Reading List: Jews, Israel, and More Anti-Semitism

       Following my post from early August, Europe's—Specifically France's—Anti-Semitism Is Disturbing and Scary, I've talked with many people about Anti-Semitism and Israel. Some have been enlightening conversations that have really made me think. Is it okay to write off entire cities because of the disgusting violence of extremists? Does saying I don't want to visit parts of Europe mean they have won? 
       As it always is, some have been frustrating conversations but I won't go into those. However, below I have linked four very different articles along with excerpts from them. These articles have to do with anti-Semitism but also address Israel. They are must-read pieces for those who want to know more about this, are uncertain of the legitimacy of my claims, or are conflicted on their views of Israel just as I am. These articles don't just summarize events/incidents; they address the complicated relationships many Jews have with Israel, the new forms of anti-Semitism and other fascinating parts of this complicated topic. I even included a Wall Street Journal piece. 

Why Americans See Israel the Way They Do: (The Times, August 2)

"In the United States, by contrast, support for Israel remains strong (although less so among the young, who are most exposed to the warring hashtags of social media). That support is overwhelming in political circles. Palestinian suffering remains near taboo in Congress. It is not only among American Jews, better organized and more outspoken than their whispering European counterparts, that the story of a nation of immigrants escaping persecution and rising from nowhere in the Holy Land resonates. The Israeli saga — of courage and will — echoes in American mythology, far beyond religious identification, be it Jewish or evangelical Christian."

Why Jews Are Worried: Deborah E. Lipstadt on the Rising Anti-Semitism in Europe (The Times, August 20)

"The rationales — 'it’s just rhetoric,' 'it’s just Muslims;' — bother me almost as much as the outrages. Instead of explaining away these actions, cultural, religious and academic leaders in all the countries where these events have occurred should be shaken to the core, not just about the safety of their Jewish neighbors, but about the future of the seemingly liberal, enlightened societies they belong to. Yet when a Hamas spokesman recently stood by his statement that Jews used the blood of non-Jewish children for their matzos — one of the oldest anti-Semitic canards around — European elites were largely silent."

It's Britain, So the Anti-Semitism Is More Refined: Cutting and pasting the old prejudice of Jews as infanticidal global masterminds onto Israel (Wall Street Journal, August 15). Because you have to subscribe to see this, I linked to a PDF copy. Not sure if that's kosher.

"What has been most striking about the British response to the Gaza conflict is the extent to which all the things that were once said about Jews are now said about Israel. Everywhere, from the spittle-flecked newspaper commentary to angry street protests, the old view of Jews as infanticidal masterminds of global affairs has been cut-and-pasted onto Israel."

Enough Hate for Everyone: Muslims and Jews Are Targets of Bigotry in Europe (The Times, August 21) 

"What the incident revealed was that many anti-Semitic ideas have become such an acceptable part of the liberal view on Israel that they are barely seen as such anymore. They have become almost invisible."