On Tuesday, a yeshiva student was assaulted in Brooklyn, the third anti-Semitic attack in that borough in just five days. Five males reportedly surrounded the student and punched him in the face. One of them was heard to yell “Free Palestine” during the assault.
It was a blatant act of anti-Semitism. Whatever the goals of the assailants, violence like this is never defensible. The fact that it was perpetrated against a Jewish New Yorker, as if he was responsible for the actions of the Israeli government, only compounds its anti-Semitism.
Anger at Israel has been rapidly morphing into anti-Semitism since its surge during the conflict last spring between Israel and Hamas. There is no justification for it.
This does not mean that anger is never justified. Israel’s occupation of Palestinian lands understandably engenders anger — even rage — among Palestinians and supporters of their cause, not to mention the anger felt by Israelis and supporters of Israel who see those policies as obstacles to any viable Israeli-Palestinian agreement.
Unfortunately, anti-Semitic behavior that is related to Israel all too often gets conflated with legitimate forms of criticism of Israel. This is a dangerous mistake. It confuses political disagreements about Israel with true anti-Semitism and it distracts from addressing real instances of anti-Semitism and bigotry.
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tronc/YFKOMTZN7VCI5NZ52FSBDYVOIU.jpg)
The CEO and national director of the Anti-Defamation League, Jonathan Greenblatt, recently told the New Yorker that definitions of bigotries such as anti-Semitism “are complicated … They don’t always lend themselves to pat answers.” This is true. But community leaders and policymakers need guidance when dealing with complicated issues such as those at the intersection of anti-Semitism and Israel.
In its white paper, ”Understanding anti-Semitism at its Nexus with Israel and Zionism,” the Nexus Task Force I direct waded through the complexity of these issues. Here are four rules for assessing when opposition to Israel is anti-Semitic that derive from that document:
- When criticism of Israel or Zionism uses an anti-Semitic image or trope that has historically been directed at Jews, it’s anti-Semitic. For example, cartoon images of greedy Jews or of Israel having outsized control are anti-Semitic.
- When Israel is treated differently because it is a Jewish state, it’s anti-Semitic.
- When Jews are denied equal rights with others, whether individually or nationally, it’s anti-Semitic. Jews and Palestinians have the same rights to safety, security and self-determination.
- When Israel or Zionism are used as a surrogate term for Jews, it’s anti-Semitic. This includes holding Jews responsible for Israel’s actions or insinuating that Jews are more loyal to Israel than to the country in which they live.
Similarly, here are four rules for assessing when opposition to Israel is not anti-Semitic:
- Severe characterizations of Israel may be hard to accept, but they are not anti-Semitic unless they meet any of the above criteria. For example, Yitzhak Rabin once warned that maintaining an occupation would lead to apartheid. That’s harsh but it’s not anti-Semitic.
- Likewise, non-violent actions that press for changes in Israeli policies are not anti-Semitic unless they meet any of the above criteria. For example, boycotting goods made in the West Bank and/or Israel is not anti-Semitic unless it specifically singles out Israel because of its Jewish character or denies Jews the rights to safety, security and self-determination.
- The same is true for anti-Zionism. It is not anti-Semitic unless it denies Jews the same rights to safety, security and self-determination that it grants to Palestinians.
- A double standard about Israel is not anti-Semitic unless it treats Israel differently because of its Jewish character. For example, Israel attracts special attention because it is at the crossroads of the three major Western religions; it may be treated differently because it is America’s closest ally and it receives $3.8 billion in annual military aid from the United States.
Of course, there are exceptions and nuances that community leaders and policymakers must consider. But misguided accusations of anti-Semitism aimed at critics of Israel, even harsh critics, are risky and counterproductive. They divert our attention from the virulent forms of anti-Semitism that require unified resistance. At a time when anti-Semitism is on the rise, we cannot afford to lose values allies, even those whose views on Israel are hard to accept.
Jacoby, the former executive director of New Israel Fund and president of Israel Policy Forum, directs the Nexus Task Force, which is affiliated with the Center for the Study of Hate at Bard College.