The Confluence of Antisemitism
Unfortunately, because antisemitism has become trendy, we are witnessing the confluence of antisemitism coming from both the far left and extreme right of society. Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, AOC and a host of other leftists routinely parrot and promote canards and tropes against Israel and the Jewish people. Tucker Carlson, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Candace Owens, and a pack of like-minded rightists give platform and voice to the growing discordant chorale of antisemitic lies.
Unforgivably, Jewish members of Congress, like Chuck Schumer, Jerry Nadler, Jamie Raskin and others, have joined the eerie silence of Democrats, thus giving tacit support to the likes of Zohan Mamdani, a candidate for mayor of New York City. Mamdani’s antisemitic rhetoric promotes, by commission and omission, blood libels against Israel and those of us who support her.
But blood libels against Jews are nothing new. They originated in antiquity and continue through to the present day. History documents that Jews have been on the receiving end of scorn, condemnation, and contempt. Scholars trace a precursor to the blood libels back to the 2nd century BCE when the Greek scholar, Apion, accused Jews of sacrificing a Greek citizen and eating his internal organs. Jewish-Roman historian, Josephus Flavius, refuted the antisemitic assertions of the Hellenized Egyptian Apion, and to the chagrin of antisemites, debunked Apion’s lies while highlighting Judaism’s ethical superiority over her Greek-Egyptian detractors.
With the death of Jesus, and the advent of Christianity, the Middle Ages ushered in a new wave of antisemitism. In 1144 CE residents of Norwich, England found a young boy dead with stab wounds and townsfolk falsely accused Jews of ritually murdering him. Accusations such as that led to persecution, violence, and massacres of Jewish communities in England, France, and Germany. Even the prominent figure, Martin Luther, in the 16th century fueled the hatred of Jews throughout Christian Europe, particularly in Poland and Lithuania.
Jews fleeing death and persecution from eastern European countries from 1881 to 1914 unfortunately found no shortage of antisemitism in America. One notable person, who was emblematic of the antisemitism of his time, was Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company. Ford routinely published antisemitic articles in The Dearborn Independent, a paper he owned. Ford was a proud antisemite who dedicated considerable time and effort to disparaging Jews in a manner that rivaled the Nazi propagandist, Goebbels and Julius Streicher the publisher of the antisemitic German newspaper Der Stürmer.
The blood libel legacy continues today. Marxists, pro-Palestinian Arabs, the progressive-woke, the UN, and programs like DEI, CRT, and a host of other antisemitic endeavors promote and keep them alive. The libels that today’s antisemites hurl against Israelis are genocide, apartheid, colonizing, and harvesting of the organs of Palestinian Arab children. Add to the list accusations of Jews, who represent a mere 0.2% of the world’s population, of controlling the media, banks, and the weather.
People like Tucker Carlson and Morning Joe play host to guests who spew unfounded lies about Israel who claim the Holocaust was a hoax, or not as bad as the Jews claim. Also, Megyn Kelly gave voice to antisemites who claim the infamous Jeffrey Epstein was an agent of the Mossad. The result of entertaining all those groundless accusations has been devastating, destructive, and distressing. The lies have exacerbated the increase in the persecution of, and violence against, Jews and Jewish communities throughout world.
Hate begins with the Jews but never ends with the Jews. It metastasizes like a cancer and destroys everything it touches. Enemies of the Jews, not only attack Israelis, but they also assault Jews and Jewish interests worldwide. They make no distinction between Israeli Jews and Jews hailing from other countries, because they just flat out hate Jews. Referring to the persistence of antisemitism throughout the world down through the ages, an acquaintance asked me, “Why the Jews?” My response was simply this: you will have to ask the antisemites.
