Vice President Kamala Harris is set to denounce the singling out of Israel “because of anti-Jewish hatred” in a speech at the Anti-Defamation League’s annual Never Is Now conference.“Three years ago, we suffered the most deadly attack on the American Jewish community in the history of our nation at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,” Harris will say, according to prepared remarks Harris’s office released ahead of her appearance at the virtual conference on Sunday evening. “And I want to be very clear about this: When Jews are targeted because of their beliefs or their identity, when Israel is singled out because of anti-Jewish hatred that is anti-Semitism. And that is unacceptable.”
Is there any more obvious statement than "when Israel is singled out because of anti-Jewish hatred that is anti-Semitism"? It is a truism - when anything is singled out because of anti-Jewish hatred it is antisemitism!
Saying that anti-Jewish hatred is antisemitism isn't a brilliant insight. It is a tautology.
This statement would never be contested by the modern antisemites of the Left, who claim that their obsessive and malicious targeting of Israel as "colonialist," "apartheid," "racist" and so forth are legitimate criticism, while never using those terms about any other nation who are obviously truly guilty of them.
Palestinian Jew-haters would never publicly admit that their hate for Israel has anything to do with Jews, even when they freely talk about their hate in Arabic .
The media, the UN, NGOs, the old Soviet Union, Hamas, Louis Farrakhan, Al Qaeda - they all have claimed that they have no problem with all Jews, just Israel and Zionists (who deserve being hated.) They would all publicly agree with Harris' statement.
They aren't singling out Israel because of anti-Jewish hatred. Oh, no, how can you even think that? No, they single out Israel because to them Israel is truly a uniquely evil entity that must be destroyed, alone among every nation on the planet. Their hate for Israel is righteous, not bigoted.
Harris says nothing to disagree.
The only people who admit that their hatred of Israel is prompted by Jew-hate are neo-Nazis. And even they would happily agree that their antisemitism is behind their hatred of Israel.
Harris' statement is an utterly meaningless bromide. It is nothing but applause bait - and you can be sure that when she says "and that is unacceptable!" her voice will rise, she will pause, and the audience will cheer her for her bravery at saying something as trite as hate is bad.
As such, unless she clarifies it during her speech, this isn't a positive statement that combats hate - it is a coded statement that justifies hate as long as the haters can hide behind an excuse of "legitimate criticism."
Which they always do.
I don't consider Harris to be an antisemite by any means. But if this is all she says on the topic of antisemitism masquerading as anti-Zionism, she is giving a gift to the modern Jew-haters.
Her speech doesn't combat antisemitism. It promotes it - as long as the haters call it something else.
