How Do We Talk about Recent Incidents of Anti-Semitism?
Prominent black celebrities like Nick Cannon, DeSean Jackson, and Ice Cube have all faced fallout for anti-Semitic posts and comments in the past week. At a time when building solidarity between black and Jewish communities is of utmost importance, how do we talk constructively about these incidents of anti-Semitism? More at Forbes.
Our fears about antisemitism are warranted. Antisemitism is real – and it’s tougher for those who are obviously Jewish in public. It can be isolating to feel like others aren’t showing up for us even when we show up for them. We can hold this truth AND we MUST still fight anti-Black racism. The two aren’t mutually exclusive.
Recent incidents of anti-Semitic tweets and posts from sports and entertainment celebrities are a very troubling omen for the future of the Black Lives Matter movement, but so too is the shocking lack of massive indignation. Given the New Woke-fulness in Hollywood and the sports world, we expected more passionate public outrage. What we got was a shrug of meh-rage.
Black Lives Matter, which most American Jews support for noble reasons, continues to carry a torch for the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement and spouts blood libels against the Israel Defense Forces. Racism and anti-Semitism are operating on different levels of social respectability. From a charge of racism, there is no redemption. Anti-Semitism, however, now is a hatred without limits. Almost no Jew-hatred is beyond the pale.