Last week, while speaking at a conference on antisemitism organized by the European Jewish Union (EJU), the American ambassador to Belgium Howard Gutman (who happens to be Jewish) made some very disturbing statements regarding antisemitism.
Mr. Gutman explained that we should make a clear distinction between the old racially motivated antisemitism and the new antisemitism that he believes is “…a tension and perhaps even a hatred, largely born of and reflecting the tensions between Israel, the Palestinian territories and and neighboring Arabs states in the middle-East over the continuing Israeli-Palestinian problem.”
So, racial antisemitism (also labelled “traditional antisemitism” by Gutman) is no longer acceptable, so much so that when the old beast shows its head again, the world should be outraged. So far so good Mr. Gutman. We should let the world unite against antisemtism, xenophobia and any kind of racism. I’m in favor of that of course, who wouldn’t be?
But wait, there is more! It seems that “traditional antisemitism” or Antisemitism 1.0 just got a major upgrade. Antisemitism 2.0 is just out. It’s better, faster, stronger and much more damaging. Racial antisemitism is so….20th Century!
According to Mr. Gutman, Antisemitism 2.0, also known as “anti-Israelism” or “anti-Zionsm” is the result of Israel’s conflict with the Palestinians, but when looking for the guilty party, we should only consider Israel the perpetrator!
Mr. Gutman’s believes that Antisemitism 2.0 is justified because its has a cause. The cause being Israel’s “stubborn criminal colonialism” in Palestine. Arab Muslims have the right to be antisemitic because after all they are the “victims”. And remember, they don’t hate the Jews just because they are Jews ( that would be Antisemitism 1.0). They only defend themselves against the oppressor in Israel, I mean “Palestine” or do they?
The terminology might have changed, but the meaning remains the same.
The target might have a different name, but the goal remains the same.
If Mr. Gutman really believes that the end of the middle-East conflict and of Arab Antisemitism are contingent on Israel’s declaring peace and giving away the Land, he is greatly mistaken. Under Antisemitism 2.0 Jews are at risk worldwide no matter how remote they might be from Israel, the settlements and the land.
When Nazis killed 6,000,000 Jews during World War II, the world didn’t go on a witch hunt to kill all Germans. While Saddam Hussein was a butcher only equaled by a few others like Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, civilized people didn’t start rounding up all Iraqis and Iranians to destroy them, because of the guilt of a few. Why? Because the world was able to separate the corrupted from the the decent people.
Yet, when it comes to Israel, the standards are different. Simply put, today when Israel makes a move, all of world Jewry is exposed. God forbid that Israel would make a decision that appears unjust or humiliating to the Palestinians, then it is open season on the Jews of the world. That would be of course, assuming that Israel is even wrong to start with when it comes to her biblical right to the Land.
German attorney Nathan Gelbart, present at the Belgium Conference understood this very well when in response to self-loathing Jew Gutman, he said: “For no other country he would criticize or ask to boycott its goods or academics. And this for one simple reason: Because Israel is the state of the Jewish people, not more and not less.” .
No other country in history has ever been plagued by this disease. This deep-rooted hatred of the Jews is a spiritual weed whose seed was planted by Satan himself.
Antisemitism might be given a new name, it remains the hatred of Jewish people simply because they are Jewish with the ultimate goal of eradicating all Jews from the planet. Evil doesn’t come in different shades when it comes to kill innocent people, it is just plain evil. period!
I am deeply saddened by Mr. Gutman’s statement about my people. I also find it ironic that I am often accused of being a traitor, a renegade and even a self-loathing Jew because I have put my trust in Yeshua (Jesus) as my Messiah (Isaiah 52:13-53-12; John 1:12; John 5:24). But at the end of the day, there is nothing more Jewish than to believe in the Jewish Messiah and there is nothing less Jewish than to accuse our people of being the source for antisemitism. Shame on you Mr. Gutman!
Note: The White House quickly distanced itself from Mr. Gutman’s statement who himself also later apologized for his words. Yet the damage is done and the symptom is of a real disease that must be eradicated.
Great insight, my friend. I’m appalled that more are not exposing this.
“No other country in history has ever been plagued by this disease. This deep-rooted hatred of the Jews is a spiritual weed whose seed was planted by Satan himself.”
“When Nazis killed 6,000,000 Jews during World War II, the world didn’t go on a witch hunt to kill all Germans.”
Great points