I Wish We Had a More Moral Anti-Zionist Movement

On October 7th, I felt that Zionism had failed. Its most basic promise had been to provide a safe refuge to protect Jews against another Holocaust. Instead, it became the site of the worst act of genocide against the Jewish people since the Holocaust.

In the days after October 7th, I was inspired by the way Israelis showed up for each other -and that made me want to stay, despite my fears. In the years since, this trend, and my attachment to the country, has only intensified. However, it is accompanied by a contrary trend: political divisiveness, increasing racism and violence, that makes me worried about the future of the country from a socio-political standpoint, leaving aside security fears.

The other thing that happened, in the days after October 7th, was that it seemed like the anti-Semites came out of the woodworks. What had been a silent, socially unacceptable attitude now became a vocal movement that was increasingly normalized. To be clear, I believe that the problem, of increasing anti-Semitic violence and normalization of anti-Semitism, is a problem both on the right and the left. I do not equate all anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism, though I do think that anti-Semitism often cloaks itself in anti-Zionism in order to be more palatable to the general public.

But, if the anti-Zionist movement is serious about undoing Israel as a Jewish state, it should do all within its power to send a message to Jews: The Diaspora is a safe place for you.

After all, Zionism is a movement of safety-in-sovereignty for Jews who are afraid of living in the Diaspora. The best way to combat it is to disprove its central thesis, by demonstrating that the Diaspora is in fact safe for Jews, therefore, there is no need for a Jewish state. Furthermore, such a move could encourage mass Jewish emigration from Israel, which would make it easier to transition Israel into a state that is not a Jewish state, without completely violating democratic principles.

In such a world, if Jews said anti-Zionist demonstrations outside a synagogue make them feel unsafe, the demonstration would be moved. If there were a stabbing or shooting attack against Jews in the name of anti-Zionism, not only would anti-Zionist leaders condemn it immediately and robustly, but they would also meet with Jewish leaders to discuss anti-Semitism and Jewish safety.

Instead, we see that anti-Zionist rallies are often placed in proximity to synagogues or Jewish institutions, and harassing individual Jews in the name of anti-Zionism is accepted as a form of political protest. Condemnations of anti-Semitic attacks have been accompanied by reminders of Israel’s evils or used as a platform for discussing the movement’s fears for potential crackdowns.

To be clear: I oppose such crackdowns. In a democracy, you have a right to free speech, including the right to say things that make me uncomfortable. My objection to anti-Zionist marches is not in their occurrence, but in the reports that they have sometimes included conscious efforts to harass Jews. I also have seen reports of anti-Semitic speeches or slogans, which I oppose, but do believe is a protected speech category, as long as it does not incite to violence. To be clear: By anti-Semitic, I do not mean yelling “From the River to the Sea Palestine will be Free”. I mean statements in support of violence against Jews or citizens of the Jewish state, or statements that stereotype Jews or that consider the Jewish state the root of all evil.

I wish there was an anti-Zionist movement that was not rife with anti-Semitism, so we could have a real conversation. Instead, it increasingly feels like even though anti-Zionism is theoretically not the same thing as anti-Semitism, anti-Zionism as a global political movement, is a movement that platforms and normalizes anti-Semites and anti-Semitism.

As someone highly critical of the Israeli government, who does believe that Israel is in need of deep, systemic reforms that go beyond merely “ending the Occupation”, I wish I felt I had more global allies to work with. But unfortunately, it feels like the voices that oppose Israel’s actions increasingly come from people who do not wish for the safety of me or of my family.