Antisemitism: A Grave Threat to Human Rights in the 21st Century
Often, I wish this was merely a political issue. For then, we could sit around long tables and lose our voices over repeated disagreements. We could openly debate and manage to strain precious friendships over a man in the White House who doesn’t remember what he ate for breakfast. We could press “like” on Twitter and repost infographics on Instagram that seem to be bettering the cause. And nothing would change, but we would feel like we did something. We could watch presidential debates and grab onto silvers of hope as candidates, left and right, sing us carefully rehearsed numbers in order to cast our votes. And we are stupid enough to believe them every four years.
If only it was merely a political issue.
If it was merely a political issue, we could indulge in the precious American treat that is freedom of speech and waste time trying to convince others that our side is indeed right and theirs is oh-so-wrong.We could repeatedly fail to see the other side. And the consequences wouldn’t be that monumental.This time it’s different. This is a human rights violation that is screaming for our support.
“This is the worst attack on Israel since the Yom Kippur War in 1973,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday during an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “But there is a big difference. That was a conventional war between countries, between armies. This, a massive terrorist attack on Israeli civilians.”ANTONY BLINKEN, SUNDAY OCTOBER 8TH, 2023
I’m not a historian nor a preacher. But in times of desperation — and we have been in one — we must utilize our voices on the microphone that is social media, and beyond, in order to be louder than those trying to kill us. We don’t have a choice.
I also want to acknowledge the gray area that should not exist, but continues to find its place amidst any conflict containing the buzz word “Israel.”
The Israel-Palestine conflict is deeply rooted in years of a history that cannot be understood in an Instagram infographic. I understand this. And this article is not to change your mind or to educate you on the conflict. This article is to create space to protect Jewish people from terrorism. Because here, what we are seeing is more than the Israel-Palestine conflict. We are witnessing people being targeted because they are Jewish through acts of terrorism. And hysterically, we are witnessing the leader of the 1st World funding this terrorism as he simultaneously tweets that he stands with the Jewish people. We are witnessing past presidents fail to condemn terrorism and fail to stand with the Jewish people.
This umbrella of human rights has shaped the conversation of American politics over the last several years. We have been condemning racism and bigotry and every minority group that seems to face it. Social media has been flooded with support for these groups time and time again, and I continue to stand up for oppressed groups that need a voice. I continue to be an ally for the LGBTQ+ community and to counter racism when I see it — in conversation and online.
But somehow, once the buzz word “Israel” slips into conversation, activism fades, social justice warriors retire, and the last ones standing are the Jewish people. No one is there to help.
We have always been your ally — why can’t you be ours?And I try to understand why — I try to understand that the issue can seem convoluted and complicated and the easiest route to take is that of neutrality. Why get involved when you can remain silent, not make any “enemies,” and move on with your day? I understand how appetizing it is to remain silent.I do. But I also don’t. Right now, we have witnessed the most deadly day in Jewish history since the Holocaust; it’s not about politics, it’s about terrorism. It’s about innocent human lives being lost. It’s about death to the Jewish people. It’s about antisemitism.
It’s about antisemitism.
In society today, social media has become the root of culture. What is shared, reposted, and circulated across millions of screens dictates norms and expectations. These norms and expectations define what is tolerated and not tolerated, both on the small scale, in conversation and in classrooms, and on the large scale as blood drips down Jewish faces. These norms lead to choices, and choices define history. History can be good, or really, really bad.The antisemitism you are seeing today, and the silence that allows it to magnify, is what drove the cultural shift pre-holocaust. That shift led to hate. The tolerance of hate is what permitted the holocaust to take place.
I beg you. Forget politics. Stand up for human rights. Shape today’s culture and dictate what is absolutely not tolerated: antisemitism.
There’s not a lot of us. We need you.
And if you can rationalize what is happening to the Jewish people, please unfollow me. Cheers.
