Leveraging Jewish identity to gain progressive credibility.
Ezra Klein’s recent New York Times op-ed analyzed the “divide in Jewish community’s views on Israel.” There’s one major problem with this piece. Klein, like many prominent Jewish voices on the left, leverages his Jewish identity to gain progressive credibility while fundamentally misrepresenting the Jewish-American community he claims to speak for. People like Klein, and the Jewish Currents sources he quotes, present a distorted picture of where American Jews actually stand, not because they lack data, but because they have an anti-Zionist agenda and representing mainstream Jewish views would cost them social capital within progressive circles.
This is tokenism. Peter Beinart’s career, the editor-at-large of Jewish Currents and one of the sources quoted in Klein’s piece, is emblematic of the voices in this space. His journey from liberal Zionist to anti-Zionist advocate wasn’t driven by new facts on the ground, but by the recognition that abandoning Zionism opened doors to progressive stardom. People like Beinart become “good Jews” in the eyes of progressives. They provide cover for anti-Israel sentiment by offering “As a Jew” stamp of approval. It’s not a coincidence George Soros’ Open Society Foundation is a major donor of Jewish Currents.
Left wing media outlets, like The New York Times, cherry-pick voices exclusively from the far-left fringe because those are the only Jewish voices their audiences want to hear. At the Emmys, actress Hannah Einbinder, speaking to a choir of progressive supporters, used her acceptance speech and red-carpet interview to share “I feel like it is my obligation as a Jewish person to distinguish Jews from the state of Israel.” Einbinder and Beinart’s views are anathema to the voices in synagogues across America, Jewish Federations, Jewish community centers, and Shabbat tables. They represent an academic and activist bubble that has discovered Jewish identity becomes valuable currency in progressive spaces when deployed against the interests of the State of Israel, the indigenous homeland of the Jewish people.
The “divided Jewish community” is a distortion of reality. A recent Pew Research Center survey found that 73% of American Jews hold favorable views of Israel. While they may disagree on specific policies, they remain steadfast in their support of the State of Israel, understanding that Zionism, the belief that Jews deserve self-determination in their ancestral homeland, remains integral to Jewish identity and survival. In addition, in light of the sharp rise in antisemitism worldwide, many in the Jewish American community believe that securing the Jewish future depends on a strong state of Israel.
Throughout history, when external pressure mounts and antisemitism rises, Jews often unite. A poll conducted last year, shows that 57% of American Jews reported feeling more connected to Israel or their Jewish identity after October 7 than before. The tokenized anti-Zionists voices are exceptions. Following his op-ed, Klein even interviewed notorious antisemite Mahmoud Khalil. In the interview, among many ahistorical and absurd statements, Mahmoud justifies the attacks of October 7th . Klein hardly even pushed back.
Many far-left Jews naively believe Jewish safety and security depends on self-criticism and distance from Zionism. Since her Emmys appearance, Einbinder has taken to Instagram to embrace double down on her “anti-Zionism.” This same mentality led some German Jews in the 1930s to believe assimilation and criticism of fellow Jews would bring acceptance. History shows otherwise. Regardless of how much Jews tried to blend in or appease critics, they were still seen as Jews, actually as weak and vulnerable Jews, when it mattered. Antisemites made no distinction between assimilated and traditional, between critics and supporters of Zionism. --->READ MORE HERE
If you like what you see, please "Like" and/or Follow us on FACEBOOK here, GETTR here, and TWITTER here.
No comments:
Post a Comment