Criticism of Israeli politics, anti-Zionism, anti-Semitism – how to distinguish between them? (original) (raw)
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Interrogating ‘new anti-Semitism’
Ethnic and Racial Studies, 2013
Abstract Since the breakdown of the Middle East Peace Summit at Camp David in 2000 and the start of the second Palestinian Intifada there has been a voluminous literature that asserts that hostility to Israel and Zionism is a new form of anti-Semitism. This essay critiques the ‘new anti-Semitism’ view. Reversing the method that Plato uses in the Republic, the analysis moves from microcosm (an imaginary ride on a London bus) to macrocosm (the Middle East). In the process, the author argues that anti-Semitism is best defined not by an attitude to Jews but by the figure of ‘the Jew’. In the light of the analysis, and bearing in mind the variety of possible reasons for hostility to Israel or Zionism, it is difficult to see how the ‘new anti-Semitism’ view can be sustained.
Israel-criticism and modern anti-Semitism
2009
After the Third Reich was defeated, the expression of openly anti-Semitic attitudes was, to be sure, discredited in the German public, but anti-Semitism did not, however, disappear entirely. It was instead camouflaged in various ways, and even found socially and politically compatible expression in the criticism of Israeli Palestine policy. Previous research in this area gives evidence that modern anti-Semitism represents a complex formation constituted from a variety of facets which range from classical (manifest) anti-Semitism via latent anti-Semitism, secondary anti-Semitism and antiZionism to the use of Israel-criticism as a medium where anti-Semitic attitudes can be expressed in a seemingly unsuspicious way. However, it can be assumed that not all criticism of the Israeli Palestine policy is motivated by anti-Semitic attitudes. It may be motivated by pacifist attitudes and/or human rights considerations as well. The present paper discusses some theoretical and methodological is...
Anti-Semitism and criticism of Israel : Methodology and results of the ASCI survey
2015
Building upon psychological conflict theory, on the one hand, and item-response models, on the other, the present paper develops an integrated methodology that aims at differentiating the various ways of criticizing Israel. An application of this methodology to the Anti-Semitism and Criticism of Israel (ASCI) survey found two ways of criticizing Israel resulting from two different and antipodal processes. (1) Anti-Semitic criticism of Israel is generally laden with prejudice and shares not only anti-Semitic, anti-Zionist and anti-Israeli, but also anti-Palestinian resentments as well. (2) Non-anti-Semitic criticism of Israel is motivated by pacifism and human rights commitment and rejects any form of anti-Semitic, anti-Zionist, anti-Israeli or anti-Palestinian resentment. However, even critics of Israel who were not originally motivated by anti-Semitism are also in danger of developing anti-Semitic prejudices.
Anti-Israelism as a Form of Prejudice
The Jewish Review of Books, 2024
Extreme critics of Israel have often denied the allegation of antisemitism -- and they are not necessarily wrong. But even if they have no animus againstJews per se, that doesn't at all let them off the hook. A wholesale rejection of Israel as a legitimate political entity, along with the denigration of Israeli culture and identity, and discrimination against Israeli persons in international forums, constitutes a form of bigotry or prejudice — one that is not automatically an expression of antisemitism and even goes beyond the mere ideological or philosophical opposition to Zionism. This brief essay proposes that an essentially new term is required to grasp this form of prejudice-- namely, anti-Israelism. Anti-Israelism is not mere criticism of specific Israeli governmental or institutional policies (criticisms that may be entirely warranted), but rather a wholesale delegitimization of Israel and of Israeliness in themselves.
The American Journal of Psychoanalysis, 2017
This impressive book, offering essays by 19 authors on the topic of the recent upsurge in virulent anti-Jewish hostility, is daunting, not by sheer size, which is considerable, but by the very fact of its existence, the very fact of what must be its focus the worldwide rise of a pernicious, persistent anti-Semitism. The topic of course must be explored, and is explored with painstaking scholarship, intensive scrutiny of the subject itself, commitment, eloquence, and passion. The book is the outgrowth of a four-day conference involving 45 scholars from 10 countries at Indiana University's Institute for the Study of Contemporary Antisemitism (ISCA) in April 2014. The 19 authors represented in the book live in, and/or are affiliated with colleges and universities in Austria, England, France, Germany, Norway, Poland, and the United States. It is important, and impressive, that the contributors to the book are international, because anti-Semitism is a burgeoning international problem. The book is organized into four parts, (I) Defining and Assessing Antisemitism, (II) Intellectual and Ideological Contexts, (III) Holocaust Denial, Evasion, Minimization, and (IV) Regional Manifestations. The second chapter, ''The Ideology of the New Antisemitism,'' by Kenneth Marcus, is useful in identifying some key psychoanalytic issues. He sets the stage by underscoring that antisemitism is an ideology, quoting Sartre, who described antisemitism as a ''conception of the world'' (p. 21), giving us a broad, inclusive perspective to consider. He identifies the irrationality of otherwise educated, knowledgeable people who accept an ideology that includes the infamous blood libel, that Jews murder Christian babies to use their blood in making Passover matzoh. He continues by citing Holocaust-denial statements that Jews invented stories about a Holocaust that never happened, and by citing the belief that the antisemitic forgery, ''The Protocols of the Elders of Zion,'' is true. He anchors his discourse in an acknowledgment of Freudian thought, that ''the ideology of hatred is a symptom of repressed desire'' (p. 25). Marcus discusses trauma as underlying antisemitic ideology, citing projection and displacement as essential to further understanding how people deal with the conflicts generated by repressed desire, in an attempt to rid themselves of forbidden desires. He delineates various ways in which Jews are blamed for everything, quoting a 19th century CE (Common Era) tract that traces everything evil to Jews, and contemporary Islamic thought that attributes every ''catastrophe'' to Jews (p. 37).
Modern Anti-Semitism and Anti-Israeli Attitudes
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 2009
Anti-Semitism is resurgent throughout much of the world. A new theoretical model of anti-Semitism is presented and tested in 3 experiments. The model proposes that mortality salience increases anti-Semitism and that anti-Semitism often manifests as hostility toward Israel. Study 1 showed that mortality salience led to greater levels of anti-Semitism and lowered support for Israel. This effect occurred only in a bogus pipeline condition, indicating that social desirability masks hostility toward Jews and Israel. Study 2 showed that mortality salience caused Israel, but no other country, to perceptually loom large. Study 3 showed that mortality salience increased punitiveness toward Israel's human rights violations more than it increased hostility toward the identical human rights violations committed by Russia or India. Collectively, results suggest that Jews constitute a unique cultural threat to many people's worldviews, that anti-Semitism causes hostility to Israel, and that hostility to Israel may feed back to increase anti-Semitism.
Confronting Antisemitism from the Perspectives of Philosophy and Social Sciences: Introduction
An End to Antisemititsm! vol. 4, 2021
The present,fourth volume of An End to Antisemitism! combines articles that address the studyofa ntisemitism from perspectiveso ft he social sciences,i ncluding psychology, philosophy, and pedagogy. The contributions to this final volume of the proceedings series essentiallym irror the general approach to combating antisemitism that is suggested by the whole five-volume series An End to Antisemitism! One of the series' main arguments is that successful strategies to fight antisemitism must be based on at horough scholarlya nd scientific analysis of Jew-hatred. Such an analysis begins with the assessment not onlyo ft he level of antisemitism in ag iven population and time but alsob yi dentifying which forms of Jew-hatred wereo ra re more prominent thano thers. Thisa ssessment is followed by an interdisciplinary theoretical reflection of antisemitisma nd by an analysis of the assessed data. Such theoretical reflection must be the basis for the development of successful strategies to combat antisemitism. This first part is followed by articles dedicatedtothe theoretical reflection of antisemitism on philosophical, sociological, and psychological levels. Historical and religious perspectiveshavebeen discussed in previous volumes.¹ The results of these theoretical contributions point the wayt ot heir implementation in the form of pedagogical studies and as examples of best practices. Assessmento fA ntisemitism Assessment of the level of antisemitism has been established as one of the key prerequisites to successfullyf ight it-bothi nv olume 1o ft he present series as well as in the respective official catalogue of measures for combatingantisemitism.² Onlyanin-depth understanding of the level and nature of antisemitism in
Comprehending Antisemitism through the Ages: Introduction
An End to Antisemitism, vol.3, 2021
'sd efinition of antisemitism as the "longest hatred"¹ carries as much weight now as it did thirty years ago, when Wistrich published his landmark study. Today, in our contemporary societies and culture, antisemitism is on the rise, and its manifestations are manifold. Antisemitic hate crimes have spiked in recent decades, and antisemitic stereotypes, sentiments, and hate speech have permeated all parts of the political spectrum. In order to effectively counteract the ever-growingJew-hatred of our times, it is important to recognise the traditions thath avef ed antisemitism throughout history.A ntisemitism is an age-old hatredd eeplye mbeddedi ns ocieties around the globe. While the internet and modern media have contributed beyond measure to the increase of Jewhatred in all parts of the world, the transformation processes thata ntisemitism has been undergoing through the ages remain the same. Acorecondition of antisemitism is its versatile nature and adaptability,b oth of which can be traced through all periods of time. Current-day antisemitism is shaped and sustained not onlyb yp owerful precedents but also reflects common fears and anxieties that our societies are faced with in aw orld that is ever changinga nd where the changes run even faster todayt hane verb efore. Historical awareness of the nature of antisemitism, therefore, is more important than ever.The present volume, thus, wantst oh elp raise this awareness.I ts articles tracet he history of antisemitisma nd the tradition of antisemitic stereotypes through the ages. It documents various manifestations of antisemitism over time and reflects on the varyingm otivations for antisemitism.A ss uch, these contributions shed light on socio-culturala nd socio-psychological processes that have led to the spike of antisemitism in various periods of time and in varyingi ntensity.I n this way, they can help to establish methods and policies to not onlyt ocounter current antisemitic manifestations but also to combat them. Terminologya nd Historiographical Delineation The usageo ft he term antisemitism is much debated in historical scholarship. Various scholars claim thatt he term reflectsac onceptualisation of Judaism as