Israel Matzav

The anti-Semites' useful idiot

On Tuesday, September 11, the city of Frankfurt, Germany will Jew-wash the last vestiges of acknowledged anti-Semitism by presenting its Adorno Prize for excellence in philosophy, music, theater and film to Judith Butler, an American philosopher and anti-Israel activist. The term 'Jew-wash' refers to those Jews who provide cover for anti-Semites by making the same criticisms of Israel and Jews that the anti-Semites themselves make. In other words, one who allows themselves to be used to Jew-wash anti-Semitism might be said to serve as the anti-Semites' useful idiot.

The choice of Ms. Butler is quite controversial, as Richard Landes and Benny Weinthal report in the Wall Street Journal.

The choice of Ms. Butler has been controversial, to say the least. Critics argue that a German city should not honor a woman who virulently condemns the state of Israel, where Buber and so many others fled for shelter from the Nazis. The controversy is the latest in a series of recent strains in the "special relationship" between Germany and Israel: Germany's circumcision bans, Berlin sending submarines to a newly belligerent Egypt, and ugly revelations of German behavior in the Munich Olympics terror attack.

Felix Semmelroth, a deputy mayor of Frankfurt, insists that the award committee recognized Ms. Butler's academic work alone, and that the political issues did not even arise. He says the "incriminating evidence" about her politics will not change the decision.

But the controversy has proved vexing. Germany's central council of Jews and Frankfurt's Jewish community have openly objected, saying they will not participate in the ceremony. Frankfurt Mayor Peter Feldmann, the first Jew to hold that office since the Holocaust, announced that he has travel plans that will prevent him from appearing. Jacques Schuster, a journalist with Die Welt, pulled out of moderating a discussion with Ms. Butler later this month at the Jewish Museum in Berlin.

Those who chose Ms. Butler to win the prize argue in favor of separating her academics from her politics. Alas, that's just not possible.

Her theory views Western civilization as a peculiarly sinister form of imperial domination, and believes that "subverting" that "hegemony" constitutes an act of liberation. Postcolonial theory tells her that Israelis are imperialists, using apartheid laws to oppress Palestinian "subalterns." Her interpretation of diasporic Judaism tells her that Jews should "oppose violence of all kinds, including state violence."

Therefore she favors dismantling the Jewish state as we know it, in favor of "multi-cultural co-habitation," reminiscent of Buber's "bi-national democratic state." In her latest book, "Parting Ways: Jewishness and the Critique of Zionism," she nods to the prodigious forces of hatred and intolerance militating against her solution: "It may be that binationalism is an impossibility, but that mere fact does not suffice as a reason to be against it."

Would that Ms. Butler contented herself with abstruse publications. She is also a highly vociferous public critic of Israel. Participating in an "Anti-War Teach-In" at Berkeley in 2006, Ms. Butler answered a question about Hamas's and Hezbollah's place "in the global left." These are two of the most belligerent movements within the warmongering, anti-Semitic, homophobic and misogynistic world of Islamist jihad. Yet while criticizing violence and "certain dimensions of both movements," Ms. Butler told the students that "understanding Hamas [and] Hezbollah as social movements that are progressive, that are on the left, that are part of a global left, is extremely important."

Maybe if Hannah Rosenthal doesn't continue as the State Department envoy on anti-Semitism in a second Obama term, the White House could consider appointing Butler instead. Butler would fit right in with the Obama administration's culture.

Read the whole thing.

Professor Landes has a much lengthier and more personal rebuke to Butler here.

Labels: Germany, Hannah Rosenthal, Jewish anti-Semitism, Judith Butler

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 11:42 AM 1 comments

Who knows more about Islam: Gutman or the Saudis?

Last week, US Ambassador to Belgium Howard Gutman said that anti-Semitism is caused by Israeli policies toward the 'Palestinians.' Omri Ceren writes that Gutman may want to check that claim with the State Department.

Now it could be the textbooks’ Muslim authors just don’t understand Islam as deeply as does Gutman, and so they misunderstand the nature and sources of religiously-grounded Muslim anti-Semitism. Still, just on the off-chance they know something about Islamist ideology that Gutman has overlooked, he might do well to get a couple of copies from the State Department. Hannah Rosenthal​, State’s envoy for combating anti-Semitism, has been complaining fruitlessly about them, so Foggy Bottom probably has some spares lying around.

Interestingly, Rosenthal has expressed herself particularly frustrated by Arab leaders who tried to move discussions over anti-Semitism toward the Israeli-Arab conflict.

Read the whole thing.

Labels: Hannah Rosenthal, Howard Gutman, Muslim anti-Semitism, our friends the Saudis

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:17 PM 0 comments

State Department gives MEMRI $200,000

MEMRI has received a $200,000 grant from the US State Department.

“The Department of State’s Office of International Religious Freedom in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor awarded a $200,000 grant to the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) to conduct a project that documents anti-Semitism, Holocaust denial and Holocaust glorification in the Middle East. This grant will enable MEMRI to expand its efforts to monitor the media, translate materials into ten languages, analyze trends in anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial and glorification, and increase distribution of materials through its website and other outlets.”

Hats off to the Department and especially to the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism, Hannah Rosenthal. I must acknowledge a special interest here: I sit on MEMRI’s board, and am a member of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council. It is noteworthy that the grant, by referring to Holocaust denial, clarifies that this is a form of anti-Semitism. These topics are extremely sensitive, dealing as they do with Muslim anti-Semitism, and this helps explain why the U.S. Government has sometimes shied away from confronting the phenomenon.

For this reason as well, the new grant announced by Ms. Rosenthal deserves notice and commendation.

As someone who has been critical of Rosenthal, I agree with Elliott Abrams (who posted this to his blog). Hats off to her indeed. This is great.

Labels: Hannah Rosenthal, MEMRI, US State Department

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:54 AM 4 comments

Hannah Rosenthal and US efforts to combat anti-Semitism

Jennifer Rubin does a very thorough interview with Hannah Rosenthal, the State Department's special envoy to combat anti-Semitism. I had the sense that Jennifer was biting her tongue throughout this interview to avoid nasty comments. But here is the bottom line:

One can't help but wonder if she wouldn't be more valuable back in her advocacy role. Certainly, she'd be demanding results and decrying equivalence between Islamaphobia and anti-Semitism. I was struck by her passion, her energy and her travel schedule (rivaling George Mitchell in frequent flyer miles). And still, it seems the White House isn't terribly engaged on the issue. For if the president is not raising the issue with leaders, not giving speeches in the countries where problem exists, and not employing tangible carrots and sticks to impact the conduct of governments, the U.S. really has no effective policy to combat anti-Semitism.

Read the whole thing.

Labels: anti-Semitism, Hannah Rosenthal

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 10:40 PM 2 comments