Adopting exceptionalism, the major Jewish lobbies no longer sought to advance general principles of tolerance, non-discrimination or equal treatment before the law. Instead they sought narrow preferential treatment for Jews and for Israel that recognises a special status they would deny to other minorities in the American body politic.
Jewish lobbies such as the Anti-Defamation League and American Israel Public Affairs Committee cut loose from the broader civil rights coalition to go their own way in promoting Jewish and Israeli interests in the political process. Secretly they also mounted campaigns to suppress and harass Arab and Muslim Americans to deny them a voice in the discussion of Middle East issues and development of American foreign policies. The Jewish Defense League engaged in a campaign of terrorism in the United States that largely targeted Arab Americans and their supporters.
The attitude of exceptionalism says "it’s okay if you’re a Jew" or "it’s okay if you are Israel". When this is questioned, allegations of anti-semitism and invocations of the Holocaust are quick to follow. As a result I would suggest that it is exceptionalism that fuels anti-semitism as frustration with the "it’s okay" attitude gets expressed as antipathy to all Jews or to the state of Israel.
It is exceptionalism that grates and raises hackles even among Jews themselves. Rejection of exceptionalism by liberal Jews and Israelis who embrace more universalist principles has led the powerful Jewish lobbies to lately charge that liberal Jews who criticise them or Israel are themselves anti-Semitic.
I will defend universal principles of freedom of religious observance. I will defend universal principles of equality of opportunity in education and employment. I will defend universal principles of equality before the law.
I will not defend – and consider indefensible – exceptionalism that elevates Jews above other ethnicities or faiths or Israel above other nations or peoples.
In Britain a new group, Independent Jewish Voices, has formed explicitly to redress the failure of existing Jewish lobbies to represent the liberal beliefs of most Jews. Its principles are principles that we would recognise from an earlier era as promoting universal tolerance and equality.
We have therefore resolved to promote the expression of alternative Jewish voices, particularly in respect of the grave situation in the Middle East, which threatens the future of both Israelis and Palestinians as well as the stability of the whole region. We are guided by the following principles:
- Human rights are universal and indivisible and should be upheld without exception. This is as applicable in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories as it is elsewhere.
- Palestinians and Israelis alike have the right to peaceful and secure lives.
- Peace and stability require the willingness of all parties to the conflict to comply with international law.
- There is no justification for any form of racism, including anti-Semitism, anti-Arab racism or Islamophobia, in any circumstance.
- The battle against anti-Semitism is vital and is undermined whenever opposition to Israeli government policies is automatically branded as anti-Semitic.
These principles are contradicted when those who claim to speak on behalf of Jews in Britain and other countries consistently put support for the policies of an occupying power above the human rights of an occupied people. The Palestinian inhabitants of the West Bank and Gaza Strip face appalling living conditions with desperately little hope for the future. We declare our support for a properly negotiated peace between the Israeli and Palestinian people and oppose any attempt by the Israeli government to impose its own solutions on the Palestinians.
That these principles are controversial today says a lot about how far the modern Jewish lobbies have strayed from the progressive era when they sought protection and equality for all.
Curbing exceptionalism may also be the key that combats the new anti-semitism. If the resurgence of anti-semitic incidents is tied to exceptionalist postures, policies and behaviours, then embrace of universal principles of tolerance and equality before the law provides a way forward to eliminate the new anti-semitism.
The most disturbing aspect of exceptionalism as embraced by the ADL and AIPAC is the active campaigns to undermine the perception of and marginalise Arabs and Muslims by demonising them as terrorists in the political dialogue. These groups have collaborated with the US government intelligence and law enforcement and with Israeli intelligence for decades to silence the voices of Arab-Americans and prevent them from influencing public perceptions of the Middle East and its complex problems. There’s plenty out there but a good place to start is
The Aftermath of September 11, 2001: The Targeting of Arabs and Muslims in America by Susan M. Akram, 24 Arab Studies Quarterly 61, Special Issue (2002). It will provide overviews of Operation Boulder, campaigns on college campuses, spying operations in collaboration with the FBI, CIA and Mossad, and other activities inconsistent with promotion of equality under the law.
Fuelling racism against Arabs and Islamophobia is not in the broader interests of a peaceful and liberal multi-cultural society.
I would ask everyone to think about this from first principles. Do we want a society that tolerates some faiths but denigrates others? Do we want a society that protects some of us and encourages violence against the rest? Do we want a society that provides opportunity for some but permits oppression against others?
These are the questions raised by confusion about anti-semitism and exceptionalism.
I haven’t really addressed Israel, but clearly to the extent that exceptionalism is fuelling anti-semitism in America, Britain and elsewhere, it also presents a long term security issue for Israel as well.
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