An elected official in the United States, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, shared a Facebook book post a few years ago (now deleted) claiming Jews were responsible for a deadly California wildlfire through use of a solar beam from outer space.
Far from being castigated, she instead was given a seat on the House Education and Labor Committee. As of this writing, she may or may not hold on to that assignment.
Greene has also espoused conspiracy theories about the Parkland school shooting.
So Republicans have seen it fit to bestow a position of influence on our country’s educational system upon someone who thinks Jews kill people and wildlife and destroy property with a space laser, but who doesn’t believe actual students were killed in a murderous shooting spree at their school.
The Jewish space laser and the denial of the Parkland shooting are related because they are both detached from reality.
There is no evidence of either.
In the case of the Parkland shooting, there is ample evidence — in the form of graves, bereaved families and traumatized survivors — that a tragic school shooting did in fact happen.
But to Greene and others like her, whether they be elected officials, bigots, followers, sympathizers, or the person next door who may or may not be educated or being spoon-fed lies from Fox News and Facebook algorithms, the truth is as malleable as wet clay.
This is why antisemitism will never die or go away. Because to antisemites, the truth doesn’t matter.
All that matters is their fear and insecurity and need to have someone to blame.
Extreme Absurdities Make Other Lies Seem Feasible
What to make of someone who can believe in a Jewish space laser? It’s easy to laugh off because it’s so preposterous.
But once you realize this believer is in a position of power, and was elected by her constituents, and is supported and promoted by her colleagues, it’s not so funny. It’s threatening and dangerous.
But there’s nothing new here. It’s just the same ignorance and bigotry writ-ever larger.
It’s no more absurd to believe Jews have access to a space laser than it is to think Jews control the global financial system.
Or that Jews own the media, or use Christian children’s blood for ritualistic purposes, or were responsible for the September 11 attacks, or want to replace white Christian America with immigrants.
Once you believe in an absurdity, once you are imbued with a philosophy or belief that is ungrounded from any fact or reason, there is an infinite limit to where that belief can go.
Including all the way to outer space, where Jews can somehow harness the power of the sun to spark deadly wildfires.
A New Age of American Antisemitism
This is now the country we live in, where antisemitic claims and tropes are rampant, even accepted, by those in positions of power and influence.
We had a president claim that white supremacists who marched in the streets with torches claiming “Jews Will Not Replace Else” are very fine people.
We had a right-wing media operation watched by tens of millions give credence to lies (that bands of immigrants were storming our borders) which in further right-wing social media outlets were blamed, as ever, on Jews.
When violence was motivated by this lie, it wasn’t towards the liars — it was against the supposed perpetrators of a plan to bring non-whites into America to replace the white majority.
The Right’s Moral Cowardice in Both-Side-ism
It’s simply not good enough for those on the right to claim, “yes, but what about antisemitism on the left.” Of course there is antisemitism from left-leaning people and groups. Antisemitism is everywhere you look, in every corner, ad infinitum.
That’s the entire point.
But as a Jewish person in America watching antisemitic incidents in this country increase as never before, I find myself not much interested in parsing out the difference between the so-called “sides” of hatred towards Jews. Why bother?
That said, I do make a distinction.
I do judge which is worst.
Unlike our political leaders, I can say out loud which flavors of antisemitism are most distasteful.
I start with the ones with people with guns, like the shooters at synagogues in Pittsburgh and Poway, and at the Overland Park Jewish Community Center and the Seattle Jewish federation.
Following that are the kooks and crazies and neo-Nazis next door who peddle in conspiracy theories and trade antisemitic tropes online. That is so prevalent place it’s hard to muster up anger towards it anymore. To call it out is to re-declare the sky is blue.
It was on full display last week during the GameStop stock market fiasco, when those gaming the market took aim at, among other things, rich, powerful, world-controlling Jews.
And then there’s Israel. People will criticize Israel today and forever more.
I do it myself. So do Israelies. But I’d much rather someone critique the Israeli government, even in a one-sided, biased, hypocritical way, than walk into a synagogue or Jewish community center with a gun.
I Have No Hope for Antisemites. But I Do for the Rest of Us.
I don’t spread hate (except against intolerance and hatred itself) in my writing and in my social media posts. When there are times for learning (like during the #MeToo movement and after the George Floyd killing) I sit down, stay quiet, listen, read and learn.
I don’t expect such behavior out of antisemites. And sadly, I’ve long stopped believing that we’ll age out of it, that the next generation won’t be as dumb and simple-minded to believe and spread hatred of Jews.
But I have not given up hope that antisemitism will be looked down upon by civil society. That this country’s leaders, starting with the president, through Congressional representatives all the way down to local school boards, won’t sympathize with neo-Nazis or spread fantastical theories about Jews destroying property, wildlife, nature and human lives with space lasers.
It’s not too much to ask. Frankly, it’s the bare minimum to ask.
So get the antisemitism out of the White House (done) and out of Congress (not yet done).
Antisemitism will be with us forever, but let’s put it back in the closet and under the rug where we don’t have to see it anymore.
Let’s shame those who openly hate and threaten others because of their religion, skin color or sexuality.
Let’s make white nationalism and white supremacy unacceptable and abhorrent again.
Space lasers aren’t real.
But what happens when you believe that Jews control space lasers is all too real.
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Previously Published on Medium
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