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"I fear that there will no longer be 'special' relations between the US and Israel. The state of affairs becomes more difficult year by year" | Israel Today

2022-11-25T21:56:44.062Z


David Bernstein, CEO of the Jewish Institute for Liberal Values, believes that the attitude towards Jews depends on the question of "whether the ideological madness will continue" • In an interview, he recounts the results of a survey showing a decrease in sympathy for Israel • and warns: "We must not reach a situation where Jewish-Americans are dispossessed at the basic level. It might become commonplace."


David Bernstein


, CEO of the Jewish Institute for Liberal Values,


served as President and CEO of the Jewish Council on Public Relations.

Author of the book "The Rise of Anti-Semitism: How Progressive Ideology Hurts the Jews".

Lives in Washington

David Bernstein, in your book "The Rise of Anti-Semitism: How Progressive Ideology Hurts the Jews" you talk about your concern about the situation in the USA and the strengthening of anti-Israel trends in the progressive left in the USA.

What are you actually worried about, and how does that ideology hurt the Jews?


"It hurts the Jews in several ways: First, it treats Jews as part of the dominant, oppressive class, which shares white supremacy. Second, it erases Jewish identity by insisting that Jews are, so to speak, white people. Third, it creates a condition of resistance among Americans to Israel, in that it perceives you in a narrow and binary prism of oppressor and oppressed. Do you understand? Israel is supposedly the oppressor because it is seen as stronger than the Palestinians. The fourth point is that this ideology polarizes our politics and undermines our democratic values.


"The more America becomes out of control, crazy if you will, the more vulnerable the Jewish community becomes. The last thing is that this ideology undermines Jewish pride among the younger generation of Jews, who actually learn to see themselves as partners in white supremacy."

What is actually that ideology of youth (WOKE), about which you speak?


"Youth ideology, from the language of awakening, entails two core principles: according to the first, the bias towards Jews is not only a matter of personal attitude but is embedded in the structures and systems of society. Second, only those who have lived under oppression can define what it is for the rest of the population. The second idea is actually used To sabotage the discourse, because you have no right to take part in the discussion if you have not experienced oppression."

This ideology and similar ones actually pose a risk on both sides of the political map.

What is the difference between the threat from the right and the threat from the left, and who should the Jews be more worried about?


"The extreme right in American politics is a physical danger to the Jewish community. The extreme right has weapons, and it threatens the security and well-being of the residents. The extreme left is a political and social danger to the Jewish community. It threatens to deny the rights of American Jews in American society."

But we also see a social danger on the right.


"True. For example, the right has what is loosely translated as the 'replacement theory.'

It's an ideology that hurts Jews, on the right."

"The attitude towards Jews depends on whether the current ideological frenzy will continue. If it continues and if Americans become even more polarized and extreme, Jews will feel more at risk; if we see stabilization, I believe that American Jews will manage."

You describe the threat from the right as "heart attack", while the threat from the left you describe as "cancer".

explain


"The 'heart attack' metaphor holds that the extreme right is a tangible and present danger. It has the purpose of undermining American democracy, harming the stability of society and threatening Jewish-Americans. The 'cancer' metaphor holds that teenage ideology, in a slow but sure way, corrupts politics and society and The sense of place and belonging of the Jewish community in America".

The era of polarization

In order to better understand the metaphors you brought up, it is important to understand the sources of anti-Semitism on the left.

I'm not convinced they are quite clear to the public.


"Anti-Semitism from the left arises as a result of the post-colonial experience, according to which more powerful countries oppress less powerful countries. It is also based on Marxist thought, and has become a more acute threat in the last three years since the murder of George Floyd.

"The problem with left-wing anti-Semitism is that it is sometimes not so obvious. It disguises itself as opposition to Zionism and the delegitimization of Israel, as well as in the language of social justice, such as using the words 'power' and 'privilege'. It is not the same smoking gun as anti-Semitism on the right." So, for example, in the Muslim world

We are not just saying there is Muslim anti-Semitism;

We trace its ideological origins - to Islamism, to the ideology of jihad, to the idea of ​​infidelity.

When we talk about antisemitism on the left, however, we often talk about a symptom without a cause, as if it came from outer space and landed here one day.

But in practice, we have long had anti-Semitism on the left, we saw it in the Soviet Union in the form of anti-Zionism - but this too was embedded in an extreme left-wing totalitarian ideology.

"The left-wing anti-Semitism that we see undermines the position of Jews in society. It keeps Jews away from politics, it does not allow Jews to participate in coalitions for social justice, it brings over time the idea that Jews are a privileged class in society and partners in white supremacy, as mentioned. That is why it works completely differently, it It depletes support for Israel and reduces the chance that people will support the Jewish state in the long term."

You mentioned the smoking gun on the right side.

explain


"Anti-Semitism on the right is a real and present danger. It can serve people with guns to murder people, as happened in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, at the synagogue in Squirrel Hill. The man who murdered 11 Jews in Squirrel Hill did it because he thought Jews were helping bring illegal immigrants into the United States, and that he must act immediately to stop it.

So this is an example of a real danger in the present.

"Anti-Semitism on the left is sometimes not so obvious. It hides itself as opposition to Zionism and the delegitimization of Israel, as well as in the language of social justice. It undermines the position of Jews in society. It is not a smoking gun like anti-Semitism from the extreme right."

"There is good reason to be afraid of the American right, and many Jews are indeed afraid. It's like Sharansky wrote in the introduction to my book: 'The role of the Jew is not to join forces with the ideologies of the time, but to stand for independent thought and the liberal principles on which the world's democracies were founded.'"

Following the example you gave that anti-Semitism is real and present, the Anti-Defamation League also backs things up.

According to her data, Jews in the US are experiencing anti-Semitic incidents at the highest rate in 40 years. Why is this happening?


"America and the West have become extraordinarily polarized.

There has been a breakdown in the common narrative and shared image of American society.

In such an environment, people yearn for simple ideologies and dogmas that explain the world and give it meaning.

Some are drawn to extremes.

These extreme ideologies, whether from the right or from the left, are almost always anti-Semitic in essence."

Are you bothered by the different trends you predict?


"What is happening now is that the ideology of youth is taking over institutions at a much higher and faster rate, especially in English-speaking countries such as Great Britain, Canada, New Zealand or Australia. In general, Americans have a greater tendency to support democracy in the Middle East; this is a kind of evidence of a fighting spirit that is permanent in the identity American and national identity, but unfortunately it is changing these days.

"Just recently we published a survey in which we saw the decline in sympathy for Israel. The harsh narrative, according to which Israel is a colonial state, is gaining momentum. This does not happen overnight, and still about 30 percent of the Democrats see Israel as a colonial and settler state, and not a state that defends itself from hostile forces. This is good news and bad news. It shows that two-thirds of Democrats still understand that Israel lives in a tough neighborhood. Many admire the Jewish state. But it also shows the worrisome potential that more Democrats will see Israel differently, and it also depends on how America and Israel develop ".

rebuild the center

The situation you describe is troubling on certain levels, and you also referred to it during your participation last week in a strategic conference on Israel-US relations, initiated by the Raut Institute, the Israel Institute for Economic Planning and the Institute for National Security Studies. How does the current constellation affect Israel's national security?


"When the ideology of Adolescence takes a toll on the way America sees itself, it will also affect US-Israel relations. America, which sees itself as an oppressive country, will hesitate to use force in the world and will show less willingness to protect its allies. In doing so, it risks the rise of people to power in various countries around the world Hostile to democracy, and certainly to the US-Israel alliance.

"We published a survey in which we saw the decline in sympathy for Israel. The narrative according to which Israel is a colonial state is gaining momentum. About 30 percent of Democrats see Israel as a settler state, and not a state that defends itself against hostile forces. This is a worrying potential."

"So far this ideology has taken hold in the English-speaking world. I saw evidence and signs of this ideology in Tel Aviv, but I don't think Israelis are sensitive to it and its existence as strongly as Americans do."

What can Israel do about it?


"Formal Israel needs to understand this ideology, the way it affects it, and not be dependent only on the US.

That is, not believing that Israel-US relations will be tomorrow what they are today. I want to prevent that, but we also have to be realistic. If this ideology continues its long march through our institutions - we are going to be in trouble in five, ten, 15 , 20 years. We should also be prepared for this type of scenario."


In practice, how do you expect

Israel-US relations to look in the coming years?

Atidii will not side with Israel in the UN or vote for it in the UN Security Council. I fear that Israel will not be able to trust America in times of war, as it has in the past. I don't know if America is more radical than in the past, but it is definitely more radical in I witnessed every other point of it during my life."

What can Israel and the US do to deal with anti-Semitism and radical ideologies?


"It is important for American Jews and their allies to rebuild the center of American politics.

I define a center as people who embrace democratic values, and are not attracted and surrender to radical ideologies, because of one side of the political map.

They love America and celebrate the pluralism that exists in it.

They do not see America as fundamentally oppressive.

We need to strengthen this core in America."

How might the new government in Israel affect US-Israel relations?


"If the new government is perceived as embracing radical forces or racist politics, this will harm Israel's standing in the Democratic Party and among American Jews."

Is Netanyahu's return to power a challenge or an opportunity for Israel-US relations?


"It may not matter much, and it mainly depends on how the government will act, and alternatively - if there is a conflict with the Palestinians or with Iran.

Netanyahu is not particularly popular on the American left, but it will be a real influential factor only in the event of a significant drama or if, for example, the Middle East catches fire for one reason or another."

"A threat I have never seen before"

From all of your words, I get the feeling that there may be a certain fear in being a Jew in the US today. Is that so?


"It is important to remember that America is still one of the freest countries in the world, and a great place to be a Jew.

Most of the time, and in most parts of it, Jews have nothing to fear.

Most American Jews love America.

It gives them a feeling of home and gives them a sense of belonging.

But this feeling can be damaged when radical ideologies enter the picture.

Jews succeed in liberal and open societies and less so in closed societies.

We have an interest in preserving the institutions of democracy in the US, which are subject to a threat I have not seen in my lifetime. I don't think enough people understand that."

How will the treatment of Jews look in the coming years?


"It depends on whether the current ideological frenzy will continue or fade away. If it continues, and if the Americans become even more polarized and extreme, the Jews will feel more and more at risk; if we see stabilization and America regains its sense of identity, I believe that American Jews will be fine."

In some of the possible domino scenarios you describe, which part might be hit first - the attitude towards Israel or the attitude towards the Jewish community in the US?


"The attitude towards Israel.

It is easier to condemn Israel and treat it as the representative of the Jews than to actually harm the Jews, so I think that relations with Israel are more vulnerable in the immediate term.

On the other hand, it doesn't take long for political forces to organize in ways that can harm American Jews, and this can certainly happen just as happened recently at the University of Berkeley: American Jews were rejected from coalitions on the left and political coalitions.

This could become more common over time, meaning that American Jews feel dispossessed at a fundamental level.

We must not get into such a situation."

For suggestions and comments: Ranp@israelhayom.co.il

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Source: israelhayom

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