> > I would agree that to refer to Jews as a race is indeed problematic.  But

> > think it is important in our academic and activist work to link anti-Semit

> > and racism as the oppressive ideologies that they are, regardless of who i

> > the victim of this kind of hate.

>

> I think you're making my point, Steve, by *wanting* to adopt the

> language of the bigots.  Why should Jews stand for the equation of

> racism and anti-Semitism just because the Other is socially constructed?

 

There's a distinction between wanting to adopt the language of the bigots, and

wanting to counter the rhetoric and ideology that oppresses Jews just like it

oppresses others.  Have you made that distinction?

 

I'm not sure I'm equating anti-Semitism with racism--linking, the word I used,

is more appropriate.  But I wonder what your motives are for implanting that

word into this discussion.

 

> Would women accept an equation of anti-feminism and racism?  Would

> the elderly accept an equation of agism and racism?  I think, especially

> among thoughtful people, we can point out similarities in construction

> and effect without having to invoke the political charge of "racism."

 

I can't speak for _all_ women, or _all_ elderly.  But I do know that people

don't fit into socially-prescribed cubbyholes.  Some women of color find it

very easy to link their feminism with fighting racism.  Some Jewish women find

the convergence of anti-Semitism and misogyny all too apparent with a term

like JAP (Jewish American Princess).  Some elderly people of color would

surely recognize the similarities between being discriminated against because

of age and being discriminated against because of their color, and would

surely use that knowledge to empower themselves in the fight against

oppression.

 

In Melanie Kaye/Kantrowitz's "10 Hotspots for Anti-Semitism," she specifically

asks whether anti-Semitism is "a form of racism?  You can argue this from many

perspectives . . .  What's important to recognize are the implications of the

argument.  If you maintain that racism and anti-Semitism are entirely

separate, are you prioritizing, ranking anti-Semitism as a less serious issue

than racism of any sort?  If you argue that they're the same, are you excusing

Jews from fighting racism against others on the grounds that fighting

anti-Semitism is enough?  The real question of course is not into what box,

what category, do we fit anti-Semitism, but--since we know the struggles

against racism and anti-Semitism are close linked--how do we fight and who are

our allies?"

 

The charge of equating anti-Semitism with racism evidences what you make

manifest in your last sentence--that anti-Semitism is serious enough to be

dealt with on its own terms.  In a way, this does a little of both of what

Melanie is talking about.  It keeps racism and anti-Semitism separate, and it

excuses Jews from fighting racism on the grounds that fighting anti-Semitism

is enough.

 

The need to link racism and anti-Semitism becomes all the more apparent in the

way the media portrays Black-Jewish relations.  As Melanie writes,

"Popular media foster and exaggerate

Black-Jewish conflict, a displacement in which Jews get blamed for American

racism and poverty, and Blacks get blamed for American anti-Semitism.  When

Jewish and Black concerns are polarized in this way, Jewish concerns will

always seem a little selfish, for the framework highlights Jewish privilege,

power, immunity from racism relative to Black people, and also obscures Black

strength . . . and significant common ground: the threat of garden variety

white racism."

 

I'm curious what others think of this latter statement, particularly in the

way in which media portrays anti-Semitism and racism.

 

Steve Carr

Dept. of Radio-TV-Film

UT-Austin