Palestinians pay in order for this author to have a spare country if he ever needs it.
9
There is no denying that antisemitism has reentered European (and also American) mainstream.
There is also no denying that Israeli policy is seeking to give non-Jewish citizens of Israel unequal status, similar in fashion as the Rohingya in Myanmar are treated. Pointing that out does not mean that one categorically is against the idea of a Jewish state, and does not make one anti-Zionist or anti-Semite.
Antisemitism also is not making an irrefutable case for the need of a Jewish homeland, perhaps rather the opposite. There will ALWAYS be more Jews living outside of Israel than inside. Antisemitism must be fought were it occurs, in Europe, in the US, and everywhere else. There must not be the slightest legitimacy in saying "Go back to your country", because Jews are - for instance - as much citizens of the US as everyone else. Saying so would be the same as saying to a black person in the US "Go back to Africa".
3
@TT I don’t think you understand the Palestinian problem. The Palestinians living in the territories are NOT citizens of Israel, which is precisely the problem. They are stateless, some having Jordanian passports, some just Palestinian Authority IDs. The peace negotiations center on creating an independent state for these people. On the other hand, one-sixth of Israeli citizens are Palestinian Arabs and they have the same rights as everybody else (there is casual discrimination but nothing even remotely comparable to the case of the Rohingya). There are Arab doctors, lawyers, lawmakers and generals (those belonging to the Druse community who serve in the army). Wouldn’t it be great if people took the trouble to learn some basic facts before commenting?
Hi Roger,
I noticed that you end your articles as if they were sonnets. My advice: spend more effort on those last two lines. You’re a great journalist, but I know you have it in you to be even better.
Setting up Corbyn in this way is a dangerous distraction from true antisemitism. I'm a Jew whose parents escaped Nazi Germany in 1938. They would be appalled at the way "antisemitism" is being used to undermine calls for democracy. Fortunately, the narrative that criticizing Israel is antisemitic is being increasingly exposed as anti-democratic. Roger Cohen utterly fails to address the central contradiction upon which Israel is founded - that it is impossible to be both a Jewish state and a democratic state. The nation-state law codifies discriminatory practices into law. The demand of BDS is not to destroy Israel; it is to make a state that is truly democratic with equal rights according to international law.
12
Jews can’t trust others to protect them from anti-semitism and violence.
European history is drenched in it. It’s intrinsic. The absolute barbarism that Jews encountered in Europe for a thousand years is perhaps the most egregious evil ever perpetrated by man against his fellow. Just read up on centuries of pogroms, culminating in industrial scale genocide.
So I agree that the security of Israel is paramount to Jewish continuity. A Jewish Israel is not subject to compromise.
12
Keep saying it loud and often and some if will stick. To call Israel out in any way is to invite the `anti-semite' accusation.
I don't see Corbyn as anti-semitic. He is calling Israel out for it's appalling treatment of the Palestinians.
A jewish British MP uses the opportunity to accuse the Labour Party of racism and gets noticed in the process.
After a half century of Israelis brutalising arabs I am over it. H\I too am happy to call out bad jewish behaviour and will wear the `anti-semite' slur as a badge of honour.
8
This column by Roger Cohen is so tiring. I am not sure what "denying the Jewish people's right to determination" means. Perhaps it means that if there were perfect justice in the world, that Israel would be located in Bavaria, rather than in Palestine. Perhaps there is a problem with a situation where Jerry Seinfeld can move to Israel, whereas a Palestinian whose ancestors had lived on and farmed the land where Israel now exists, but who then were forced from the land, has no such right. Many defenders of Israel always bring up the fact that the Arab armies attacked Israel at its creation, and then lost, as though this had been some profound moral failure of the Palestinians and their Arab supporters. It is unfortunate that the Arabs lost as they had every right to try to protect their homeland and to regain any land that the European Zionists had taken from them. And yes, they were colonizers.
That Mr. Cohen is, as he asserts, a "proud Zionist", is no surprise.( Whether he should be "proud" of this is another matter.) Many of his columns support this. But for him to support a theocratic state, which he does when he insists that Jews must remain a majority in Israel, and by implication exclude the Arabs either of Israel or the occupied territories from becoming fully equal citizens, is disgraceful and racist.
I also think that the creation of Israel, in the land of Palestine, was a great moral and politically disastrous decision. We see the results today.
12
I was a member of he Labour Party for a while, leaving in 2016. One thing that needs to be understood is the schism within the Labour Party that utterly dominates it - Corbyn’s politics (anti-semitism aside) and the clique within the PLP and NEC that has gathered around him reflect the older Labour, the workers party, of unions, nationalisation and growing the welfare state. In the years after the Recession these are popular views, hence Corbyn’s rise.
MPs like Tom Watson, Luciana, Yvette Cooper etc are associated with Blair/Brown era Labour, “New Labour”, the Labour who binned Clause 4 and supported the war in Iraq, who are a more centre-left party.
The two wings HATE each other. The Forever War, similar to how it was when Benn faced Callaghan, or Kinnock stared down Militant. Corbyn has attracted huge public support who are thrilled with his policies - I was one of them until I got fed up with him - and who now doggedly, almost manically, defend him to the hilt against criticism.
This is partly - partly - one reason why an MP like Luciana, offering a valid critique of Corbyn, has attracted fury. Corbynites are defensive, and blinded and driven into a rage by anyone criticising him, especially a hated “Centrist/liberal/Blairits/red Tory”. It is also partly why the likes of Chris Williamson, a loathsome man, are defended doggedly by members and the leadership - he is a Corbynite MP, so thus ‘good’.
1500 words is never enough.
5
@Mat
Finally, an informed comment about Corbyn and his followers. Thank you!
@Mat And yet as a Jewish Labour member I know Chris Williamson has my back as a socialist and anti-racist. Nothing he has said is antisemitic in any way but he like me are fed up with the smears.
What is preventing a two state solution are the ultra orthodox of both sides. Having said this, we Jews need our homeland. Too many in the world would love to see us all exterminated and would do little to prevent that as we saw in Europe not even a hundred years ago.
4
Yes, as a Jewish woman, I do feel triggered with a kind of anxiety at hearing about politicians allowing anti-semitic language.
However, when I see an article like this bring up how 'the two-state solution' is what us Jews/Israel really wants, I feel like there is a deep denial of reality going on that just makes me exhausted and close to angry. People have had their homes taken so settlements could be made all over the place (see https://www.btselem.org/), so where would that 2nd state that will supposedly be allowed in the future go? I just find it so dishonest when the moderate/centrist Jewish writers put forth this argument since I don't understand what kind of little teaspoon of land this second state would have.
I mention this because I think this kind of sloppiness in its approach to Israel, actually harms the defense of Israel. At this point, it seems like there is only going to be a one-state solution. My question is when is Israel going to grow up in how in deals with and treats its whole population? There is a need for Israel, yes; there isn't quite the same 'need' for sloppy, artificial democracy and lies about the status of over-extending (ie, occupying) Palestinian territory and access to resources such as water.
So, yes, call out anti-semitic politicians- but please don't rely on false premises about Israel as a country that will get back to its 'two-state solution' any minute now when you do.
7
@Andrea D.
Andrea, thank you for your thoughtfulness here. Yes, a one-state Jewish/Arab bi-national state is on the way. There is no other way this conflict can go at this point.
1
The notion that a patch of Earth confers security has always been a dangerous fiction. Borders move and people flee, and have ever since the first citizens of Sumer said, “This land is ours, not yours.”
Therefore, of all the great dreams of a great people, Zionism is both one of the most understandable, and yet one of the most heartbreakingly misguided. It is the bittersweet attempt of the oppressed to warm themselves inside the increasingly threadbare garments designed by their oppressor. And ultimately, it is just too small a dream.
I want Jews to live in peace and freedom in Jerusalem, but I also want the same for a Jew that wants to live in Cairo, Baghdad, Seville, and Bozeman, Montana. I want the same thing for Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, Hindus, Zoroastrians, and Atheists.
So why don’t we stop getting sidetracked, and get to the real work of building a world where that can happen: a world that ensures peace and security for everyone. Today, Kim Jong-un has fifty nukes, and the world claps every time Elon Musk launches one of his private ballistic missiles. Tomorrow, global warming will put 500 million people on the move — people who will not be stopped by a fence made of decorative slats. Perhaps my ideas are naive and idealistic, but we are running out of time, and maybe it’s time to try the big, crazy dream. After all, it was 7,000 years of fighting over forgotten borders and crumbling walls that got us into this mess in the first place.
2
Corbyn is an anti-Semite both by his actions, the company he keeps, and his words.
He has a very long track record of supporting the enemies of Israel.
Consider that in when in 1994 two Muslims attempted to blow up the Israeli embassy in London, the major figure to get them freed and paroled was Mr. Corbyn. They were later sent to prison for their terrorist crimes.
This is the man who would be the Prime Minister of the UK.
No wonder Jews in the UK and elsewhere as well as anyone who respects democracy and rejects racism and anti-Semitism opposes him.
NYT commenters may write what they wish.
At the end of the day, Israel will endure and grow as the only democratic state in the Middle East.
Today it announced that for the first time in its history, a sitting Prime Minister will face a trial on criminal charges. Netanyahu appointed AG Mandelblit to his post.
Though Likud, Netanyahu's party, has threatened the AG and attempted to keep him from announcing his indictment prior to the new election, called by Netanyahu, for early April, the man refused to be cowed.
Again, Israeli democracy is a beacon to the entire world of how, in the face of enemies at home and abroad, surrounded by groups and nations that want it dead, it does the right thing when the going gets rough.
Israel is the Jewish state. In 70 AD the Romans exiled all Jews from our ancestral homeland. Zionism is the movement to return to this homeland.
We have returned.
We are not going anywhere.
9
“We’re not going anywhere.”
“You will not replace us.”
Spot the difference.
Nobody says Jews should leave Israel, certainly not in the left in the UK or USA.
People say that the Palestinians deserve equal rights in there own homeland and that defending the demographics of a “Jewish” state is inherently racist, which is undeniable.
When racial nationalists speak in exclusive terms, they are saying a lot more about themselves that anyone else. They can’t envision living with the other, much less being equal to them, so it’s us or them.
White South Africans always used the same arguments to justify their post-colonial system.
3
Those who believe that Jews must support a "Jewish homeland" might remember that Stalin proposed a Jewish homeland, "Birobidzhan". Russian Jews were not ecstatic.
For a lighthearted view of this question, the Jewish American writer Michael Chabon has written a novel based on the presumption that the Russians hadn't sold Alaska to the US, and that the Jewish state became Alaska. It's worth reading: The Jewish Policeman's Union.
1
This is so much nonsense really. There is no import to that MP's statement, because the statement is a bold-faced lie. If such 'statements' are to be taken seriously they must be accompanied by some kind of proof of their veracity. So far I have sen zero proof of alleged anti-semitism by Corbyn or by Labour Party. The baseless statements are directed purely at discrediting the Party and its leader, and such obvious propaganda will not work. Putting it into NYT does not make it true.
11
The Labour Party's descent into bigotry began when the activists proudly walking into party conferences with the buttons bearing the slogan "Red Labour" and outline of Lenin's head took over so many chapters. Leninists are wizards a identifying minorities to hate and they settled on a familiar target. That should surprise no one.
1
Anti Zionism and anti Semitism inhabit the same space. To oppose the politics of the right wing party in Israel, is to join a large portion of Israeli citizens. To wish that a solution to the West Bank conundrum, which would not lead to the type of violent situation that has developed in the Gaza Strip, could be reached, is also the wish of Jews in Israel and around the world. But, to attack the desire of Jewish people to express their Zionism is quite simply a bold expression of raw anti Semitism.
7
Pretty light on evidence of anti-Semitism, in my view. It seems to be mostly accusations that Corbyn and/or Labour have in some situations associated with anti-Zionists or anti-Semites. Strikes me as another hyper-sensitive demand for ideological purity, and for demonstrations of the same. Disagreeing about whether a "Jewish homeland" is consistent with commitments to justice, democracy, and human rights does not equate to anti-Semitism, and accusatory columns like this one only serve to stifle discussion and further polarize views on the question.
10
2- state solution to the chronic Arab- Zionist / Jewish conflict would be ideal... IF... a state of their own is REALLY what the Palestinians wished for. had that been the case, they could have reached that goal more than a few times since the 1947 UN resolution 181 was voted, accepted by Israel, instantly rejected by the Arabs who attacked Israel with the declared intent of wiping it
out. history is full of cases where people found ways to reach their
goals. WHY is it, that after 72 years ( !), the Palestinians are not closer to reaching their goal of having their own state than they were in 1947 ?! WHY do they continue to miss opportunities to reach their goal and end being eternal refugees ?! one reasonable, hard - to - avoid answer is : its NOT a state they want. its the elimination/ disappearance of Israel that they want. their leaders have made no secret of that over many years. it should behoove all the commentators on the conflict to ONCE AND FOR ALL relate to these questions. in a fact- based, substantive
way.
7
Thank you for this, Mr. Cohen.
Just a few things though. Jew-hatred has not "re-entered European mainstream". It has never left; it has always been there in one form or another and exists as well in the Conservative Party, just stated differently (in classic British understatement). And the same for the rest of Europe.
Alas, I fear that Mr. Corbyn will become PM. Unfortunately most Labour supporters just don't care about anti-Semitism.
As for the two-state solution, great idea. Unfortunately it takes two to tango, as it were, and the majority of Israel's Jewish population believe, and with apparently good reason, that our Palestinian neighbors in the West Bank and Gaza would happily slit our throats if they had the chance. What Muslim does to Muslim (and Arab to Arab) would be minor compared to what they would do to us if they had the chance. Paranoia? Look at Syria. Racist? Would you bet the life of your grandchildren on goodwill?
So I would be happy if you could come up with a solution that would guarantee out safety and be acceptable to our neighbors.
But as you know, even if a Palestinian state would be established tomorrow and we would dance the Hora in the streets of Ramat-Gan and the Debka in Jenin, anti-Semitism would remain firmly entrenched in Europe. There is always a reason.
11
"Israel walks this fine line..." No, it doesn't. The present government is doing everything to destroy any possibility of a two-state solution.
Your comment that Israel cannot have a Palestinian majority is also wrong. If the state of Israel were to actually abide by the UN Resolution that created Israel and allow the Right of Return, among other unfulfilled commitments, Israel and Palestine) could become a multi-national, multi-religious, multi-cultural country (or federation of two countries) that would be dominated by the European Ashkenazim politically, economically, and culturally. This would be good. Everybody can see that.
Only the religious Zionists who claim that God gave them this piece of land stand in the way of a very wonderful country. It is a pity.
1
I have a thing about consistency of claimed "principle." When I don't see consistency, I wonder whether there is an agenda other than principle behind the claim.
I can't help but wonder how many of those who voice their support for BDS of Israel, would be willing to give up all their made-in-China gadgets through which they voice their BDS support. China is a major ethnic oppressor and occupier of others' lands, and not just Tibet. In fact, all one has to do is ask anyone not of the Han majority, especially the Muslim Uighurs.
Is there a BDS movement against Turkey and the other countries which violently prevent Kurdish hopes for a homeland? How about Syria, which makes Israel/Palestine look like a walk in the park?
Obviously I could go on, but adding other examples would not increase the validity of my point for those (probably few) who are willing to consider it as an arguable proposition.
3
It benefits the Israeli government to muddle the difference between criticizing Israel and expressing anti Semitic views. This factor plays a key role in such confusing discussions, and deserves closer attention.
A rise in global anti Semitism promotes emigration to Israel and also burnishes Israel's vital role. What's good for Israel is therefore not so good for Jews outside Israel. Conversely, if anti Semitism declines, more Israeli Jews are likely to leave Israel in disgust at its abuse of Palestinians. The interests of the Israeli government is therefore not aligned with that of the diasporic Jewish community, but it is in the interest of the Israeli government to cover up this misalignment.
While anti Semitism is abhorrent, so are charges of anti Semitism that are levied to achieve political goals and silence critics. An example is the current effort to outlaw the right of Americans to boycott Israel as though it were a sacred object, even though Americans have the absolute right to boycott anyone or anything else, from Trump to France.
9
Good column Roger but you've overlooked certain realities. Would it need to be a two state solution or a three state solution to accommodate Gaza and the West Bank? Do you foresee Hamas and Fatah coming together to negotiate with Israel?
1
What a strange mish-mash of an article about an ancient and continuing problem. First, re. the Labor MP Berger, Cohen seems to be implying that the Labor Party posted "pictures of Stars of David superimposed on [her] forehead, and [her] face imposed on a rat, or many rats" etcetc. Nowhere in this description is there any suggestion that these repulsive images might have come from sources other than the Labor Party. Whether they did or not, I don't know because Cohen doesn't make this clear. But it seems extremely unlikely that they did. Second, re. the gilets jaunes of France, three or four people at one of their protests hurled insults at the French writer (who happens to be a Jew) Alain Finkielkraut. Three or four people out of a crowd of thousands. And Cohen would have use believe this demonstrates the antisemitism of this movement. Sorry, Roger, anecdotal evidence does not constitute anything near hard proof. Finally, Cohen continues to ignore the main source of real hardcore antisemitism in Europe--a cohort of second and third generation of Muslim European citizens whose parents moved to Europe in the 1960s and 1970s. You want to find antisemitism in Europe: look there. I would suggest a good place to start would be the banlieues on the periphery of Paris.
9
@Lotzapappa Thank you fort stating the obvious truth which cannot be found in any MSM.
Mr. Cohen writes that antisemitism is evident in the “dismissal of the legal basis for the modern Jewish state in United Nations Resolution 181 of 1947”.
The Jews that initiated the state of Israel are many, many generations distant from those of the ancient empire. There is no doubt that they are distinct and have historically paid a horrible price for this distinctiveness. It goes without saying that they should have the right to live and prosper in peace. But they have tied themselves materially to the land of the ancient civilization purely through the myths of religion. (My parents were Italian does mean that I have some material claim to the ancient Roman Empire?).
In essence, the problem of Jewish self-determination has been conflated with Judaism. In seeking to satisfy their right to self-determination Zionists have displaced a resident population of non-Jews. A Jewish state in the middle east may be a mistake. If so, in the sweep of history, it is an understandable one. To say it is legal is absurd.
Mr. Cohen, I am surprised and even a bit offended that you seem to consider these thoughts to be anti-Semitic. I would appreciate an explanation.
14
@Salvatore
Jews are indigenous to the Levant...the Arabs, not so much. So, to deny the Jewish people the right to self-determination upon a tiny fraction of their own ancestral ground while simultaneously failing to acknowledge that, in 1920, the British granted the Arab population nearly 80% of the former Ottoman province (aka Palestine) for their exclusive benefit (now called Jordan)...that, indeed, reeks of Antisemitism.
Arabs are still trying to win the war they started 70+ years ago....and lost. Perpetrating war has consequences. Perpetrating endless wars have endless consequences.
7
@Michal
Michal:
I am challenging the argument made by Mr. Cohen so that I may understand it better. I am sorry that you consider that this “reeks of anti-Semitism”. Frankly, I was hoping to get a more convincing response than yours. You have simply repeated Mr. Cohen’s point of view with a few more details.
You say that the British granted the Arabs and Jews their current lands (more or less). Are these the same British who stole the lands of Native Americans and systematically killed them? The British role derives from their success as conquerors not from any high ground as ethical or legal arbiters.
It is evident that Israel is the ancient land of the Jews. But there are other displaced nations. Jews have Israel as a state because of the confluence of a number of historical events, most notably the holocaust. We all wish that this solution had been more peaceful because it was necessary. Jews were almost completely eliminated by the Nazis. Unfortunately, it has turned out to be a solution borne of conflict.
Here is my point: To claim that the founding of Israel in the middle east is legal is to make the situation seem black and white (This is our land and you Arabs are interlopers and must leave.) It has the same simplicity and heft of saying this is our God-given land. When a problem is viewed as black and white it leads to a lack of nuance in solving it. This is not helpful nor, as far as I can tell, supported by the facts.
2
Abusing words is terribly dangerous. We should all keep in mind the story of the boy who cried wolf. When practically anything (especially if it comes from the left) can be labelled as anti-Semitic, the time will soon come when "anti-Semitism" will mean nothing at all.
9
Spot on, Roger.
After almost a millennium characterized by expulsions and persecution, sometimes driven by the Anglican Church, other times by the monarchy or even ordinary farmers and tradesmen, we were supposed to think that the British had vanquished antisemitism.
Yes, the UK has millions of men and women of goodwill. There are many who embody tolerance, and there are examples of great and noble British leaders, some of whom will be forever remembered by Jews as heroes.
But sadly, there are too many who have channeled the antisemitism of their ancestors, centuries of hatred. Like Roger Waters, the obsessive antiZionist, they claim they only have a problem with Israel.
Yet we know better.
These haters, who can never accept the notion of Jewish self-determination, are infected by the germ carried by their ancestors. Only the disease's manifestations have changed.
9
For years Israelis and pro-Israel communities overseas have sought to dignify Israel's policies and actions by claiming that anyone who opposes them is anti-semitic. No self-respecting citizen wants to be accused of anti-semitism however questionable the pretext for the accusation may be. Such crticism therefore has the tendency to stunt robust discussion even among those who owe or pretend no allegiance to either the Jewish faith or to Israel. But perhaps only now are those who promote the theory are beginning to realize its danger. For if I am told that my criticism of Israel is anti-Semitic and if I am convinced that my criticism is justified, is it not logical to conclude in light of the forged link between Israel and Jewishness, that being anti-semitic is also OK. They were the ones that forged the link, not me. And the longer it takes for Jews outside Israel to stand up and be counted when it comes to passing judgement over actions taken by the Israeli government that are contrary to accepted civilized norms, the stronger the likelihood that anti-semitism will grow.
12
Corbyn displays anti-Semitism. I have no idea why he is still the leader of the Labour party. That said, it is a bit of a stretch to call every member of the Labour party anti-Semitic. That is a logical fallacy since they are not a single issue organization. In addition, I appreciate the comprehensive definition of anti-Semitism. Objecting to Israel's policies toward the Palestinians does not in and of itself an anti-Semite make. Finally, it is my sincere hope that as we correctly object to every incidence of anti-Semitism, we might do the same about every incidence of anti-Muslim bigotry. After all, bigotry is bigotry and hatred is hatred.
4
Deflecting legit criticism.
The legit crit needs to find and nail its target.
4
Despite the rhetoric from extremists, who is seriously going to "abolish Israel?" The vast majority of countries diplomatically recognize Israel, and that includes some of Israel's former Arab adversaries. More importantly, Israel has probably the most advanced military in the region and has nuclear weapons. This is not to mention Israel's Muslim neighbors are currently too busy beating each other senseless in places like Syria and Yemen. Is this a genuine issue?
2
The odd thing about the BSD movement is why they're not boycotting China, which actively oppresses almost a billion people, including 40 million Muslims, and occupied Tibet long after the formation of the state of Israel. Or why not boycott Saudi Arabia, which actively oppresses more than half their population, including far more Muslims than Israel is currently oppressing. Or Syria, which actively oppresses far more people than Israel is currently oppressing. The list goes on - but the sense among my fellow progressives seems to be that boycotting is ineffective - they want to end the boycott of Cuba, for instance, and don't want to boycott Venezuela. So it smells a little fishy that the Left considers the only Jewish state also to be the only one worthy of boycotting.
318
@A.
It's not so odd if you know the background, but here I just want to say China occupied Tibet quite soon after the formation of Israel -- not that there is any connection, or that it is relevant.
Boycotting Saudi Arabia is a good idea; it's one of the most despicable countries on Earth. Good luck with that.
13
@A. Why do I have to boycott 122 nation states when I boycott Israel? If I condemn Saudi, do I have to add a footnote to say I also condemn rights abuses in 122 other nations and list them as well. This is absurd.
27
@A.
"So it smells a little fishy that the Left considers the only Jewish state also to be the only one worthy of boycotting."
Or perhaps "the Left" is not some monolithic block that should not be stereotyped, but instead is as diverse and divided in opinions as the Jewish community is. Your what-about-isms especially as they relate to China's treatment of their Muslim minority are good points but perhaps there are reasons Israel has received the BDS treatment other than anti-Semitism.
1- Because of the size of their relative economies, Israel is far more vulnerable than China. The possibility of successful pressure to right China's misdeeds against the Uyghur People, versus Israel's occupation, are far more likely to be influenced by a boycott against Israel, while attempting to rally folks to boycott the nation that makes our iPhones might be seen as futile.
2- I myself am a lapsed Jewish Zionist, but still in my heart I believe we should expect better from Israel. Believing that finding a new way to place pressure on Israel to make possible what must be made possible if Israel is to survive is the opposite of anti-Semitism.
These real examples of anti-Semitism that Roger Cohen discusses are a sad day for Britain. I don't want people hating me because Netanyahu is (in my opinion), a Yiddish word this newspaper will not print. Likewise, let's be careful not to conflate criticism of Israel for anti-Semitism, or tarnish "The Left" for the bigotries of a few.
28
Hmm, really? First, despite rhetoric from extremists, who is seriously going to abolish a country that has its own nuclear weapons. I don't think Israel is going anywhere.
But more importantly, how many British Jews actually think it's a comfort to know they can flee to Israel because Jeremy Corbyn is failing to crack down on antisemites? I suspect most of them don't speak any Hebrew and have no interest in moving to, what is to them, a foreign country. To go from Labour needing to clean house to talking about the need to Israel seems a bit of a stretch.
6
Representative Omar repeated the dual-loyalty trope at an event last night. No one cared. What you describe in this article is slowly happening to the Democrat Party
13
I have no more doubt that Corbyn is an anti-Semite than I have that Trump is a racist. As Paul Simon asked rhetorically: Why deny the obvious?
However, I think the rather subtle suggestion that misgivings about Zionism equate to anti-Semitism is given the lie by the fact that many religious Jews oppose Zionism on the grounds that establishing a Jewish state before the coming of the Messiah was "forcing the end" instead of waiting for God to bring redemption. Are tens of thousands of anti-Zionist Jews anti-Semites too?
1
You say that "there’s nothing anti-Semitic about sympathy for the Palestinian cause". That is like saying that there is nothing anti-Chinese about sympathy for the Tibetan cause or for the plight of Uighurs in China. This may all be true but if a person thinks that the Palestinian cause is somehow more important than those other causes, then that person is probably an anti-Semite. Moreover, if a person is boycotting Israel while carrying a phone labeled "Assembled in China" and wearing clothes marked "Made in Chine", then that person is probably an anti-Semite.
10
The Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn has engaged in anti-semitic rhetoric about Jewish control of the economy and the government to questioning the legitimacy of Israel's right to exist.
Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the Labour Party, has stated on numerous occasions that he supports Hamas and Hezbollah. Hamas is the organization that has rained down terror on Israel's population. Sending suicide bombers into Israeli busses, marketplaces, restaurants, schools, and hospitals killing and maiming thousands of innocent men, women, and children is not something any world leader should support.
Hezbollah has been considered by almost every member of Congress and all of our intelligence agencies as a class A terrorist group. They get their funds from Iran and from running drugs in South America. There is no western leader on this planet who has trouble identifying what Hamas and Hezbollah stand for except Corbyn. Their charters call not only for the annihilation of Israel but call for attacks against Jews worldwide.
People have every right to vehemently criticize the current leader of Israel, its right wing government, and its policies against the Palestinians. The overwhelming majority of American Jews share those feelings, and as a Jewish American, I strongly feel the same.
Let's be clear. Those who support the boycott and divestiture movement do not support a two State solution to the Israeli Palestinian conflict. They do not believe the Jewish State has a right to exist.
181
@Mark Jeffery Koch
I followed these accusations against Corbyn closely, and each time I had to conclude that they were false. The visit to a graveyard in Tunesia was put as if he honored the perpetrators on the Munich massacre...who are buried in Lybia. The claim that he suggested British Jews are not really British turned out to be the following: A Christian Zionist had misinterpreted something ironic that a Palestinian speaker had just said, and he made a quip about British Zionists failing to understand British irony in contrast to the foreign speaker. And it goes on and on. Are these 200 Jews who signed a letter of support for Corbyn all self hating fools then?
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/feb/20/jeremy-corbyn-labour-party-crucial-ally-in-fight-against-antisemitism
3
@Mark Jeffery Koch
I support BDS, and a two-state solution.
And I am really saddened that the Israel I once admired as degenerated into being such a hateful country.
2
@Mark Jeffery Koch: I was with you until your final paragraph: all that comes before that deals with Corbyn, Hamas, Hizbullah, and Israeli policy. But then instead of summarizing you toss in a complete non-sequitur (and one, I'd add, that doesn't arise in the article under discussion): "Those who support the boycott and divestiture movement .... do not believe the Jewish State has a right to exist." Huh?
10
I was always under the opinion that the traditional anti-semitism in England was strengthened after the Jews forced England from Palestine.
1
I would wager that more than half of the population here have never heard of British Mandatory Palestine nor the fighting of 1946-47. I don’t think it plays much of a role in forming attitudes. I never hear it mentioned, especially in Labour who tbh, would reflexively take the side of those wanting to evict the imperialists anyway.
When you have 5000yrs of history, it’s a lot to educate people on. Odd how it’s often the bad bits that get excised from the curriculum first...
Charges of Jeremy Corbin’s purported Antisemitism are ethically unfair and politically gratuitous, unless it’s defined as his not endorsing Netanyahu’s ball-wrecking politics.
Last January 2018, the Likud party declared its intention to annex the occupied Palestinian Territories. Early in the 2000s, Netanyahu and the Neocons lobbied for and got their wish to invade Iraq. It was destroyed and gave birth to ISIS and the displacement of millions of people, many of whom are migrating to Western Europe
Western Europe hasn't recovered from the US 2008/9 Great Recession. Wages are low, jobs are scarce and the quality of life is tenuous. Add to this a flood displaced refugee/immigrant population and you have the current instability in the region. Yet, Netanyahu and the Neocons are now banging the familiar drums of war against Iran; the Warsaw meeting was a distater . Social media and the Net have made it possible for news to travel real time and see the illogical arguments involved While hatred for one group of people is bad, hatred for any group or emotional blackmail are equally awful.
The world is witnessing the impact of Steve Miller’s anti-immigrant policies against Central American asylum seekers which are similar to those from the Jim Crow era that diminished people to second class citizens, stripping them of their rights, yet the major US and world Jewish organizations have remained mute. News travel fast and the glaring gap needs addressing
2
Sorry, but you blew it right at the beginning: "Antisemitism is re-entering European mainstream". Let me assure you: A British shadow-prime minister with a communist/extreme left leaning and a movement of French deplorables do by no means represent the "European mainstream".
This is as if you we saying AOC (that new girl from the Bronx. Or was it Brooklyn???) and the movement of the Mexican teachers movement were representing the America's mainstream.
Call out the misdeeds, but do not dramatize. You are doing yourself a disservice.
3
Roger, you confuse anti-antisemitism with anti-colonialism
6
Cohen too quickly dismisses and discards Jews fault in all these arguments he raises. That in itself generates hate. Self-determination sure, but not at the expense of others.
1
roger - you can write a column about anti-semitism without mentioning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. There was hatred for the Jews long before Israel, and Corbyn's hatred has nothing to do with Israel or the the Palestinians. IT's just the stupid blind hatred of a man. YOU de-legitimize your argument when you write about Israel and the Palestinians. European hatred for Jews, the 1% population of the planet, will exist regardless.
5
Not surprisingly, already in the few comments I have read, antisemitism is represented as “a legitimate critique of Israel’ and thus beyond reproach. No, it is not legitimate to call for the annihilation of a sovereign state. It is not legitimate to imply that Jewish financiers and bankers rule the world. It is not legitimate to compare Jews to rats and vermin, to say that they drink the blood of Palestinian children, or that they are bad as Nazis. If you don’t understand why this is not the same as criticizing Netanyahu’s government, there is nothing I want to say to you. I don’t talk to racists.
11
It's an easy crossover from anti-Zionism to anti-Semitism on the left. You start with the propsition that it is self-evident that Israel is a European white settler state like apartheid South Africa that has no right to exist as a Jewish state. You then wonder why all decent people in civilized countries don't accept this self-evident proposition. It's only a short step to concluding that the reason is that the tiny minority of rich, clever Jews has excessive, sinister influence over public opinion. And voila, you find yourself in company with all the traditional right wing Christian nationalists who blame The Jew for subverting the homogenous culture they want to live in.
Of course, the most doctrinaire Zionists are of two minds about this. Herzel's premise was that the Jews were a distinct people who could not truly assimilate in a Christian national Europe and should have their own state somewhere else. The Nazis were content to ship German Jews off to Palestine (after plundering them) to make Europe Judenrein, and modern European anti-semitism has its upside if it convinces the Jews of Europe that their only future is aliyah. That's why Netanyahu is in bed with Orban --they both believe in a homogenous ethnic society rather than a pluralistic, American-style one.
5
Antisemitism is rabid in the British Left. Sometimes expressed in the politest of terms as well.
8
Roger--Anti-Semitism and Jew hatred never truly left the European mainstream.
7
British have always been polite anti-semites not like the murderous German or russian anti-semites but the british are anti-semites to their core.
6
Anti-Semitism and Anti-Zionism are inescapably linked together. Attacking Israel as an illegal and racist Zionist state and claiming at the same time not be anti-Semitic doesn't work at any level. It is a great lie and greater misrepresentation of the truth of the origins of Israel. Anti-Zionism denies the right of the State of Israel to exist and denies its legitimacy. It also denies the history of the Jewish people. Zionism is Judaism. Zionism is the reason for the survival and existence of the remainder of the Jews after World War II. To be sure the creation of the Jewish state was not a consolation prize for having been slaughtered by the millions by the Nazis and other Europeans.
Israel was a nation before Christ walked the Earth. The Jews populated Judea long before the Romans or Assyrians. And much longer before the modern Arab nations. The Arab nations need to be reminded how they persecuted and killed Jews and appropriated Jewish homes and businesses before the creation of Israel. They need to be reminded why armed settlements of Jews were necessary.
Without Israel Judaism and the Jewish people would cease to exist. Without Zionism there would be no modern Israel. No other nation on Earth, not even the United States protects the Jewish people or lets them live in peace as Jews. Great Britain is now revealing its true feelings towards Jews.
The Arab nations seek the total destruction of Israel and the Jews. All of the Jews. That is anti-Zionism revealed.
12
There is nasty anti-Semiticism in places like Ukraine which is the darling of NATO and the US. Trump has had his go at anti-Semiticism fomenting the demented attack on the Jewish Temple in Pittsburgh on the charge that George Soros was bankrolling the overblown immigrant march on the US border. The problem is that Israel has massively violated the human rights of the Palestinians. The on going tragedy of the blockade of Gaza is overt act of war against Palestinians. Gantz, the main opponent of Netanyahu uses his crushing of Gaza as a campaign highlight. There is a danger to future of the temple mount mosque being attacked by Israeli zealots. The ongoing work of Israel with Saudi Arabia to foment a war with Iran is dangerous with unknown consequences for the entire world. That said, the populist nationalist forces across the west have been tainted with anti-Semiticism. The tactics to attach the charge of anti-Semiticism is a growing problem in the US congress. The term Zionist Christian is a right wing mov't with growing strength in red states based on the belief the 2nd Coming will soon arrive.
2
And with Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar now darlings of the Democratic progressive Left, not to mention a couple of other rabid Israel-hating freshmen Democrats, let this be a warning to the US Democratic Party of what it can turn into. It's easy to accuse Trump or Republicans of this or that alleged racism or Jew-hate or see Brown Shirts under the bedposts, but miss the antisemitic mobs within antiFa or on college campuses. Time the Left starts washing its own dirty laundry.
14
@JW
I don't know if you really believe what you're writing but though you may derive satisfaction from imagining "mobs" on college campuses or bashing Muslims with the temerity to get elected to Congress I suggest you focus on the white nationalists who are the actual problem.
1
So you are opposed to racism against ethno-religious minorities and you fixate on the Congess’ only two Muslim women.
I’ll bet you can’t even spot the hypocrisy.
2
anti semitism must be condemned
in the strongest terms,especially by
non jewish people. we can not allow
the Jeremy Corbyns of the world to
spew their under- the- table but no
less repugnant anti semitism to the
rest of the world. even members of
Congress are making vile statements
and passing them off as simply
statements of policy.they must be
called out every single time, for if
if it is allowed to fester,it will become
a fatal infection and doom us all to
a future of fear and loathing.
7
Ironically, if the Jews actually ran the world, the world would be in much better shape. The vicious claim is based on the nasty assumption that disorder and violence somehow feed a mythological Jewish agenda. Nothing could be further from the truth.
8
It is worth pointing out that not even the people who have resigned from Labour have accused Corbyn of personally being an anti-Semite. He might be, but even his political foes in the UK have not made that claim. The claim is that he tolerates anti-semitic behavior in others, who usually are leftists who sympathize with the Palestinians and have crossed the line in their condemnation of Israel. I find even this toleration repugnant, but it is a lesser sin than personal anti-Semitism. Cohen seems to conflate the two. There isn't a lot of nuance in his analysis.
8
There is a cult around Jeremy Corbyn in which he is seen as a Messiah who after some 40 years in the wilderness has come to save the people from the ravages of capitalism and lead us to a socialist Promised Land. (To non believers who have observed the ineptitude and intellectual vacuity of Corbyn over the years all this just seems daft.)
And so to question Corbyn in any way is to commit heresy and can bring down vile vituperation. Corbyn cultists see any identification of anti Semitism among his supporters, where pro-Palestinian support is taken as a given, as an attack on Corbyn and as part of a plot organised by the establishment, the Main Stream Media, etc etc to pull down the sainted Dear Leader. It has been common to hear that the struggle against antisemitism is actually intended to damage Corbyn. Sad and nasty.
But it is evident that the cult of Corbyn is in steep decline both because of this and because of his support for Brexit.
8
@PeterC
Bingo. This. Exactly this.
1
"There’s nothing anti-Semitic about sympathy for the Palestinian cause or support of Palestinian statehood or disdain for the rightist government of the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and its kick-the-can policies to prolong or eternize the occupation of the West Bank. That should be obvious."
It's not obvious because it is not true (although I do agree that eventually land should be given (and will be given) to the Arabs in the West Bank, i.e., the palestinians.
1
The fear that drives the spurious campaign against "the anti-Semitic Labor Party" in Britain is that the Party stands a good chance of coming to power in the next elections, and the British ruling class is petrified of Corbyn's popular social democratic program and the popularity of his support for BDS. They need a boogeyman to scare voters away from Labor, hence the rise of the specter of "left-wing anti-Semitism" as an existential threat to British Jews. Rather than taking a principled stand against this cynical smear campaign, Corbyn and many in the Labor leadership have retreated, encouraging the red-baiters to advance their agenda to not only prevent a Labor victory but to enable a internal coup within the Labor Party to permanently purge the left. Their campaign serves as a test case for similar forces here in the US, eager to roll out something like it against the growing support for BDS among ordinary Americans, especially among young American Jews, and to purge the Democratic Party of elected representatives that openly support BDS. The main point is that there is a unity among the political representatives of both the British and American ruling classes that has noting to do with protecting or defending Jews from the real threats of anti-Semitism posed by ascendent right-wing forces internationally, but is rather based on defending Israeli militarism in service to Western imperialism in the Middle East.
8
@john riehle
well, i know this sounds crazy but hear me out: maybe what's driving the campaign against antisemitism in the labor party is, uh, the antisemitism.
and if the labor party stands a good chance of coming to power in the next election, as you say, then it does seem to be a curious time for politicians to be leaving the party.
cuz, you know, there's nothing a politician likes more than giving up a chance to be on the team in power.
4
I'm sorry, but there's a difference between criticizing what certain Jews do and condemning the Jewish people as a whole.The latter is anti-Semitism, not the former. Those who control the Israeli nation-state and set its policies are anti-Palestinian to the core. Their failure to see no way for the Jewish people to survive except by eliminating Palestinians from their OWN homeland is a failure of trust, of nerve, and of common humanity. The fact that the homeland of both people happens to be on the very same land calls for a wisdom which both sides cannot seem to manifest. Jews and Palestinians must learn to live together. There is no other way.
5
What is "anti-zionism," exactly? When I was growing up (a long time ago), "zionism" meant supporting a Jewish homeland (a state) in the historic "holy land." It didn't mean the entire "holy land" (which could be larger or smaller depending on one's views). It meant a territory (necessarily defensible) in which the Jews - historically viciously oppressed in most countries in Europe and, frankly, in North Africa and the middle east) could live amongst themselves securely. After WWII Jews in the holy land agreed to a partition in which the Arab residents would get the larger territory per UN resolution in 1947 (or 48; I forget). The neighboring Arab states rejected the resolution and attempted to wipe the Jews out militarily, which they failed to do. They tied again in '67 and again in '73. If Zionism means maintaining a Jewish state within defensible borders, I'm a Zionist. If it means occupying all the land west of the Jordan River and treating the Arab residents as second class citizens, I'm not. What does "Zionism" mean to Mr. Corbyn? To BDS advocates?
2
Roger, I think it is time for you to decide exactly what your own values are. You cannot talk about the need for a Jewish homeland without talking about the reality of what Israel has done to the Palestinians. Ms. Berger cannot call herself a "Zionist" without appreciating that the term connotes a tolerance for policies of violence, brutality and the illegal theft of land directed by the Israeli government against a virtually powerless population. Whatever the aspirations of Zionists may have been in the past, the reality of what Israel is has fatally undermined those aspirations. The charge that Israel should not be conflated with the Jewish people is just; but it is also true that many of the institutions that represent and support the Jewish mainstream are also unapologetic supporters and defenders of Israel. Israel itself has done all it can to conflate itself with all Jews. If anti-Semitism is re-emerging in Europe it is, at least in part, because of this effort at conflation and the refusal of Jewish institutions to distance themselves from Israel and its actions. When Muslims appear in Western society who offer unequivocal support for Al Qaeda and other violent Islamic groups, they are rightly condemned. The Muslim community, understandably, distances itself from these people and these organizations. The institutional Jewish community should be doing the same re: Israel. Instead, defending Israel quickly becomes complicity in its actions.
12
Any culture of antisemitism is not tolerable, but Cohen's evidence that Corbyn "has allowed a demonological view of Israel to foster Jew hatred in the Labour Party since taking over" is ludicrously lacking. He basically repeats the slurs of Luciana Berger in a way that makes them seem like holy writ. The scary quotes are from her, not from Corbyn. Come on.
Corbyn has a long track record of his real concerns, and he is not like George Galloway, a London Labour politician who has indeed promoted conspiracies about Jews.
Corbyn is resented for pointing out the longstanding and very widespread "culture of" anti-palestinian hypocrisy in British policy for decades, and resented for doing it without antisemitic bombast. He resists demonization, hard as Cohen is trying.
But I believe Corbyn's bigger offense to punditry is really that he will not stop pointing out the anti-working-class hypocrisy of New Labour and the cooptation of the economic Left.
Through years of columns Cohen has made it clear he doesn't believe in Scandinavian style democratic socialism -- he is constantly calling for Europe to emulate America's "dynamism", which i suppose is one way to describe the Rust Belt and a persistent, desperate underclass.
The giveaway here is Cohen's embrace of another "effort to rebuild the British center" that voters clearly do not want. They chose Corbyn because he has a coherent vision of fairness, and tells it like he sees it.
8
Thank God we have Roger Cohen's menschlich perspective to rely on. What we need above all else is clarity. Endorsing Israel's right to exist is not the same as endorsing Netanyahu's feeble leadership.
It is possible to insist on a serious two-state solution of the stalemate, coupled with a complete abandonment of all the Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
All Arabs living in Israel proper could easily be resettled, if they so chose, in the emptied real estate.
It is abundantly clear that anti-semitism persists, and that Israel's continued existence needs to be guaranteed by us all.
I don't care if the modern state of Israel does essentially insist on Jewishness as a requirement of full citizenship. And I speak as a Lutheran. The founder of my church has only one looming viral flaw -- his anti-Semitism -- which only serves to show us how persistent the virus is, and how appropriate Roger Cohen's solution is.
115
@Goodoldstan:" It is possible to insist on a serious two-state solution of the stalemate, coupled with a complete abandonment of all the Jewish settlements in the West Bank. All Arabs living in Israel proper could easily be resettled, if they so chose, in the emptied real estate. "
It sounds like you want two ethnically exclusive states with the proviso that Arabs living in Israel proper would have a choice with Jews in the West Bank being compelled to leave. Why? Israel has existed since 1948 with a 20% or so non Jewish minority. For a fact some Jews lived in what has become known as the West Bank long before 1948. What is the problem with giving Jews living in the West Bank the same option as Arabs living in Israel proper - to relocate to Israel or remain as Jewish citizens of Palestine?
1
@Goodoldstan Are you suggesting that the 20% of Palestinians who were not thrown out of what is Israel proper should move to the West Bank? What is that all about? An Arab free Israel? And this is a NYT pick?
2
@Goodoldstan Thank you,thank you,thank you.Finally someone brings up Luther's anti-semitism.
1
The Palestinians already have two states. One in the West Bank and one in Gaza. They have all the powers of states: they issue travel documents equivalent to passports, they have militaries, they operate judicial systems and prisons. The one in the West Bank has a sort-of parliament, but hasn't had elections for a long time. The one in Gaza is a acknowledged dictatorship. They quarrel with Israel about their borders.
Just like states everywhere.
9
@Jonathan Katz
Trumpian logic doesn’t make it so
1
Anti-Zionism & criticism of the Israeli government is *not* antisemitism... except to the Israel lobby. Just the usual right-wing, nationalistic wrapping of oneself in the flag
17
The list of things Corbyn is wrong about is a long as trump’s. He belongs on the sidelines throwing rocks, not governing.
6
"Israel needs a two-state solution" -- perhaps it does, but that would require a peace partner. The Palestinian side has shown no interest in the Olmert offer, they want all the land and none of the peace. The Israeli public (not just the right) has recognized in 2008 that the horse is dead, no use flogging it. Cohen should at the very least make some effort explaining how he plans to address this matter.
15
The closing paragraphs of this piece contain the most honest defense I have read of Israel and underline the obvious point that it needs to get out of the occupation business ASAP. In my opinion it should consider doing so by unilaterally drawing a border that includes the settlements it chooses to keep & then completely withdrawing from the remaining territory. It will take a lot of heat & will have another enemy as a neighbor, but the value of a firm border, and the end of expanding settlements, would be enormous.
6
@Charles Woods
which is precisely what Israel did in 2005 when it unilaterally withdrew from Gaza, and was rewarded without thousands of Hamas rockets falling into Israel. The same strategy used in the West Bank would result in Israel being nine miles wide (as it was before 1967) and having rockets bombarding Haifa, Tel Aviv and Ben Gurion airport
5
@Charles Woods
Land for peace?...been there, done that, got 20,000+ rockets and a terrorist base camp on Israel’s southern border. Given the Arab Palestinian commitment to destroy Israel by any means necessary, it would be very unwise for Israel to buy into the ‘appease and concede’ strategy yet again.
As observed by another commenter “you cannot wage a century of terror wars against an indigenous people (the Jews), lose all of those wars, refuse every reasonable offer of land and peace, and then expect to be handed the spoils on a silver platter.” Consequently, apart from Jordan, its unlikely that that there will exist yet another Palestinian state in the near future, if ever.
2
Corbyn is not antisemitic.
It is not antisemitic to oppose the crimes committed in the name of Israel.
It is immoral to defend those crimes, knowing full well they are crimes, but allowing it just because it is Israel doing the crimes.
56
@Mark Thomason
Israel’s rightful defense against 70+ years of Arab-perpetrated terror wars is NOT a crime.
17
@Michal You have an odd way of describing Arab resistance to 70+ years of Israeli colonialism. Reverse the position of the actors and then describe the situation.
4
@ Michael: Israel has committed crimes, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
3
Roger Cohen may or may not be correct about Jeremy Corbyn. But the problem with the idea of a Jewish state and Jewish homeland is that it, or at least interpretations of it, gives Jews rights and privileges not given to non-Jews. One could certainly argue (as many do) that the nation-state law and the settlements in the West Bank are just expressions of this. Is it outside the boundaries of permissible discourse to point out that Zionism seems to prioritize Jewish claims at the expense of non-equal Palestinians? I am getting the impression that's what labeling critics of the Israeli narrative as antisemitic is intended to do.
227
@OKAJ You are mistaken about rights given to Jews and not to others. Every citizen, regardless of religion, race or ethnicity has the same rights. The right to vote, note the Arab political parties and the 14 Arab members of Parliament (Kneset). The presence of Arab Judges on various courts including the Supreme Court. The presence of numerous Arab Professors snd Students on every College and University campus. The presence of Arab news casters on radio and television, Actors/Musicians, etc. In every sphere of Society Arabs have every opportunity to participate and excel. Let me know if I missed something.
68
@OKAJ
This is flatly wrong with respect to the citizens of Israel. There are no "rights and privileges" enjoyed by Jews which are not also provided to non-Jewish citizens. That said, the population of the settlements poses a problem on a number of fronts, among which is the fact that in most all instances, the settlements in the territories are populated with Jewish Israelis. But to slide from that fact to the notion that Israel as a Jewish state gives greater rights to its Jewish majority over its non-Jewish minority is a false smear.
48
You answer your own question: "...or at least interpretations of it." There are many ways to conceive of a Jewish homeland -- Israelis argue long and hard about just that. Israel has been a homeland without the "nation-state law" for 70 years without it; it can be a homeland without the West Bank. So very few would call someone who criticized either of these things an anti-Semite (again, since many, many Israelis would --and do-- say the same thing). But even "just" criticisms of these limited policies could become antisemetic, depending on how they are made, in language, imagery, metaphor etc.
But honestly, OKAJ -- is this at stake in ANY of the examples Cohen lists here, "merely" a criticism of specific Israeli policies? It isn't. So where do you "get the impression that's what labeling critics of Israel is intending to do"? This is the way it so often goes: Jews list the clearly antisemitic rhetoric flying around, including anti-Israeli comments that are clearly antisemitic in tone and imagery, and in the ways Cohen identifies -- and the response is the bait-and-switch, "oh, but we're ONLY criticizing Israeli policy, and criticizing Israeli policy isn't in itself antisemitic --you're just trying to shut us up." That's precisely part of the Left version of gaslighting that would never be tolerated if applied to any other minority group when they push back against racism/sexism/prejudice.
31
This column clarifies some of Roger Cohen's columns that I strongly disagreed with in the past.
Yes, you can criticize decisions and acts of the Israeli authorities. That is not antisemitism and remember that many Israelis disagree with one or the other of decisions or acts of the Israeli government.
But denying Israel's right to exist as the Jewish Homeland IS antisemitic and this has become the axiom of many (BDS included) to claim that they are not what they are in fact.... antisemites.
Yes I am also a proud Zionist, as well as a proud American.
Thank you Roger Cohen.
367
What is it to deny Palestinians right to a homeland? What is it to deny their human rights to self determination, security, and property?
81
@Rosary Are you aware of how many times Palestinians have been offered a homeland since 1948?
104
@Harry
Well said. Roger must be taking common sense pills or something; considering how often he rationalizes the Iranian ayatollahs who vow to annihilate Israel on a daily basis. What's he going to do when he can't blame Netanyahu anymore who may very well be finally voted out this April?
19
We are seeing an example of 'crying wolf.'
Anti-Semitism, unfortunately, is alive and well. Any such prejudice should never be dignified.
The problem is, so much legitimate criticism of Israel and even AIPAC gets dismissed as anti-Semitism as a way of deflecting from real issues.
Our Congress rejects as anti-Semitism valid concerns about Israel and its political influence on the United States, or even ways of resisting it. The Trump administration treats criticism of their embrace of Israel's far right government as anti-Semitism. Netanyahu cries anti-Semitism every time he or his platform are criticized.
Yes, words of prejudice should be called out for what they are and denounced mightily. But honestly, when every true critique gets shouted down as anti-Semitism, that distinction gets drowned out and loses meaning.
359
@NM Criticism of Netanyahu is not antisemitism. Remember that 75 % of Israelis did not vote for him and many Israelis disagree with him. You are right that sometimes the term antisemitism is misused as sometimes anti black or anti gay are misused.
NM your comment projects on Israel the horrible things that you think of Netanyahu, and that, in my eyes, is antisemitic.
25
@Harry -- The rest of the Israeli political world in this coming election is so much like Netanyahu in all essentials that it is not wrong to say Netanyahu has correctly taken the pulse of the Israeli public. He might even win, would win but for the indictment.
14
@NM You are correct in saying that criticism of Israel is not necessarily anti-Semitic. But when Israel is the ONLY country to be criticized, called out, mind you, for issues that are highly controversial, gray-area stuff, that's when things get questionable.
I couldn't help but notice that less than two weeks ago, a column appeared on these pages by Manzoor Ahmad Pashteen about the atrocities being committed by the Pakistani government against the Pashtuns -- thousands of government-sponsored police killings, government-enforced disappearances, over 6 million Pashtuns illegally displaced. Yet I don't see you picking up the banner calling for a BDS of Pakistan, equating Pakistani nationalism with racism, or accusations of Pashtun apartheid. Barely a peep from any of our fellow NYT readers.
The only logical conclusion? A good number of these criticisms, the BDS movement, the equation of Zionism with racism, are motivated by anti-Semitism. Oh, and then there's Jeremy Corbyn.
41
This closes with an admission of the inherent contradiction of Israel; namely, that Israel includes within its territory millions of Palestinians it fundamentally MUST disenfranchise in order to maintain the nation's Jewish character. A two state solution or a pluralistic democracy would address this; neither is being seriously pursued. As long as the current unjust and anti-democratic situation endures, expect a sustained rejection of zionism. Please do not confuse it with anti-semitism.
185
@Travis
As always, critics of Israel never mention the role the Palestinians must play in presenting an unambiguous plan for a Palestinian state that lives next to, not in place of, Israel. Israel has never "included" parts of the west bank (aside from eastern Jerusalem, which they view as separate) into Israel proper. Previous negotiations, like at Camp David, spoke of potentially incorporating a small percentage of the west bank into Israel, in exchange for giving parts of Israel proper to a proposed Palestine. To accuse Israel of including millions of Palestinians into its territory is disingenuous. Occupation isn't equal to acquiring a permanent stake. Your argument is not fair or truthful.
28
@Travis
For years, it has been the Palestinians who have rejected a two-state solution, not the Israelis, though Netanyahu seems to be doing everything he can to stop that from happening.
It is true that Israeli Arabs living within the Green Line face discrimination. But many Jewish Israelis work hard to counter these problems. The truth is that most Israeli Arabs, given the choice, would choose to remain in Israel and would not move in the event of a two-state solution. They know that they have more rights in Israel than Arabs have in any Arab country.
Please re-read the article. Rejection of the current Israeli government has nothing to do with being against Zionism. A sustained rejection of Zionism is a rejection of the notion that Jews have a right to self-determination in Israel. That's anti-semitic.
55
@Travis
This is flatly wrong. There are no millions of Palestinians "within [Israel's] territory" who must be disenfranchised. Last time I checked, Israel had not annexed the West Bank or Gaza. That's entirely the POINT Cohen is making of the necessity to figure out a way through the creation of a separate Palestinian state, so the Palestinians living in the West bank and Gaza will be citizens of that state and not citizens of Israel.citizens
17
Thank you for the article, Mr. Cohen. Only those ignorant of history, past and present, under why Israel needs to exist. Those calling for Israel’s destruction, i.e. the “one state solution “, will fail in their goal. Israel has faced greater threats and survived, and will continue to survive. Those that do call for the destruction of Israel are serving to extend the impasse between Israel and the Arabs, enabling Israeli settlers and the Israeli right, and those Arab leaders that continue to take advantage of the situation and oppress their own people.
13
@R. Edelman Mr. Cohen’s real issue is that he is a Red Tory/Blairite at heart. Claims of failure to respond to anti-semitism by Corbyn are simply the mechanism through which he seeks to impose his right wing agenda upon the party.
4
It is a shame that people are labeled anti-Semitic who speak about the fact that mainly European refugees continue to displace, disenfranchise and ignore the basic human rights of indigenous Palestinians. The truth is that Palestinians are a Semitic people, so repression of Palestinians' basic human rights is anti-Semitic. It is not hatred of Jews, it is horror at what Israel is doing to its indigenous population, both in the past and today. European refugees have colonized the planet and plundered indigenous peoples for much too long. Everyone deserves equal rights and justice, including Palestinians and Jews. Ethnocentricity is a scourge upon humanity.
21
@Paul Stanford Mainly European refugees???? What? Over half of all Israelis are descended from Jews from the Middle East and North Africa.
4
Cue all the “criticizing Israel is not antisemitism” dog whistles.
Not only does Cohen explicitly say the same thing, but if criticizing Israel were antisemitic, most Israelis would be deemed antisemitic.
Can we just stop with this tired obvious strawman?
Cohen is calling acts of antisemitism antisemitic. He gives examples. And they aren’t mere “criticisms of Israel”.
15
No they’re not. He didn’t say that either but criticism against Israel’s right to exist when it exists can’t be anything but antisemitism.
3
I do agree that a two-state solution is needed. It is hard to envision any other solution that could possibly have long-term stability. The Green Party in the US and others have been advocating a one-state solution, a democratic state which would include Jews and Palestinians. I don't see how such a state could avoid civil war if it came into being. I would be concerned that there would probably be too many religious extremists on both sides who would not accept compromise and would claim that all the land should be theirs. A two-state solution looks almost impossible to obtain but I don't think efforts to achieve it should be abandoned because the obstacles appear nearly impossible to overcome. Perhaps an American president will be elected who will have the ability to bring both sides together to negotiate a peace agreement. I believe a change in the present dynamics is possible.
2
@Bob
1. Sorry to reveal my ignorance of the one-state idea amongst the Greens, that I thought up myself when living in Israel. Hard truth: a Palestinian state isn't viable. Under current circumstances, no way Israel would allow such a thing without such limits on its sovereignty as to make "statehood" meaningless.
2. Israel/Palestine is a small place. American Christians who go on pilgrimage there have been, almost as far back as Twain's trip to the place, surprised that the epic stage of the Bible is so tiny from an American perspective. Size means that a Palestinian state would be so intertwined economically with Israel, as it is now, as, again, to render separate sovereignty somewhat meaningless.
3. The two are like antagonistic members of the same family, forced to live in the same house. One is now dominant and lords it over the other; they shouldn't, naturally.
4. The solution, then, is obviously one secular state, with full religious freedom. That will take the intervention of Chronos, since now it's impossible. A Jewish majority state, maybe; safe for Jews, of course. That's an achievable goal, one day. As for a Palestinian state, I'd bet my last dollar it will never happen.
1
@Phillip Wynn
I believe Americans and probably most people in the world will insist on the goal of a Palestinian state with full sovereignty, as long as there were measures taken to assure the safety of Israel. I don't see Israel ever being able to convince the world of the Palestinians not having full sovereignty. Israeli's with that view would seem to be living in denial. I think it is better to face reality and try to work out a solution. I think Palestinians who believe they can take control of all of Palestine are also living in denial and would be better off facing the reality of Israel and find some way to compromise and establish a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza.
1
Violence against any social/religious group can not be condoned in any manner. But simply listening to others that have opinions different than you (as long as they are not espousing violence or discrimination) is part of democracy. Every viewpoint has a right to be heard- no matter how painful to the listener. Mr. Corbyn has a right to listen to people with alarming views or conspiracy theorists or individuals that value Palestinian freedom over Israeli security concerns. As long as those people aren't put into any positions of power or are able to act on their delusions.
On the other hand, Mr. Cohen- instead of Mr. Corbyn- perhaps you should have written about Mr. Netanyahu sharing the Israeli Government with a hate group that was banned in Israel and openly advocates support for violence against Palestinians, expulsion of Arabs from Israel and the occupied territories, and a total forced ban on social interactions between Jews and Arabs.
15
Finally, Mr. Cohen, you get one right!
Alain Finkielkraut’s situation is not surprising. There is an especially noteworthy precedent in the Ecole Normale Superieure’s refusal of Jacques Derrida. This was serious antisemitism.
I have witnessed antisemitism at work in American universities.
There is a logic to the British Labour Party harboring antisemitic sentiments. The working class is the most vulnerable to fantasies of Jewish bankers controlling the world order. Ironically, Jewish money lending was a response to exclusion from traditional trades and professions.
For those familiar with history, Jews were well-represented in the Communist Party. Proportionately more Jewish households might be characterized as leftist intellectual than households from any other subculture.
By the way, was not Karl Marx a Jew? Did he not theorize the conversion of labor into exchange value, or capital, the symbol of modern man’s alienation from his labor?
Good for you Ms. Berger and the others who departed.
Today, antisemitism obviously has something to do with Jewish achievement.
11
Yes, one sad irony here is that the Labour Party has traditionally been the ‘home’ of a majority of British Jews. Parts of London with a larger than national average population of Jewish families have been ironclad Labour safe seats for decades. This support is ebbing away under Corbyn, and if Labour don’t remember this important part of their roots they will lose it for generations.
2
Roger, one time before you came out swinging like this, but in contrary you often sound apologetic for the critics of Israel. You made strong, clear points just now, for which I am grateful.
A blogger on Times of Israel wrote of the disconnect between a two state solution, and the right of return of millions of descendants of the original refugees, not to a Palestinian state, but to Israel proper. Yet, simultaneously, this is exactly what the PA/PLO demands. We all know what Hamas "demands"-death to all Israeli Jews, first, then...
Roger, since your columns are approved at the NYT, how about asking the editorial staff why they never question the aforementioned dissonance. It's one thing to critique the 52 year old occupation, and ending it is actually quite scary to many Israelis, and not just those on the right. What is persistently absent is expecting, actually demanding, that the Palestinian leadership, Abbas and co., present a cohesive plan that makes sense, while preserving Israel as the Jewish state. I see few to no editorials, or exposes, on this topic.
Corbyn's long sympathies for Hezbollah portray him for what he is. Newspapers that never broach the subject of the Palestinian failure to come up with a plan for a Palestine that is next door to Israel, without swallowing it, are failing us, too. It isn't just Labor. You know better how anti-Zionist the British press is.
22
"I don’t believe Jews would be just fine without Israel any more than I believe the moon is a balloon. " Absurd! The question is the contrary: how can Jews be "just fine" WITH the Israel of Netenyahu and Co.
3
The same way we as Americans can be fine with the United States even when we are not fine with our President.
1
@paul.lauter
Not absurd! Both questions are valid, and that's the problem. Obviously!
It is possible to be pro-Israeli, and anti-religious basis of the Israeli State. Atheists cannot Marry in Israel Officially. Religious intermarriage is prohibited. Jews cannot Marry outside the states religious authority. Israel recognizes foreign weddings so Israeli interfaith couples have to go abroad to legally marry. One out of 10 do. I personally regard this as backward. Until Palestinians are granted equal rights as Israeli citizens and serve in Parliament with one man one vote I cannot purchase Israeli goods and investments. I am a Cohain, a member by blood of the Jewish priestly class, and in my opinion being strongly against Israeli policies neither implies hatred of Israel's right to exist or its refuge for Jews. It looks like the Jews of Israel like the Puritans in England have fled religious persecution only to mistreat Arabs much like Quakers who freely were hung for their religious belief by the Puritans in Boston Common. As my father says to me 2 wrongs do not make a right.
17
@Michael Cohen
Why are you against the two state solution? Why is Israel obligated to absorb all the Palestinians of Gaza and the West bank, when they supposedly have governments that represent them and serve their needs?
In South Africa, under apartheid, the government was fully responsible for native blacks, but treated them abhorrently. The PA, however, is responsible for most Palestinians in the West bank, and Hamas is responsible for those in Gaza. Not Israel's fault that the two "liberating" movements cannot get along, or that an election is overdue by 10 years.
Israel does have internal issues, and the Palestinians in eastern Jerusalem don't receive full services, but a portion of that is their own fault. Problems that need solutions, but not to be equated with Palestinians who live under their respective leadership, if you can call it that.
2
Is Mr. Cohen mixing being Left with being anti-semitic? Just this past week wasn't a Labor MP expelled from Labor for being ant-semitic? Is there a quote from Corbyn that states Israel has no right to exist? What are the sources of the hurtful attack on the Jewish MP? I do follow Labor and this Brexit problem, and don't see how one can justly tar ALL Labor with being anti-Semitic, especially since the party is addressing it.
9
Looking at the UK Labour Party I can't quite fathom how it has become so bogged down in this semitism issue and and it appears to me to be a result of having a politician who has been around for a very long time (too long) and who over the course of his political journey has made a few poor choices and who now finds himself in the unlikely position as a potential Prime Minister. What is clear is that in the hyper-partisan political world we all now experience issues such as this are whipped up and fanned by the mainly right wing UK media to differentiate the two sides. David Cameron, who used to face Jeremy Corbin at the Despatch Box and who has not been seen in public since the day after the catastrophic Brexit vote catastrophe he brought about was this week here in Melbourne on Conservative Party business whilst also likely lining his pocket. he was guest of honour (!) at a United Israel gala dinner. 'Regarded as a true Zionist and friend of Israel, Cameron is the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (2010 to 2016). His leadership was underpinned by values of aspiration, compassion, responsibility and freedom with his unequivocal support of Israel being highlighted through his stance on the BDS campaign, advocating for Israel's right to defend themselves and foreign policy addressing the Arab Spring. Cameron is uniquely positioned to address the issue of rising antisemitism across the globe and we look forward to hosting him for the evening'.
@Philip Lees. Apologies for not checking my work. I ran out of space before I could add that whilst Cameron's event looks to be unreported there are plenty of articles in the press I read, including NYT, on Corbin, The Labour Party and anti-semitism. And given his debacle of a Prime Minstership and Labour Party antisemitism being such a loaded political issue why earth would anyone take Cameron seriously? Looks to me like vaudeville.
Roll out the smear campaign....Berger and the rest of the Independent Group and the Friends of Israel are really opposed to, as they have said openly, the left-wing economic policies of the Corbyn frontbench and the extremely popular manifesto which they ran on and then scurried from to join a hopeless third party. Think Howard Schultz except for Britain. It's going to keep the Tories and the City of London (UK Wall Street) in charge. Corbyn's opposition to NATO- and yes, the ISRAELI Government, not Jewish people - calling all Jews supporters of Bibi is surely anti-Semitic - is another issue for those who wish to cuddle up with arms industry and build a Bush-Blair like special relationship with the Trump White House. Articles like this are more fat on the friar which will eventually cook up a far-right, Rees-Mogg Government
8
I'm astounded that Roger Cohen sprays out so much wild condemnation on such unsifted evidence. Has he not seen anti-Semitism in the US? Where was he last October, when 11 people were massacred at a synagogue in Pittsburgh? When has such a thing happened in Britain? To go back 700 years for a parallel is to likewise condemn every American of European heritage.
As for the Labour Party: Jeremy Corbyn's predecessor as its elected leader was Ed Miliband, who was also Labour's candidate for prime minister in the 2015 general election. Mr Miliband is Jewish, the son of Holocaust refugees.
I needn't point out that, in the entire history of the US, no significant political party has nominated a Jewish candidate for president. Clearly the managers of this major UK party have no anxieties about anti-Semitism in the UK electorate.
It's therefore absurd to claim that Labour, or Jeremy Corbyn, or Britain is anti-Semitic. Labour has always supported the oppressed, including the Jews: its only offense now is to support the Palestinians.
Oh, and perhaps Mr Cohen might also stop blaming "Europe" for the Holocaust. The blame lies with Nazi Germany, which most of Europe fought against while the US stood idly by.
15
Israel's core problem is that it cannot get to any solution when so many of the people surrounding it sometimes consider mass murder to be an act of love for God. There is no room for peace in the mind of someone who thinks like that.
7
As Jon Lansman, the Jewish founder of the pro-Corbyn Momentum group said the other day, yes there is anti-Semitism—not only Anti-Zionism—present in the Labour Party. But the problem as he put it, is that Labour has literally trebled its membership since Corbyn became leader of Labour. It is currently the largest party in Europe, with a membership of 600, 000 people.
And yes, there are Anti-Semites in the new intake of members. Lansman estimates several hundred. As for Corbyn himself, he is unabashedly pro-Palestinian but he is not an anti-Semite. As he often points out, his mother fought in the Battle of Cable Street, when Oswald Mosely and his brown shirts came marching through the heart of the Jewish East end of London in 1936 and many leftists came to support the Jews.
What has happened is that a not insignificant segment of the Blairite PLP has seized on this—genuine— issue as a means to weaken or take down Corbyn who they never viewed as legitimate. And by repeating the charge over and over in every outlet they can find, they hope to make it stick. They may succeed, but it doesn't make charges like the one Mr. Cohen makes here, any more reprehensible.
In fact, if memory serves, Roger Cohen also used spurious charges against the previous, Jewish, head of Labour, Ed Miliband, because Miliband was not sufficiently Blairite and neo-liberal for Mr. Cohen's taste.
These days, the Clinton/Blairite/corporate liberals are becoming McCarthyite. This won't end well.
14
Instead of fanning the already contentious geopolitical flames surrounding the State of Israel, we could stop framing this in such reductive terms and actually present rational arguments regarding the nature of intolerance.
There could be no anti-Semitism without the Semitic people. Jews are not the only Semites, as I’m sure any Palestinian would confirm for you.
Cue all the “criticizing Israel is not antisemitism” non sequiturs.
Not only does Cohen explicitly make that exact comment, but if criticizing Israel were antisemitic, most Israelis would be deemed antisemitic.
Can we just stop with this tired obvious strawman?
Cohen is calling acts of antisemitism antisemitic. He gives examples. And they aren’t mere “criticisms of Israel”.
7
I would like to see Jeremy Corbyn in Britain and Bernie Sanders in our country be elected to head of government because I believe strongly in their principles. Neither of them could be construed as anti-semitic. However cries of anti-semitism could be used to undermine the Labour party and help the Brexiteers.
There are legitimate arguments about Israel's treatment of the Palestinians in Gaza and in the west bank, but they are completely separate from Labour's work to uplift the people in England. And there have been terrible incidents of true anti-semitism throughout Europe, but again this shouldn't be blamed on left wing parties.
It is being said that the two state solution is dead. That's sad because it would have gone a long way toward ending the problem of anti-semitism.
10
@betty durso
The two-state solution is dead because Likud and the Settler Movement killed it. First they killed Rabin. Then they fielded Sharon to the Temple Mount to denounce any international future for Jerusalem. Colonization of the West Bank has never paused.
The one-solution is all we have left. Then the refugees can go home and Jerusalem can be everyone's capital.
6
The irony of course, never discussed in articles and editorials on this subject, is that the British Mandate for Palestine included not only the West Bank, Israel, and Gaza, but all of what is now Jordan. Not surprisingly, about 60% of the Jordanian population is Palestinian. For all the talk of a two state solution, I don't believe I've ever read mention of a role for the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in solving this seemingly intractable problem over what is <0.25% of the geographic extent of the Middle East.
8
@Bears. You need to read more history of the area and attempts at peace. Jordan, specifically, and the King of Jordan, the father of the current one, had significant roles. That solutions weren’t reached doesn’t mean they weren’t involved.
@Bears
Jordan was only a part of the mandate for 2 years out of 40. The entire mandate was made from whole cloth so trying to argue that "Jordan is the real Palestine" does nothing but confuse the issue.
2
It's about time Roger Cohen made his position clear. For those who choose not to look at the facts of Corbyn's antisemitism, let's just say, if he's not an antisemite he surely gives a lot of comfort to those who are.
Not different BTW from DJTrump's refusal to disavow swastika and tiki torch bearers at Charlottsville yelling "Jews will not replace us."
For some people-- I see one of the respondents here--"there are good people on both sides."
Good luck with that.
5
The creation of the state of Israel was an historic mistake. It led to the situation where Arabs and Jews are killing each other. Mr. Cohen is correct in stating that a two-state solution is the only solution. Arabs and Israelis hate each other so much, they can't co-exist in a single state.
However, he is wrong about Jeremy Corbyn. Mr. Corbyn is anti-Zionist but not anti-Semitic. Mr. Cohen seems to blur the distinction between the two concepts. It is not anti-Semitic to deny the Jewish people's rights to self determination, because the Jews are not a nation, they are members of a religion. Jews often have a double loyalty, partly because they are allowed to have dual citizenship. Some Jews I know were born in America and are citizens but are more loyal to Israel.
The citizens of Israel and their government have become more right-wing. The political thinker who most inspires the government is the late Ze'v Jabotinsky who was a fascist and an admirer of Mussolini.
Jeremy Corbyn shares many views of Bernie Sanders. Both are socialists, both are critical of Israel, and both are sympathetic with other socialist countries, such as Venezuela.
9
It is quite clear that Corbyn is a symptom of growing left wing antagonism to Israel and its supporters, not its cause, and that this growth is not confined to the UK. Much like the Trump supporters who say there is no 'proof' that Trump is racist and dismiss every single example cited to support that irrefutable conclusion, Corbyn's cohorts similarly parse his words and deeds to appear benign toward Jews. He is an anti Semite and so are they.
9
'he’s certainly been responsible for sharing platforms with anti-Semites and saying things that are highly offensive and anti-Semitic.'
an example an example, my kingdom for an example
4
Might be your best column.
3
"There`s nothing anti-Semitic about sympathy for the Palestinian cause or -----". There was nothing anti-White about opposition to apartheid in South Africa - Jeremy Corbyn supported the anti-apartheid movement at a time when the imprisoned Nelson Mandela was declared a terrorist by our then Conservative Prime Minister. He is a fundamental anti-racist.
This sympathy for the oppressed has now been turned against him and he is being vilified in the "liberal" and right-wing media. He is not now and never was anti-Semitic - he is the very opposite.
14
On the one hand Zionists rightly complain that it is “anti-semitic” to blame all Jews, period, for sins committed by the state of Israel. They are two different things. Not all Jews live in, identify with, or are in any way responsible for everything Israel does. It’s obviously racist to generalize and hold all guilty for the sins of the few.
But there’s a Catch 22.
Anti-Zionists are told over and over again that objections to Israel, by itself, are intrinsically “anti-semitic” precisely because Israel, well, really is *essential* to Jews and Jewish survival. As Cohen says, Israel represents “the decision of Jews to embrace Zionism in the conviction that only a Jewish homeland could keep them safe.” Note: who has embraced Zionism? Jews, meaning *all* Jews period, across the board. There is no Judaism without Israel.
So Zionism wants to have it both ways. It’s morally impossible to be fundamentally opposed to the state of Israel, because no matter how you frame your criticism, you are dangerous to Jews, therefore you hate Jews, therefore you are “anti-semitic”. And therefore you must be shunned and silenced.
This is intolerable. Those who fundamentally object to the existence of the State of Israel on land which was stolen from its non-Jewish inhabitants must be able to do so without being accused of hating Jews. Period. Whether they are the Palestinians who have suffered at the hands of Zionism, or those who see and defend the justice in the Palestinian cause.
14
An awful piece. Berger has been indeed mistreated and threatened and some people have been jailed, but all those convicted in court are British fascists. There is no evidence that anyone involved in the threats is part of the Labour Party. By putting Berger's vague complaint about Corbyn "othering" Jews in a paragraph about nazi threats against Berger he's being manipulative.
The 3 terrible (sarcasm) examples Cohen gives are all from incidents that took place 6 or 7 years ago. Berger and her friends are from the Labour Right. They're all up in arms about Corbyn, but what did they say about Tony Blair who got hundreds of British soldiers killed in Bush's Iraq war disaster?
17
So if I criticize the nation of Israel then I'm an anti-semite ?
I don't think it's supposed to work that way.
6
The world population is coming close to 8 billion people. The Jewish population is somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 million worldwide. The question the rest of the world should ask those who promote antisemitism is what are you trying to hide that you distract your followers by picking on this minute minority?
10
I was born in the UK and come from a strong Labour background. I disagree with the author's outright dismissal of allegations of colonialism in the foundation of Israel. But he's absolutely correct that the Arab countries went to war in 1948 in rabid, unreasonable opposition to the "two-state solution" that most reasonable people support today. And that no matter what tragedies took place in its foundation, and how unjust many of its government's actions over the last 45 years have been, the existence of Israel as a Jewish homeland still nets out on the side of justice. But most importantly, he's entirely correct that crossing the line from opposition to Israeli policy, into anti-semitism and bigotry, is entirely unacceptable; and that Labour has turned too much of a blind eye to this cancer in its ranks.
229
@Stephen with regard to, " I disagree with the author's outright dismissal of allegations of colonialism in the foundation of Israel" I'd like to point out that all the boundaries in the Middle East have been set by colonial (European) countries. In fact, the only one voted on and approved by the United Nations is...tada!, Israel.
35
@Stephen Thank you. I'm not sure I agree with everything you say, but your writing belies real thoughtfulness, no doubt inspired by Roger Cohen's writing. Well done.
4
@HD "The only [borders in the Middle East] ... approved by the United Nations is ... Israel". What about Jerusalem? Golan? The settlements on the West Bank? At times, Israel has laid claim to the whole of the Sinai peninsula. Today, Israel steadfastly refuses to define its own borders. There is precious little left of the borders the U.N. voted for in the partition of 1948.
11
I don't think Corbyn hates Jews. I happen to be a Zionist myself, if that term means someone who supports the existence of a Jewish state in Israel. I don't believe anyone who criticizes Israeli policy toward Palestinians is for that reason an anti-Semite. I don't believe anyone who thinks Israel should extend full political rights to Palestinians in areas under its control, even if that means Israel will no longer be a Jewish state, is for that reason an anti-Semite. I do not agree with that policy - I think there must be other ways of treating Palestinians justly without eliminating the Jewish character of Israel. But the fact that someone has a different opinion from me on that issue does not by itself make them an anti-Semite.
I suggest Cohen try to be more careful in making accusations. If not, he will leave no room for those who disagree with many unjust actions of the Israeli state but who do not think badly of, or wish any harm to, Jews as a group.
17
Roger-all one has to ponder is the fact that Labor party has an official reviewer for anti Semitic claims/complaints to know everything . Why would ANY party in AMY nation have a position like thsi if the anti Semitic statements were not prevalent ? And if so prevalent, indicative of anti Semitism ? Corbin is a demagogue, and the real reason UK is heading toward the Brexit crash. But like the center that vanquished or was co-optedover the past few decades int he USA, Oxbridge grads and Sloan’s rangers are too self absorbed laundering Russian and Chinese criminal profits in the City to exercise any judgement or restraint.
3
I'm not sure that Israel, or any country, as a right to exist. One might better say that Israel has a right to defend itself against aggression. But again it's not clear to me that nations qualify as having rights.
America's admirable Bill of Rights (which has a model for Canada's Charter of Rights) speaks only of individual rights handed down by Government.
Giving rights to countries rather than individuals appeals to to the notion of natural rights that exist independently of government. This notion philosopher Jeremy Bentham calls "nonsense on stilts."
8
@Ambrose I agree that only natural persons have rights. States, nations, corporations and so on are legal or notional constructa; and as such they can only have legal or contractual rights, not natural rights such as the right to live or to exist. An Israeli citizen has a right to life, but the construct "Israel" has no such right because it can not live. An Israeli citizen has a right to freedom, but the construct "Israel" has no such right because it has no will as and of itself, but only that that emerges from the individual wills of its people. Israel has not a right to the pursuit of happiness because it can not be happy or unhappy: only its individual citizens have this ability.
That is why I have always been suspicious of independentist or separatist movements throughout the world. They demand freedom for this or that part of the world, but they seldom seem to care about the freedom of those who live there.
1
Surprisingly well written. Left out was mention of the fact that the Palestinians, whom Israel must detach from, keep turning down offers of a separate state and showing Israel what a separate state will look like (rockets from Gaza). The Palestinians have been Bibi's best asset, starting terrorist attacks anytime there is a peace deal on the table. They helped bring him to power 20 years ago.
Still, a pretty good editorial.
33
@Chazak
Palestinian rockets are not comparable to Israeli missiles. The last time Israel broke the rocket/missile truce with Hamas thousands of Palestinians died compared to a handful of Israeli civilians killed by Hamas rockets.
3
@TimToomey
you feel bad it's not a fair fight. i understand.
if north korea attacks, should we starve our american soldiers before sending them over there, just so it's a level playing field?
1
@TimToomey It was Hamas who broke the truce, not Israel. Israel responded to Hamas' rocketfire. The difference in casualties was because Israel builds bomb shelters and Hamas builds tunnels from which to kidnap Israeli civilians while shooting rockets at Israeli schools from Palestinian school yards.
2
Corbyn could have commemorated the terrorist he so adores without traveling all the way to Tunis for his funeral. It was a clear statement.
25
Begin was a proud terrorist who became the Prime Minister of Israel. I guess some terrorists are ok and some are not.
3
To paraphrase Mayor Gillem: it may not be that Corbyn is antisemitic but it is enough that those who are antisemitic believe that Corbyn is antisemitic.
19
"those who are antisemitic" certainly includes most of the Conservative Party from where the accusations emanated. We're seeing the same nonsense from the GOP these days who put on their holier than thou poses in defense of the "Jewish State of Israel" no matter what atrocity the government of Israel engages in, accompanied by cries of antisemite against whoever questions Netenyahu's inhumane and immoral treatment of Palestinians in the bits of the West Bank Israel has so far not annexed as well as in Gaza. They show their ignorance and their antisemitism at the same time, as only antisemites believe that whatever the government of Israel undertakes is "good for the Jews".
3
Well reasoned and articulated. Thank you.
26
Part of Corbyn's problem is that he simply does not have the intellectual firepower to finesse his way through ambiguities that fall outside his rote-driven experience. Having been in Parliament for decades cultivating a persona as an enfant terrible in the model of his hero, Tony Benn, simply by doing the most transgressive thing he could think of in any situation, such as voicing support for terrorist groups of actually fascistic ethos (Hezbollah, anyone?), he was and remains unsuited for party leadership, which role calls for the acuity to discern the formation of subtle coalitions, the agility avoid critical threats and seize rare opportunities and the authority to carry the party with him. It's not just the anti-Semitism; witness his lamentable failure to capitalize on Brexit (and, yes, I get that he is personally Eurosceptic) and other issues. No surprise, then, that several members of his party finally walked.
19
Best comment of all. Absolutely, Corbyn doesn't understand what is needed to be a leader, viz his weak response to Brexit before the referendum and the subsequent chaos it has caused. You don't need to actually make anti-semitic remarks to unleash anti-semitism: "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men should do nothing" ...or let anti-semitic tropes stand unchallenged.
1
@cjw
The most excellent insight ever.
Thank you.
1
An excellent piece that identifies exactly where the problem lies.
37
I struggle with the antisemitism emerging in Europe and with the British Labor Party. But every tribe needs to have its demons as does every religion as it is easier to blame others for our problems that address the changes that we need to make within ourselves. We are all aware of the huge economic inequalities in the world and the endless march of the oligarchs and the 2% to have all the marbles and all of the power. We have also witnessed mass movements of people from downtrodden Muslim dominated countries into Europe. This has disrupted the status quo for the last 60 or 70 years.The Israelis also have their demons, the Iranians and the Palestinians.
I understand why you are a Zionist but it begs the question wouldn't it then be logical for any and all persecuted people to have a safe homeland. Should the LGBT community have a safe homeland, the Kurds, blacks and so on. I do not know the answer but carving up the world into tribal zones surely isn't the answer.
17
Steve,
What you seem to be arguing for, a world in which all people can have a basic assumption of safety and rights in all places, is a nice idea.
However, the world is not currently that way.
Until the world changes, any group with a homeland will be reluctant to give it up. Especially a group that has faced millennia of persecution.
5
It certainly was and is the answer for the most reviled minority in history.
2
@Jeffrey Cosloy
Im pretty sure the most reviled minority in history is not the Jews. Entire groups of people have been wiped off the face of the earth, never to exist again. They were so reviled to have gone extinct.
Delighted to see this (rather moderate) laying out of what is a pandemic of "problematising" Jews and their affinities. As a part-time resident of Europe, I see it everywhere -- and here in New York, I need go no further than the nearest college campus to hear this new poison's so-called "theoretical" base proclaimed.
Mr. Corbin has walked and talked an antisemitic line for a very long time; anyone who thinks otherwise has missed (willfully or no) some crucial evidence. It is now important to guard the Democrat Party from following Labour's lead. Alas, the signs are there.
35
Anti-semitism does not make a case for a Jewish homeland. The answer to anti-semitism is communal self-defense. A Jewish homeland, in contrast is a political state with ambitions, diplomacy, armies, and enemies. Today the Israeli government has become one of the world's pariahs. But even in Biblical times Judaism was strongest when the state was weakest.
18
@seoul cooker
You mean like the Warsaw uprising?
The case for a state of Israel was made by the "Christians" of Europe, who for more than a millennium nurtured the seeds of antisemitism - which led to the Holocaust.
44
@Matthew Carnicelli
The Warsaw Ghetto uprising was a hopeless battle by virtually unarmed partisans against overwhelming force. But in Poland during the wars, Jewish unions organized defensive policing units which kept pogroms from happening.
1
@seoul cooker
"Anti-semitism does not make a case for a Jewish homeland. "
but in fact, it does.
1
Great article, Roger. Very much needed.
20
There's a lot that Roger Cohen gets right in this article. What needs to be added is that the hard left's demonization and scapegoating of Israel makes it easier for Hamas and the Palestinian Authority to repress and brutalize their Palestinian subjects with impunity. They should be held to account not only for normalizing anti-Semitism in Labour, but also for their complicity in gross abuses of Palestinian human rights.
207
@Jones
It is possible to dislike both Israeli sponsored violence and Hamas sponsored violence at the same time. It is possible to see that there are no good guys in this conflict. It's as simply as two wrongs not making a right. It's as simple as seeing peace as the only real solution no matter how far both sides would have to climb down from false pride and automatic contrarianism in order to achieve it. The price to pay for peace is humility and the abandonment of vendettas. Those who want peace have to push both sides into becoming self aware of their sins and errors. Pushing Israel with legitimate criticism is not anti-semitic anymore than calling on Hamas and Hezbollah to stop sponsoring terrorism is islamophobic. Again. Many people see this from the outside for what it is, a conflict without a hero.
64
@Arthur
while the conflict may be lacking in a "perfect" hero, it is also true that the two sides are not morally equivalent.
to simply say "there are no good guys in this conflict" is a lazy throwing-up of one's hands.
of course "peace is the only real solution", and of course it requires compromise on the part of both sides.
but it's also true the palestinians have rejected many, many chances they have had to achieve their own nation and control their own destiny.
israel tries to avoid killing innocent civilians. (that's why they developed the technique of "roof-knocking" in the last gaza war; it's why they called people on the phone to let them know a building or a neighborhood was under imminent threat.)
but hamas has no such compunctions. for them, and for many average palestinians, any dead jew is a good thing.
just because israel is the stronger party is no reason to see it as the villain bent on oppression.
16
@Jones,
Well, one could also certainly argue that use of the antisemitism card to cabin and limit criticism of Israel in the U.S. makes it easier for the Israeli government to carry out its settlement program and take harsh military measures against Palestinians with effective impunity.
9
Finally, a column by Cohen I can agree with. That said, when asked whether he'd vote for Corbyn or Trump in an election, Cohen said he'd vote for Corbyn.......really?
4
Principled criticism of Israel's policies is not the same as anti-semitism. Zionists are attempting to conflating the two, which all of my Jewish friends are personally disgusted by. This manufactured controversy is a last-ditch effort to piggyback on the recent popularity of identity politics in order to rescue Israel's falling support among young Jews.
62
@albert davies
Anyone who really supports the existence of the Jewish state of Israel must reject its current leadership. As Cohen points out, Israel cannot continue to exist as a Jewish state, while occupying the West Bank. The West Bank should have been returned to Jordan after the 6 Day War, as the Sinai was returned to Egypt. If that is for some reason no longer possible, then, yes, a separate state for the Jordanians now living in the West Bank.
12
@Albert davies
Cohen writes: "There’s nothing anti-Semitic about sympathy for the Palestinian cause or support of Palestinian statehood or disdain for the rightist government of the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and its kick-the-can policies to prolong or eternize the occupation of the West Bank."
He is NOT "conflating" criticism of Israel and anti-
Semitism.
6
@albert davies
You have it backwards. Failing to "conflate" anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism is intellectually and historically ignorant and blind. Cohen is exactly right - and I am pleased that he states it so unequivocally and transparently: the main lesson of the Holocaust is that Jews can never be safe anywhere without self-determination. Debate all you want about this or that Israeli government, leader or policy, as we Americans (and the Brits, too) routinely do. But basic, human rights -- and the very right to existence -- are not debatable. That they currently are when it comes only to Jews and Israel is ipso facto proof of anti-Semitic intent.
5
I have been following this issue in the British press and what's really difficult to understand about it is the lack of essential detail in all of the articles about it.
Over and over again a reference is made to Labor having anti-semitism in the party but NO evidence at all is cited. It is simply presented as a known fact. If the articles showed anti-semitic quotes by specific politicians and reporters called out the specific statements I would accept that there was a problem. If there were anti-semitic statements entered into party documents then these phrases could be high lighted and their authors brought to task.
But this never happens. We are never presented with the anti-semitic statements. We are never given the specific words nor the names of any who supposedly wrote them.
This total lack of names and quotes is a huge red flag. It indicates to me that what is actually going on is something closer to many Labor politicians criticizing actions by the government of Israel or expressing sympathy for the palestinian people as they continue to suffer from a 50 year occupation and military actions upon civilian populations.
It is legitimate to disagree with these Labor members who criticize Israel's current far right government. It is legitimate to point out the roll of Hamas or Hezbollah in perpetuating misery as well. It is not however accurate to call politicians with a different opinion on the Middle East conflict anti-semitic, that's not what it is.
147
@Arthur. Then I suggest you re-read the article; Mr Cohen provides several examples, such as Chris Williamson, as well as several of Corbyn's.
33
@Arthur
You mean accusations aren't the same as evidence? Shocking. Sarc.
4
@Danny
I am sorry, these are not examples of mr Corbyn's anti-semitism. I find the whole conversation very close to the discussion on the definition of anti-semitism and whether critique on israel should be viewed as such.
13
While I don't know enough to weigh in substantively, I believe the below quoted paragraph is disingenuous and overly suggestive. By leading the paragraph with Corbyn's "othering" as alleged by Berger, and then continuing with specific acts of threat that Berger has received, the paragraph insinuates that those acts/threats originate from or are attributable to Corbyn. But there's no evidence in the paragraph of that link. With such inflammatory material, seems like a moment to be more careful, and avoid conflation.
"Corbyn, Berger suggested, has contrived to make British Jews different in some way, a process she called “othering.” She’s had to endure “pictures of Stars of David superimposed on my forehead, and my face imposed on a rat, or many rats. There are pornographic images, violent images, oversize features like a witch. You name it, they’ve done it.” Nine months pregnant, the mother of a small child, she’s faced death threats and has to take security measures “a lot more now than I did before.”
23
@Austin This confused me too. Mr. Cohen is usually such a precise writer, it is a surprise.
1
Powerful and extraordinary essay.
Sadly, the British Left is not the only place that anti-Semitism finds its lebensraum. The ancient hatred thrives here in America too: at its universities, at the New York Times (among commenters and perhaps even staff), and--most insidiously--among polite company.
30
The relationship between anti-Zionism and Antisemitism is complicated by the recent modification of the concept of Zionism. When the state of Israel was founded there was a strong commitment to the equal rights of all residents of the state, both Jewish and Non-Jewish. David Ben Gurion held desperately to the ideal of a state that could be Jewish, democratic and egalitarian. To be a Zionist at that time was to see in the Shoah a violation of humanity as of such appalling immensity that the land that had been Palestine had to be divided so that "never again" would be more than a slogan. But in the summer of 2018 the Knesset passed the Basic Law of Israel as the Nation-State of the Jewish people. The law has demoted the Arab language to a "special status" and explicitly rejected equal protection of the law in favor of the special duty to protect only Jewish citizens. If the Zionist project is defined by it's origins then this is contrary to the spirit of Zionism. On the other hand if the Zionist project evolves with the character of the state then it has become a racialized vision that has earned the animosity that it is now experiencing. I have no doubt that Mr. Cohen is a Zionist in the original sense of the term, but based on recent reporting in the Times it seems that this position has become a political pariah and has no chance of ever again defining the state. Rather Likud has now reached out to followers of Meir Kahane and his cult of genocide. What then is Zionism?
27
@Greg Jones I very much agree. In order to survive as a Jewish, democratic state, Israel MUST reject the current Likud government, and most important, MUST withdraw from the West Bank.
My own opinion is that the West Bank should be returned to Jordan, which is a functional existing state, to which the West Bank belonged until the 6 Day War. Absent that, a separate state is the next best thing.
7
@Greg Jones
you raise some valid causes for dismay regarding the nation-state law and the recent kahane party developments.
but there is more to zionism than benjamin netanyahu, or than likud (as you apparently understand).
israel is a complicated nation in a complicated neighborhood.
i don't support the nation-state law, nor am i a fan of netanyahu or likud.
i also don't like trump or the republicans.
i worry about the growing right-wing movements in the US, in israel, and around the world.
i also worry about rising antisemitism and anti-zionism on the left.
but i do still support israel, just as i still support america.
2
Extreme voices arise when there is increasing frustration with logjams, divisive politics and injustice. Extreme voices have certainly arisen on all sides of the Israeli Palestinian conflict, aided and abbetted by nationalist and self serving narratives.
Who can be trusted to sincerely embrace a two state solution? Not someone that sees the situation in fearful, zero sum existential terms. If Mr Cohen wishes to promote a peace process that is viable and fair, he might wish to take an inclusive dialogue based approach rather than stand on his usual soapbox. Enough with the finger pointing!
1
Thank you, Mr. Cohen. Growing up in a "Catholic ghetto" in New York City, I was surrounded by "casual" anti-Semitism, as well as other forms of racism and religious bias. It sickens me to think back on it. But it suggests to me that anti-Semitism is latent in this country and elsewhere. I completely support the Jewish homeland of Israel, though I hope that it will soon turn its back on Netanyahu and toward a genuine 2-state solution. And I pray that conditions may become such that Jews can also feel at home wherever they were born. We all have to work on that.
61
@John Connolly
Same here. The Catholic ghetto could be a remarkably toxic environment - and as kids, even after Vatican II, we routinely went around telling ourselves that the Jews killed Christ.
It wasn't until I escaped the Catholic ghetto, by being placed in a Public Junior High School (after running afoul of my last Catholic elementary school) that a long process of peeling successive layers of toxic onion skin could begin.
6
@John Connolly, I grew up in a largely Catholic town with a minority of Jews and Lutherans. For the most part we were not even aware of our friends religion. Why? Because we did not care. And at family gatherings I never once heard any anti-Jewish comments, even "casual." That goes for ethnic slurs too. Never heard them in my family's house.
2
You don't need to convince me that a Jewish homeland is a good thing, & I'm not Jewish. I grew up in the South & Southwest, & we didn't seem to have many Jews, but I read the novel Exodus at an impressionable age, & grew up on WWII movies. I also think that you can criticize Israel without being anti-semitic or wanting to destroy Israel.
Corbyn & the current Labour party are a sorry gaggle. I wonder if Corbyn's toleration of anti-Jewish sentiment in his party is a political calculation. Many of his voters are Muslims. A December 4, 2018 article by William Echikson in Politico Europe mentions a suppressed EU study which found that Muslim minorities were behind the growth of anti-semitism in Europe. It was a study done several years ago, apparently, but don't think things have improved much. Kumbaya and all that, but it shouldn't all be one way.
31
@C.H.
You wrote "A December 4, 2018 article by William Echikson in Politico Europe mentions a suppressed EU study which found that Muslim minorities were behind the growth of anti-semitism in Europe."
Do you have a link? I searched the site and couldn't find the article.
Thanks.
2
@C.H. No, no, no, the Muslim minorities are not behind the growth of anti-semitism in recent European history. There was no Muslim minority in most of European history during the past 1500 years, but there was a Christian church which preached that Jews were "killers of Christ", with subsequent tolerance of a Jewish community circumscribed in a defined part of the cities and small communities for periods of time and then periodic expulsions of those communities. Because Christians were forbidden to lend money to obtain interest, the Jews, also forbidden to own property in most places, turned to trade and banking. Sometimes it pleased the nobility to expel the Jewish population to take over their houses and furnishings and to cancel their debts to the Jews. By the late 19th century Jews were doing better and flourished in Central Europe and Western Europe, but still under the burden of living with anti semitism. Then we have the climax of Jew hatred and dehumanization in the horrific years of Nazi domination and an attempted genocide of every Jew in Europe. The Nazis used the prevalent Jew hatred and prejudice as an aid in their project of dehumanization and genocide. Unfortunately as Cohen points out this Jew hatred is something in Europe which still is easily stirred up by nationalists and hard times. It does not depend on a Muslim minority. Read history.
3
@Harold Johnson You are talking history. AmarilloMike is talking current events. Much of the anti-Semitism and anti-Semitic acts occuring in Europe are precisely from Muslim immigrants. That is not to say that the Europeans aren't anti-Semitic, but they are not the ones killing Jews on the streets, defacing cemeteries and the like. The astonishing 74% increase in anti-Semitism in just one year was attributed primarily to Muslims in this very paper within the last few days. And France is not alone in this.
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Labour Party s about to call for a second referendum on Brexit. Any chance this is a Bannon, Cambridge Analytical type of timing?
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Corbyn and Momentum share a past based on Russian communist ideals and left wing militant tendency.
It takes very little effort to see where and how Corbyn became what he is.
It takes no effort at all to uncover who he really supports.
It is not Jews.
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Hmm...lots of second hand comments and innuendo's from politico's and the such that are now starting competing party's or org. Yet, not one link or quote showing Corbyn's supposed blatant anti-Semitism.
Yes, lots of hate and anti what have you's in our current world.
Also lots smears and accusations being tossed around at those we wish to attack and denigrate.
Proofs Mr. Cohen.
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To paraphrase Andrew Gillum: “I’m not calling Corbyn an anti-Semite, I’m simply saying the anti-Semites think he is an anti-Semite”.
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@Dobbys sock
Exactly, well said!
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@Dobbys sock
Here ya go: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/27/opinion/jeremy-corbyn-anti-semitism-labour-britain.html
Mr. Corbyn has described the constitutionally genocidal Hamas as his “friends.” He’s appeared on stage with inveterate anti-Semites. He’s defended a mural that depicted hooknosed bankers running the world. He’s attended a wreath-laying ceremony that celebrated the perpetrators of the Munich Olympics massacre.
Speaking at a 2013 conference promoted by the Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas whose other speakers included Stephen Sizer, who has appeared alongside Holocaust deniers at a conference in Iran, Corbyn said about a group of Zionists “One is that they don’t want to study history, and secondly, having lived in this country for a very long time, probably all their lives, they don’t understand English irony either,” he said. “I think they need two lessons, which we can help them with.”
This was classic anti-Semitism. He smeared them not on the basis of that disagreement but on the basis of their ethnicity. He accused them of failing to assimilate English values, of not fitting in, of still being a bit foreign. Had they been Christian Zionists, he could not have insulted them in this way.
You're welcome
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Fantastic article Roger, thank you. We should more often call out and consider the origins of this vile hatred as well. Why is it that Corbyn, a born and raised Brit, would have such anti-Semitic sentiments in the first place? What has he heard growing up that are subtle and not so subtle signals of a culture that might bring him to where he is today? A quick look at how Jews have been treated historically, not just in continental Europe, but in England itself might shed light on a long ingrained disdain for this group regardless of the existence of the state of Israel starting with the Blood Libels of Norwich and Lincoln through the York Massacre and almost 400 year expulsion of the Jews. More recently, vile stereotypes and discrimination, while not annihilationist, was sewn into the very fabric of Victorian and Edwardian society. It is not so hard to see where it came from. Question is how do you keep it from going forward. Sadly, if the Brits cant see the contributions Jews have made to that nation, and value them as true brothers, perhaps the Jews should reconsider such a place as their home - or at the very least the Labour party as their political base.
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My, my, the silence is audible.
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Roger, I read of sections of now cosmopolitan Berlin where Jewish kids on the way to school wear the Kippah under baseball caps for fear of harassment or worse. In the vast majority of cases these attacks are from Muslim immigrants not Germans according to local and federal authorities.
Sadly, the same is not true in smaller German areas mostly in the East. The AfD keeps stating that they are not anti-Semitic, but actions by some of their members say otherwise. We have it on the increase here in the U.S. from the same source as some Trump voters.
Some gentiles, and I am one, am sick of Bibi and the Likudniks, however, this is not excuse to return to some of the sins of our fathers. Today is is Jews, who is next. Remember Pastor Niemoller.
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Thank you for this much needed opinion piece. I've been sickened by the way in which the Labour party has become under Corbyn's 'leadership'. One thing I've not found much (if any?) comment upon was Emily Thornberry's having addressed a N. London Jewish community a few months ago ... She urged her audience to accept that Jeremy Corbyn hadn't an anti-semitic bone in his body and that he was so upset by what had been going on that he simply hadn't the strength to personally address same ... To which, the audience laughed. My own cynical view is that he did not appear personally for fear of giving the wrong impression by apologising to British Jews for the conduct of a party which has, under his leadership, failed.
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Corbyn needs to go so so that those British people who are tired of the Conservative Party's incoherent Brexit policy have a place to go.
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@Steven Shapiro Should they go back to the version of Labour that public-school and Oxbridge-educated Cohen supported, in which the Iraq war was wholeheartedly supported?
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@Steven Shapiro -- The Labour Party needs Corbyn. If you want a different Conservative Party, then elect new leadership. Don't expect to take over the other party like a bunch of right wing Democrats betraying their base. Blair already did that, and now he dare not walk the streets in London.
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Please just stop. This smear campaign is exactly the kind of social media gang fest that elected Trump.
Corbyn is not anti-Semitic, nor are most members of the Labour party.
You are doing the work of people who are far more anti-semitic, which you could figure out if you didn't buy in to the campaign.
Climate science denial is just such another. Well funded, and intended to give more wealth and power to the wealthy and powerful.
Sadly, Brexit will destroy the UK economy (it's well on the way), but smearing Corbyn seems more important?
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@Susan Anderson
Smear campaign? I surmise you think the Mueller investigation is a witch hunt, too.
Here's the clue on Corbyn and his many supporters in Labour: If it walks like a duck...etc. etc.
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Corbin is the reason we are heading for an Brexit crash- he could stop this in minute if he put his weight behind it and shed some ;political Capital, but’s s with his undeniable tolerance of antiseptic dog whistles -if frauds bigoted voters to labor and that works for him.
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@Susan Anderson
Smear campaign? If you had been observing the parliamentary Brexit drama unfold, you would be aware, as Mr. Cohen’s essay alludes, that there are MPs in Mr. Corbyn’s party who are defecting because of his not so subtle equivocation regarding both anti-semitism and Brexit.
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Please speak up for all oppressed, vilified and denigrated people, Mr. Cohen. Then I will respect what you say.
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@Panthiest, Read Ropger Cohen's columns. He has spoken up for other oppressed peoples. Also, read his column very carefully before you make your simplistic statement
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@Panthiest
The concern of Jews who have experienced the Shoah is simply one of safety. Your requirement that Cohen neutralize himself with general concerns about all the oppressed says you don't much fly in airlines. If you do you'll hear these words: "Apply your own masks, before attempting to help others."
That's the general principle for providing safety in any situation.
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@Panthiest
He did, he supports a two state solution.
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