On Jewish Anti-Semitism

Representative Ilhan Omar is an anti-Semite. She was raised on the mother’s milk of anti-Semitism in Somalia. Representative Rashida Tlaib is also an anti-Semite. She was raised on the mother’s milk of anti-Semitism in the Palestinian community. They both hate Jews and Israelis and have said as much many times.

            This is not controversial. Almost everyone in the US is aware of their attitudes. Not just ordinary Americans know this, but politicians do as well. This includes Jewish politicians. 

            The question is: What are we going to do about his uptick in anti-Semitism? We know what Nancy Pelosi decided to do. She decided to do nothing. Instead of condemning it in the House of Representatives, she decided to do nothing. Instead of condemning it in the House of Representatives, she elected to pursue party unity.  She absolutely refused to identify the squad as doing something wrong.

What has received far less attention is that Chuck Schumer has said nothing. Here is a New York Jew who is leader of the senate Democrats and it is as if he has lost his voice. He too seems to favor party unity over the defense of his fellow American Jews and the Israelis. 

My sister who lives in New Jersey tells me that the Chuck Schumer disease seems to be very prevalent in her neck of the woods. The vast majority of her friends and relatives- including many of the Orthodox community- are also refusing to speak up about liberal anti-Semitism. What is this about?

Actually, my sister came up with what I think is the correct explanation. She reminded me of how German Jews responded when Hitler came to power. Instead of resisting him and the Nazis, they attempted to cooperate. In other words, they ignored his anti-Semitism and sought to help people who hated them. 

How could they have done this? As my sister reminded me, they thought of themselves more as Germans than as Jews. Their goal was to demonstrate that even though they were Jews, they were really good Germans. 

We are seeing the same thing today by liberal Jews. These folks think of themselves more as liberals than as Jews. Their goal is to prove that they are good liberals wherever cockamamie directions the progressives go. 

This a common human phenomenon. We saw it among communists during the 1930’s. The instant Stalin switched from opposing Hitler to making a treaty with him, many of the Communist Party switched their attitudes en masse. They didn’t think about it. They simply took the orthodox position without considering the consequences. 

This sort of idiocy is endemic to the current condition. People have adopted all sorts of ideas inimical to this situation in order to remain faithful to the community to which they perceive themselves to belong. 

This is a formula for suicide. Ignoring self-interests puts an entire community in jeopardy. Those who are producing this mayhem may not realize it, but this does not reduce the damage done by their foolishness. 

I began this column by talking about Jews, but I am not just talking about Jews. This sort of absurdity is on display among liberals of every ethnic and religious persuasion despite the nonsense being spouted by Democratic candidates for president.  They jump on the bandwagon to confirm their liberal credentials. 

These people are destroying democracy! Consider this: in opening our borders they want to let in hundreds of millions of people to flood into every corner of our country. By saying this is legal, they are preparing the way for them to vote in our elections. If so, it won’t be long before they dominate the political direction we are going. 

Some may say these non-Americans have an interest in the decisions our politicians make. That is true, but is that reason to hand them the keys to our nation? Other folks also have an interest. The Chinese certainly do. The Europeans do as well. So do all the folks in Africa. Actually, I guess everyone in the world does. 

So here is my modest proposal. Let everyone in the world vote in American elections. Citizenship should not be an issue. It is jingoistic. 

Once upon a time American citizenship was considered sacred. No democracy can survive unless citizens continue to believe it is sacred. We Americans have a responsibility for protecting our citizens. Sacrificing that for the sake of non-Americans who are living wretched lives in fact hurts not only Americans but those outside for whom we grieve at risk. America first should not just be a slogan.  

Melvyn L. Fein, Ph.D.

Professor Emeritus of Sociology

Kennesaw State University