Antisemitism: The Perennial Conspiracy Theory

Every time some Anti-White, Anti-American, Anti-freedom event takes place, you look at it, and it’s Jews behind it.

This headline in October 2018 blamed Jews for sexual assault charges lodged against then newly confirmed United States Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh, printed in bold capital letters on covertly posted extremist fliers distributed at the Universities of California at Berkeley and Davis in addition to Vassar and Marist colleges in New York state.

Fliers depicted a photo of Kavanaugh surrounded by distorted caricatures of Jewish United States Senate members, including Diane Feinstein and Chuck Schumer, with Magen Davids (Shields or Stars of David) branded on their foreheads.

The fliers also included Jewish billionaire, George Soros, whom the political right has unjustly branded for funding anti-Kavanaugh opposition, allegedly paying protesters, and funding the so-called “migrant caravan” (group of asylum seekers) then inching its way toward the U.S. southern border.

Approximately one hour after police captured a man on October 26, 2018 in Florida suspected of sending approximately 15 pipe bombs through the mail to prominent Democrats, an anonymous man phoned my home, someone who apparently knew I am a professor, who spouted, “Hey, how can I donate to your university, you Jew Kike.”

I immediately hung up the phone, but he called me back and I did not answer his second attempt to discharge his message of hate.

One day later my heart broke as I watched TV reports of a shooter who entered the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania killing at least 11 people and wounding several others, including 4 police officers. The shooter was said to have ties to pro-neo-Nazi white supremacist organizations who reportedly shouted during his carnage that “Jews must die!”

As a fairly visible writer and columnist, I have gotten many antisemitic and heterosexist email, Facebook, Twitter, and telephone threats through the years, some anonymous, some not. I am a proud Jewish and queer person, and I truly value my identity positionalities.

I have been involved in the struggle for civil and human rights most of my life, and I declared to myself long ago that the cause is just and that I would never shrink from the battles and never allow others to intimidate me. That said, while making me somehow stronger and even more committed to work for a socially just society, the venomous insults have taken an emotional toll on my psyche and on my overall self-esteem.

And what are the effects on other members of Jewish communities and especially young people who are progressing through their identity development process? Victims of marginalization and systematic oppression are susceptible to the effects of internalized oppression, whereby they internalize, consciously or unconsciously, attitudes of inferiority or “otherness.”

This internalization, created by oppression from the outside, plays itself out where it has seemed “safe” to do so in two primary places according to Re-evaluation specialist Suzanne Lipsky: 1) on members of their own group, and 2) upon themselves. In the case of religious minoritized communities, this can result in low self-esteem, shame, depression, prejudiced attitudes towards members of their own religious community, and even conversion to a dominant religious denomination.

A Jewish student expressed to me in private that since he came to our campus, he has gone into a “religious closet.” To avoid marginalization by his peers, he tells them that he was raised Methodist because he has often heard other students express cruel anti-Jewish sentiments regarding Hitler and the German Holocaust as well as every-day expressions such as “Don’t Jew me down” (translated as “Don’t cheat me like a Jew”) and “That’s so Jewish” (like “That’s so gay,” both intense put-downs).

The clearly antisemitic fliers posted at the Universities of California at Berkeley and Davis, Vassar, and Marist colleges in New York state announced they are “Brought to you by your local Stormer book club.”

The Anti-Defamation League describes the chapters of the Daily Stormer Book Club as “small crews of young white men who follow and support Andrew Anglin and his neo-Nazi website, the Daily Stormer,” and that “SBC members present themselves as American Nationalists and are part of the alt right segment of the white supremacist movement.”

Anti-Jewish hatred, while a mainstay of political, religious, and social discourse in the United States, appears nevertheless to be on the rise.

“You Jews will not replace us! Jews will not replace us!”

The estimated 1500 neo-Nazi white supremacists blared out this disgusting chant as they marched with their Tiki Torches in hand through the streets of Charlottesville, Virginia, August 11-12, 2017 in their “Unite the Right” protest rally over the scheduled removal of a statue commemorating Civil War General Robert E. Lee.

This march was reminiscent of similar events held throughout Germany, and particularly in Nuremberg during the Nazi era.

So why do people all along the political spectrum, from far left to far right, from self-described “white supremacists” to many people who are otherwise well-intentioned target Jews, many who appear “white”?

The partial answer, stemming from a long and complex history, is that though Jewish people are members of every so-called “race,” even Jews of European heritage (Ashkenazim) have been and still continue to be “racially” othered by some dominant Christian European-heritage communities.

For this reason, members of white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups engage in religious, ethnic, and racial bigotry against all groups they consider non-white, including Jews. In other words, anti-Jewish prejudice and discrimination (a.k.a. antisemitism) is a form of racism.

During the Middle Ages, for example, Christians characterized Jews as having tails concealed beneath their garments and as having a peculiar smell. This led to reports that they were in the service of the Devil, that the Devil was their father.

Looking back on the historical emergence of the concept of “race,” critical race theorists remind us that this concept arose concurrently with the advent of European exploration as a justification for conquest and domination of the globe beginning in the 15^th century of the Common Era (CE) and reaching its apex in the early 20^th century CE.

Geneticists tell us that there is often more variability within a given so-called “race” than between “races,” and that there are no essential genetic markers linked specifically to “race.”

Though biologists and social scientists have proven unequivocally that the concept of “race” is socially constructed (produced, manufactured), however, this does not negate the very real consequences people face living in societies that maintain racist policies and practices on the individual, interpersonal, institutional, and larger societal levels.

Sometime during the July 4^th holiday weekend in 2006, under the cover of darkness as a shield, an individual or group spray-painted a series of hate graffiti throughout central campus of Iowa State University, including antisemitic, Islamophobic, heterosexist, and misogynistic epithets and symbols:

“ISU = Fags” with an arrow pointing to the ISU Women’s Center, “Dyke Bar” with an arrow pointing to the campus newspaper offices, “Fag Rag” on a building and giving reference to the campus fraternity for gay and bisexual men–“Fag House,” a red circle and diagonal line slashing through the term “Islam,” and painted swastikas throughout campus, among others.

The perpetrator or perpetrators of these criminal acts, in their own distorted way, linked the various spokes on the oppression wheel by targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people, all women, and also all Jews with their swastikas, and Muslims, people of color, and people with disabilities, in fact, anyone seen as “other,” as subaltern, as less than.

The timing of these actions around the 4^th of July highlight what has come to be referred to as “The American Dilemma” by economist and sociologist Gunner Myrdal: on one hand, we live in a country built on the idea (though not always the reality) of inclusion, freedom, and justice for all people, but ironically, on the other hand, racial animus prevails, and on the birthday of that country, an individual or group attempted to exclude other people from participating in this freedom and this justice.

Immediately following the discovery of the graffiti, university president, Gregory L. Geoffroy, sent an electronic letter to the entire Iowa State University community, condemning the vandalism in no uncertain terms, and promising to aggressively investigate, find, and prosecute the perpetrators “to the fullest extent of the law.” He continued:

Iowa State University is deeply committed to providing an educational environment where people of different backgrounds, lifestyles, cultural experiences and beliefs value and respect one another. Racial slurs, ethnic insults, religious ridicule and gender identity hatred, often spread in the form of graffiti, are the antithesis of this environment and will not be tolerated.

A committed and concerned group of student leaders organized a committee to confront the hate. They gave me the honor or serving as a faculty advisor. At one of the initial meetings, they agreed by consensus to create a group statement, which they ultimately titled their “Principles of Community” listing their vision for a safe and inclusive campus community.

They arrived at these principles by engaging in a sizable number of one-on-one interviews with their student peers throughout the campus.

I share their “Principles of Community” as a potential model for other campuses. It was researched, written, and initially distributed by this group of committed and compassionate students who took collective action to improve the physical and emotional climate of their campus.

Principles of Community

Diversity is a journey that is continually evolving where different challenges are faced, and solutions are sought. At Iowa State University, our journey is mapped by six Principles of Community. By using the Principles of Community as the compass, we show how we have begun our journey.

Respect

We seek to foster an open-minded understanding among individuals, organizations, and groups. We support this understanding through outreach, increasing opportunities for collaboration, formal education programs, and strategies for resolving disagreement.

Purpose

We are encouraged to be engaged in the university community. Thus, we strive to build a genuine community that promotes leadership, the advancement of knowledge, cooperation, and leadership.

Cooperation

We recognize that the mission of the university is enhanced when we work together to achieve the goals of the university. Therefore, we value each member of the Iowa State University community for his or her insights and efforts, collective and individual, to enhance the quality of campus life.

Freedom from Discrimination

We acknowledge that we must strive to overcome historical and divisive biases in our society. Therefore, we must commit ourselves to create and maintain a community in which all students, staff, faculty, and administrators can work together in an atmosphere free from discrimination, and to respond appropriately to all acts of discrimination.

Honest and Respectful Expression of Ideas

We affirm the right to and the importance of a free exchange of ideas at Iowa State University within the bounds of courtesy, sensitivity, and respect. We work together to promote awareness of various ideas through education and constructive strategies to consider and engage in honest disagreements.

Richness of Diversity

We recognize and cherish the richness of diversity contributes in our university experience. Furthermore, we strive to increase the diversity of ideas, cultures, and experiences throughout the university community.

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This post is republished on Medium.

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