Dealing with Anti-Semitism

In the wake of the current Israeli-Palestinian violence, intercommunal conflict and pure hate crimes against Jews have occurred in many places around the world leading to a few arrests of pro-Palestinian agitators who were threatening the lives of Jews both physically and/or in social media. 

To equate being Jewish with supporting the policies of the current Israeli government is akin to calling all Palestinians and Muslims terrorists because Hamas, Al Qaeda, ISIS, and others are both Islamists and terrorists.

Both are wrong.

Indeed, a large portion of the Israeli electorate voted against Prime Minister Netanyahu and his coalition’s expansionist policies. The government of Israel does not represent Judaism, only the voters who have elected it.

Nations, cultures, and religions are not monolithic.

Indeed, just as is the case amongst Jews, few Muslims are terrorists or support terrorist causes.

Minorities do not represent the totality of a religion, nationality, or race.

Rather, a vocal minority can highjack the dialogue and drown out the more moderate elements.

How do we address this phenomenon?

A few weeks ago, I wrote about empathy – the ability to put oneself in the others’ shoes. The objective here is not to change one’s beliefs as a result, but to understand the others’ point of view and use that to find some common ground upon which to base the beginnings of a dialogue.

Moderates need as strong a voice as do the extremists.

To maintain their influence, they cannot remain silent.

Rather, moderates, be they religious or not, must find ways to be heard above the tumult. Most people want to live in peace, and it is moderates that must come together to tone down the rhetoric and emotion and craft messages and proposals that can be viewed as acceptable to both sides.

They must reach out to create a basis for a dialogue. 

At the end of World War II in 1945, Germany and France were the bitterest of enemies. They had fought two wars and had lived under occupation.

Yet, in 1951 France and Germany (and four other European countries) came together in the European Coal and Steel Community – the beginning of a united Europe in which both mortal enemies realized that neither was ever going to win a military victory regardless of their respective prowess and that they had to find common ground to provide their respective populations with peace, security, and the prosperity that would make war irrelevant.

Moderates on both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian equation who know that violence is in neither side’s interests must lead the charge against leaders who seek to divide their societies and sow hatred in order to advance their own personal agendas.

The warring factions who believe that exporting their violence to third countries might help garner support must be shown that those societies reject these initiatives outright and will prosecute and punish those who engage in them.  

One can support one side or the other without engaging in or fueling the violence.

Exporting anti-Semitism is both morally wrong and criminal in nature. Promoting it in the name of supporting “justice” simply feeds the hatred against a small group of people, the majority of whom live outside of Israel.

Moderates everywhere should come together and forge a consensus against this virulent form of hatred. 

Whatever side they are on, they have an opportunity to retake the dialogue and to pressure for peace to the benefit of all.

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Edición: Laura Espejo