Protesting Israel’s War is Antisemitic?

 

There have been an increasing number of protests against Israel’s war in Gaza across the world, but also notably in American universities. Many in the media and political scene have been calling these univerity protests antisemitic. For instance Benjamin “Netanyahu Calls U.S. Student Protests Antisemitic and Says They Must Be Quelled. “What’s happening in America’s college campuses is horrific,” the Israeli prime minister said in a televised statement. “Antisemitic mobs have taken over leading universities.”[1]

The Times goes on to report,

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said on Wednesday that protests at U.S. universities against Israel’s war in Gaza were “horrific” and should be stopped, using his first public comments on the subject to castigate the student demonstrators and portray them as antisemitic.

Mr. Netanyahu’s comments could harden division over the demonstrations. They could also give ammunition to Republican leaders who have criticized the protesters and accused university administrators and Democrats of failing to protect Jewish students from attack.”[2]

But are they antisemitic? For one the idea that it is inherently antisemitic to protest this war is blatantly absurd, the coalition of people who oppose the ongoing hostilities is far reaching and broadly represented across society, and criticism of a first world army killing such large numbers of civilians is easily justifiable. But this term is being used in much the same way that the term 'antivaxxer' was used during covid; to label any criticism of the lockdowns or the mandates as simply fringe views. In the same way some use the term 'antisemitic' simply to seek to pigeon whole opponents to what the IDF is doing is Gaza as fringe dwellers. But it is especially inaccurate to describe these protests as antisemitic, when many of the protestors themselves are Jewish, and they are specifically Jewish opponents of the war.

For example the Jewish Voice for Peace website says,

“Our elected officials and the U.S. media, desperate to maintain unquestioning support for the Israeli war machine in service of their own interests, have responded by exploiting fears of rising antisemitism and smearing peaceful, anti-war protests as dangerous, anti-semitic mobs.

As the largest anti-Zionist Jewish organization in the world, we unequivocally reject the conflation of antisemitism with anti-Zionism and reaffirm in the strongest terms that there is no place for antisemitism in our movements. We condemn the false accusations of antisemitism leveled against principled, anti-war protesters to discredit our movements.

We understand these accusations for what they are: a cynical distraction from the ongoing atrocities in Gaza. Over 34,000 Palestinians have been killed, with thousands more feared dead. They are currently unearthing the bodies of their loved ones in mass graves. In Rafah, where hundreds of thousands of displaced people have taken shelter, Israel’s military is preparing to invade.”[3]

These Jewish advocates clearly are not basing their opposition to the war in support for Hamas, or anti-Jewish sentiment, but rather in their understanding of the Passover event from the book of Exodus.

Here is another example,

“Judaism has a history that goes back probably around 3,000 years, and Zionism [as a political ideology] has history that goes back around 200,” he tells Teen Vogue. “While I think the Jews have a historic connection to the land that's currently controlled by Israel, that does not necessarily mean that Zionism is part of the Jewish religion.”

For more than a week, students at Columbia and neighboring Barnard have occupied the main lawn in tents. They’ve been arrested, suspended, and evicted from university housing. They’ve braced for a visit from US House Speaker Mike Johnson, who said the Ivy League school ought to send the National Guard to campus. These protesters are demanding that the university divest from companies with economic ties to or investments in Israel, and grant amnesty to demonstrators who have been punished. Similar encampments have popped up at dozens of colleges across the US, and hundreds of students have been arrested, some in violent clashes with police.

Amid this backdrop, young Jewish people who oppose the war in Gaza are finding creative ways to use their faith to resist the violence arguably being waged in their name. Just last week Columbia students organized a ceasefire seder on campus for Passover, the Jewish holiday that celebrates the liberation of Jews from bondage in Egypt. Nearly 300 people were arrested at a similar demonstration outside Senator Chuck Schumer’s house in Brooklyn.”[4]

Some Christians confuse Zionism with Jewish identity. This stems from a misunderstanding that all Jews are on the same page when it comes to the reestablishment of the nation of Israel today, and also a misreading of the scriptures that imports much of what is said about ancient Israel and attributes it to the modern Israeli nation. But Zionism and Judaism are not synonymous. Just as evangelical and Protestant are not synonymous, the picture is far more complicated and much of what passes for Protestantism today is far from any of its biblical foundations and roots. So is this also true with the Jewish community, there are wide and diverse opinions on many issues. 

Some Christians may be afraid to criticize this war openly, because they fear they will be seen as antisemitic, or not standing in solidarity with the Jewish people. But the Jewish people themselves do not agree on the morality or practicality of this war, and how could they? Every nation or people has its divisions.

The important thing we should do, is not look at this through a lens of solidarity, but instead we should be dedicated to examining the truth of what is happening at every level. I think these Jewish protestors are correct, the accusations of antisemitism towards those calling for a ceasefire, or peace, are cynically seeking to turn criticism away from their actions towards those who are protesting those actions, as they say,

“We understand these accusations for what they are: a cynical distraction from the ongoing atrocities in Gaza. Over 34,000 Palestinians have been killed, with thousands more feared dead. They are currently unearthing the bodies of their loved ones in mass graves. In Rafah, where hundreds of thousands of displaced people have taken shelter, Israel’s military is preparing to invade.”

One can walk and talk at the same time. By that I mean it is possible to despise and condemn Hamas and it is possible to say that Israel is not justified in doing all that it is doing. And you are not antisemitic for saying so. It is in fact the plain truth.

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[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/24/us/netanyahu-israel-us-college-protests.html

[2]Ibid.  

[3] https://www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org/2024/04/25/slanders-against-our-movements-are-a-distraction/

[4] https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/jewish-students-are-bringing-their-faith-to-university-pro-palestine-protests/ar-AA1nJD19