I am writing to you as a Black woman in America. I am writing to you as a human who understands fear. I am writing to you to implore you to seek the truth, no matter how painful. Please hear me.
The "extremist behavior" you refer to is armed resistance born out of decades of desperation living under one of the most brutal and propagandized occupations of our time. An occupation that has stolen everything sacred to Palestinians. Do we look upon slave uprisings in the past as "extremist" or "terrorist" behavior? We cannot STILL be coddling—and almost begging—white folks to wake up. They need to wake the fuck up NOW, rude awakening and all.
Muslims, Arabs and Palestinians in the West have spoken out for decades about everything said in this article. WE have long been subjected to systemic silencing and vilification perpetuated by Zionist-influenced media outlets and governments. For decades, our voices have been marginalized and legitimate concerns dismissed, while a carefully crafted image of Israel has been propagated. This has led to the labeling of Muslims, Arabs, and Palestinians as extremists, terrorists, and other racist stereotypes that have been unilaterally accepted by many in American society.
The dehumanization and degradation experienced by these communities, including being referred to as animals or subhuman, is appalling and unacceptable. It is deeply troubling that such derogatory language has become normalized to the point where it is not even questioned by government officials, the media, or society at large. When individuals from the Arab or Palestinian communities dare to speak out against such injustices, they are often unjustly labeled as anti-Semitic, despite the fact that they themselves are Semitic people. The the irony in this situation, is that 97% of Jews worldwide are of European descent with little to no Semitic lineage. This misuse of the term "anti-Semitic" to silence legitimate criticism of Israel and its policies only serves to further perpetuate discrimination and suppress dissenting voices.
The so-called "extremist behavior" you mention plays into the tropes you've been conditioned to believe. The Palestinian resistance is not merely an act of violence, but rather a desperate response born out of decades of oppression, humiliation, dispossession, and systematic brutality inflicted upon Palestinians living under one of the most oppressive occupations in modern history. It is a manifestation of the profound despair and hopelessness experienced by a people who have endured relentless violations of their basic human rights and the theft of their land, resources, and dignity.
For generations, Palestinians have been subjected to relentless violence, murder, discrimination, and displacement at the hands of the occupying forces. Their homes have been demolished, their land confiscated, and their communities fragmented by illegal settlements and checkpoints. Basic necessities such as water, electricity, and healthcare are routinely denied to them, while their freedom of movement is severely restricted.
In such a context of pervasive injustice and deprivation, it is not surprising that some Palestinians have resorted to armed resistance as a means of self-defense and resistance against their oppressors. It is a desperate attempt to reclaim their dignity, assert their rights, and resist the relentless onslaught of violence and dispossession inflicted upon them by the occupying forces.
While I commend your article following your epiphany, there are more layers to this onion and how deep this conspiracy runs in US and global politics. Israel and the US are deeply entrenched in a corrupt web of political, corporate and geopolitical extortion that play a significant role in shaping the current reality for Palestinians and the Apartheid we have witnessed for the last 76 years.
I agree that calling someone antisemitic should never be used to silence someone. Yet I also want to offer to you and any other readers here a caution that things like "Zionist-influenced media and government" and calling this a "conspiracy ...in global politics" do echo antisemitic tropes. Even if it's not your intent, the impact of those tropes is real. And the characterization of Jews as "97% European" doesn't seem accurate to me, since Israel is home to about half the world's Jews, and about half of Israel's Jews are of middle eastern / north African descent. (I share that not because I think it matters whose family tree is from where, but to contest the erasure of those cultures.) Here's an excerpt of something that explains how anti-Jewish oppression became labeled antisemitism. It's written by a Pro-Palestinian Jewish activist: "Antisemitism" was a word popularized in 1879 by someone who was neither Arab nor Jewish, Wilhelm Marr. From the beginning it was chosen as a chic,
new scientific word to show that Jews were an inferior race (not a religion that they
could convert out of), and to replace the word Jew-hatred (Judenhass) so that Jew-
haters could enjoy sounding more sophisticated.
Marr and his colleagues used the term antisemites for themselves as something
to be proud of. They built an organization to advocate discrimination against Jews,
the Antisemites' League. When Marr and his movement designed this term to
degrade a whole people, they couldn't care less that they were using it inaccurately
by designating it for Jews specifically.
Although Jews didn't get to choose the term for their oppression -and
oppressed groups rarely do- over years being attacked by it, they have accepted
the term to describe the historical experience of being targeted for being Jews.
There isn't really one oppression that targets all those who were labeled
“Semites” in a similar way. * It is somewhat misleading to distinguish between Arabs and Jews. Millions of Jews are of Arab (& Persian)
descent, and experience the profiling other Arabs are subject to, as well as racism in the Jewish community. ** But there is a larger oppression that both groups expe-
rience: Orientalism. From the Chinese Exclusion Act and the Third Reich to the
Red Scare and the War on Terror, the "West" has historically targeted Asians,
Arabs and Jews as mysterious, dishonestly and manipulatively intelligent, overly
Zionism is colonizer White supremacy. FACT: Colonizer White supremacy is a global conspiracy of power.
And to claim Jewish oppression -- to center White pain, to center Jewish pain -- in this period of *literal genocide* of black and brown bodies by White colonizers, is White supremacist gaslighting and racist White violence to the highest degree.
Thank you for this. I especially resonated w/ these two paragraphs:
"[W]ith so little nuance around what is criticism of Israel and its actions versus the terrifying and genuine Nazism that has found a home in white supremacist circles, [WE ARE UNABLE TO CREATE ALLEGIANCES TO DEFEAT WHAT IS TRULY HARMFUL] and hateful as opposed to what is a reaction to an asymmetric and genocidal, U.S.-funded war on innocent civilians.
"I am in no way arguing that antisemitism doesn’t exist – it most definitely does exist. It is on the rise, and I am afraid of that, too. Afraid for you, and afraid for me. Yet, [IF WE CAN'T PARSE OUT DECADES OF INJUSTICE FROM WHAT IS ACTUAL ANTISEMITISM], I fear that the alliances that have already been frayed or severed may never be restored."
This is the stuff, we need to be willing to have uncomfortable conversations, where right now we are simply in a realm where everyone will be blind because an eye for an eye never ends.
Thank you so much for articulating what I have been struggling to identify.
I really appreciate you sharing your process and reflections here. We all have so much to learn. I'd like to suggest anyone and everyone concerned about our collective liberation check out this resource (a zine) from a radical pro-Palestinian Jewish activist: https://www.aprilrosenblum.com/_files/ugd/4dc342_10d68441b6c44ee0a12909a242074ca6.pdf
The bitterest irony of the present moment: the politicians who most speak of being "un-woke", and who allege DEI to be anti-White or anti-European, are the most vociferous in cheerleading the Jewish community into a tendency which promotes the idea that all Jews should relocate to an ancestral homeland because we should never again trust white Europeans!!!
An *absolutely essential* part of this truth is that European and American Jews are racialized as *White*.
Part of the mythology and false narrative in this century-long gaslighting is the persistent and ludicrous denial by European and American Jews that they are "not White because they are Jewish". This allows them to claim all of the tremendous benefits of Whiteness in societies around the world, while also claiming an impervious "victim status" that exempts them from accountability for White supremacist violence and racism. Having their matzoh and eating it too, as it were.
This is true: European and American White Jews were persecuted by European and American White Christians.
This is also true: European and American White Jews AND Christians benefit from global White supremacy and enact racist and colonizer violence everywhere.
Also true: Europeans and Americans in West Asia, North Africa, and Arabia who control land, resources and power are COLONIZERS, regardless of their religion.
Let's awaken from the collective gaslighting that White Jews are oppressed. Antisemitism is real, AND White Jews are not oppressed, AND Israel is a White supremacist colonizer and oppressor.
The "extremist behavior" you refer to is armed resistance born out of decades of desperation living under one of the most brutal and propagandized occupations of our time. An occupation that has stolen everything sacred to Palestinians. Do we look upon slave uprisings in the past as "extremist" or "terrorist" behavior? We cannot STILL be coddling—and almost begging—white folks to wake up. They need to wake the fuck up NOW, rude awakening and all.
Muslims, Arabs and Palestinians in the West have spoken out for decades about everything said in this article. WE have long been subjected to systemic silencing and vilification perpetuated by Zionist-influenced media outlets and governments. For decades, our voices have been marginalized and legitimate concerns dismissed, while a carefully crafted image of Israel has been propagated. This has led to the labeling of Muslims, Arabs, and Palestinians as extremists, terrorists, and other racist stereotypes that have been unilaterally accepted by many in American society.
The dehumanization and degradation experienced by these communities, including being referred to as animals or subhuman, is appalling and unacceptable. It is deeply troubling that such derogatory language has become normalized to the point where it is not even questioned by government officials, the media, or society at large. When individuals from the Arab or Palestinian communities dare to speak out against such injustices, they are often unjustly labeled as anti-Semitic, despite the fact that they themselves are Semitic people. The the irony in this situation, is that 97% of Jews worldwide are of European descent with little to no Semitic lineage. This misuse of the term "anti-Semitic" to silence legitimate criticism of Israel and its policies only serves to further perpetuate discrimination and suppress dissenting voices.
The so-called "extremist behavior" you mention plays into the tropes you've been conditioned to believe. The Palestinian resistance is not merely an act of violence, but rather a desperate response born out of decades of oppression, humiliation, dispossession, and systematic brutality inflicted upon Palestinians living under one of the most oppressive occupations in modern history. It is a manifestation of the profound despair and hopelessness experienced by a people who have endured relentless violations of their basic human rights and the theft of their land, resources, and dignity.
For generations, Palestinians have been subjected to relentless violence, murder, discrimination, and displacement at the hands of the occupying forces. Their homes have been demolished, their land confiscated, and their communities fragmented by illegal settlements and checkpoints. Basic necessities such as water, electricity, and healthcare are routinely denied to them, while their freedom of movement is severely restricted.
In such a context of pervasive injustice and deprivation, it is not surprising that some Palestinians have resorted to armed resistance as a means of self-defense and resistance against their oppressors. It is a desperate attempt to reclaim their dignity, assert their rights, and resist the relentless onslaught of violence and dispossession inflicted upon them by the occupying forces.
While I commend your article following your epiphany, there are more layers to this onion and how deep this conspiracy runs in US and global politics. Israel and the US are deeply entrenched in a corrupt web of political, corporate and geopolitical extortion that play a significant role in shaping the current reality for Palestinians and the Apartheid we have witnessed for the last 76 years.
This!
I agree that calling someone antisemitic should never be used to silence someone. Yet I also want to offer to you and any other readers here a caution that things like "Zionist-influenced media and government" and calling this a "conspiracy ...in global politics" do echo antisemitic tropes. Even if it's not your intent, the impact of those tropes is real. And the characterization of Jews as "97% European" doesn't seem accurate to me, since Israel is home to about half the world's Jews, and about half of Israel's Jews are of middle eastern / north African descent. (I share that not because I think it matters whose family tree is from where, but to contest the erasure of those cultures.) Here's an excerpt of something that explains how anti-Jewish oppression became labeled antisemitism. It's written by a Pro-Palestinian Jewish activist: "Antisemitism" was a word popularized in 1879 by someone who was neither Arab nor Jewish, Wilhelm Marr. From the beginning it was chosen as a chic,
new scientific word to show that Jews were an inferior race (not a religion that they
could convert out of), and to replace the word Jew-hatred (Judenhass) so that Jew-
haters could enjoy sounding more sophisticated.
Marr and his colleagues used the term antisemites for themselves as something
to be proud of. They built an organization to advocate discrimination against Jews,
the Antisemites' League. When Marr and his movement designed this term to
degrade a whole people, they couldn't care less that they were using it inaccurately
by designating it for Jews specifically.
Although Jews didn't get to choose the term for their oppression -and
oppressed groups rarely do- over years being attacked by it, they have accepted
the term to describe the historical experience of being targeted for being Jews.
There isn't really one oppression that targets all those who were labeled
“Semites” in a similar way. * It is somewhat misleading to distinguish between Arabs and Jews. Millions of Jews are of Arab (& Persian)
descent, and experience the profiling other Arabs are subject to, as well as racism in the Jewish community. ** But there is a larger oppression that both groups expe-
rience: Orientalism. From the Chinese Exclusion Act and the Third Reich to the
Red Scare and the War on Terror, the "West" has historically targeted Asians,
Arabs and Jews as mysterious, dishonestly and manipulatively intelligent, overly
sensual, warlike, and barbarically loyal to their 'tribe' instead of to humankind. Sources: https://www.aprilrosenblum.com/_files/ugd/4dc342_10d68441b6c44ee0a12909a242074ca6.pdf https://theconversation.com/israels-mosaic-of-jewish-ethnic-groups-is-key-to-understanding-the-country-217893
Thanks, Carolyn for hijacking my post to further your own agenda with the Four "D'"s from the Zionist propaganda playbook.
- Deceive
- Deny
- Deflect
- Distort
Next up, the four "WE's":
- WE are the victims,
- WE are the oppressed,
- WE demand everyone's support (aka: If you're not with us, you're a terrorist),
- WE are the good guys.
"Zionist-influenced media and government"
and
"conspiracy...in global politics"
These are not 'tropes'.
These are FACTS.
Zionism is colonizer White supremacy. FACT: Colonizer White supremacy is a global conspiracy of power.
And to claim Jewish oppression -- to center White pain, to center Jewish pain -- in this period of *literal genocide* of black and brown bodies by White colonizers, is White supremacist gaslighting and racist White violence to the highest degree.
I’ve read this 3x and am going in for a 4th! So much to chew on. Thank YOU!
Thank you for this. I especially resonated w/ these two paragraphs:
"[W]ith so little nuance around what is criticism of Israel and its actions versus the terrifying and genuine Nazism that has found a home in white supremacist circles, [WE ARE UNABLE TO CREATE ALLEGIANCES TO DEFEAT WHAT IS TRULY HARMFUL] and hateful as opposed to what is a reaction to an asymmetric and genocidal, U.S.-funded war on innocent civilians.
"I am in no way arguing that antisemitism doesn’t exist – it most definitely does exist. It is on the rise, and I am afraid of that, too. Afraid for you, and afraid for me. Yet, [IF WE CAN'T PARSE OUT DECADES OF INJUSTICE FROM WHAT IS ACTUAL ANTISEMITISM], I fear that the alliances that have already been frayed or severed may never be restored."
This is the stuff, we need to be willing to have uncomfortable conversations, where right now we are simply in a realm where everyone will be blind because an eye for an eye never ends.
Thank you so much for articulating what I have been struggling to identify.
This is absolutely a must read. So many dots connected here 👏👏👏👏 thank you
I really appreciate you sharing your process and reflections here. We all have so much to learn. I'd like to suggest anyone and everyone concerned about our collective liberation check out this resource (a zine) from a radical pro-Palestinian Jewish activist: https://www.aprilrosenblum.com/_files/ugd/4dc342_10d68441b6c44ee0a12909a242074ca6.pdf
A very honest, vulnerable and powerful piece. Thank you so much ❤️
The bitterest irony of the present moment: the politicians who most speak of being "un-woke", and who allege DEI to be anti-White or anti-European, are the most vociferous in cheerleading the Jewish community into a tendency which promotes the idea that all Jews should relocate to an ancestral homeland because we should never again trust white Europeans!!!
An *absolutely essential* part of this truth is that European and American Jews are racialized as *White*.
Part of the mythology and false narrative in this century-long gaslighting is the persistent and ludicrous denial by European and American Jews that they are "not White because they are Jewish". This allows them to claim all of the tremendous benefits of Whiteness in societies around the world, while also claiming an impervious "victim status" that exempts them from accountability for White supremacist violence and racism. Having their matzoh and eating it too, as it were.
This is true: European and American White Jews were persecuted by European and American White Christians.
This is also true: European and American White Jews AND Christians benefit from global White supremacy and enact racist and colonizer violence everywhere.
Also true: Europeans and Americans in West Asia, North Africa, and Arabia who control land, resources and power are COLONIZERS, regardless of their religion.
Let's awaken from the collective gaslighting that White Jews are oppressed. Antisemitism is real, AND White Jews are not oppressed, AND Israel is a White supremacist colonizer and oppressor.