recently, the ceo and national director of the anti-defamation league was forced to admit that the political left has an anti-semitic problem. also recently, the state of israel has found that there is anti-semitism lurking in the shopping market freezer sections in the form of ben and jerry’s ice cream. these recent developments lead to one conclusion, there is a profound lack of leadership when understanding and dealing with a most complicated issue anti-semitism.
“nazi”, “racist”, “white privilege” are words that have lost meaning and value as a result of an overabundance of poorly directed accusations. pro-jewish individuals have been called nazis, white people with interracial families have been accused of racism, and asians have been accused white privilege. the false accusations are so comical in nature that they labels are becoming badges of honor for the accused. wild anti-semitism allegations, as well, is placing the label at risk. thus, intelligent thought, creativity and sensitivity must be employed when bring them forward.
the so-called leaders of anti-anti-semitism suffer from vision problems. they either cannot see whether something is anti-semitism or they intentionally refuse to see anti-semitism.
there is a great way to seeing whether something is a problem or not. united states supreme court justice potter stewart in jacobellis vs. ohio, said it best when he addressed the issue of obscenity. he stated “i shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material i understand to be embraced within that shorthand description; and perhaps I could never succeed in intelligibly doing so. but i know it when i see it. “
accusations of anti-semitic ice cream is a recent outrage which is an example of the lack of vision. ben and jerry’s ice cream brand recently made a pronouncement concerning their contracts and distribution in the israel that some have viewed as anti-israel or anti-semitic.
anti-semitic accusers miss the mark. the matter is much more complex. ben and jerry’s ice cream is owned by unilever which is an international company with a large variety of products. ben and jerry’s, although owned by unilever, has a special independent board of directors. unilever announced that they “remain fully committed to our presence in israel, where we have invested in our people, brands and business for several decades.” they noted that “ben & jerry’s was acquired by unilever in 2000. as part of the acquisition agreement, we have always recognised the right of the brand and its independent board to take decisions about its social mission. we also welcome the fact that ben & jerry’s will stay in israel.” thus, unilever, the parent, has ben & jerry’s, the bad child. the real danger for israel is that a large company, such as unilever, could cut off the country’s access to essential products.
thus, rather than spending the time decrying ben & jerry’s, it is time for those who oppose their actions to support and promote other brands who service the country. additionally, it is perhaps time for “sweet” revenge. ice cream brand to compete against ben & jerry’s is a possibility.
leftist anti-semitism has been around for decades.
during the biden administration, we have now experienced new and improved anti-semitism. with the gaza crises, palestinian supporters felt very comfortable driving around the streets of los angeles searching out jewish people to harass and commit violence upon them.
in the past, the adl made great efforts to be on the side of left wing politics. the ceo of the adl mr. greenblatt famously went out of his way to take time to condemn president trump over alleged racist tweets and his use of israel and jews as a shield. adl ironically, mr. greenblatt was forced to condemned the same individual, rep. omar, for whom he defended when trump had condemned her.
the left wing’s anti-semitism has been present for decade. i saw it over a decade ago at a trade unionist meeting. a young lady gave the vile anti-semitic speech. while i wanted to walk out in disgust, i also wanted to hear what she was saying and observe the audience. this evidenced that there were leaders in this community who held anti-semitic views. her speech, at the time, was neither met with a positive endorsement or a denunciation. her voice and viewpoint, however, had a presence in the community.
the adl’s ceo admission concerning the left is a problem. it evidences failed leadership. he and others, due to their biases, lack the ability to “know it when they see it.”
in sum, anti-semitism accusations must be limited, accurate and carefully tailored. failure to do so may defeat the goal. if being labled as an “anti-semite” becomes a badge of honor, we will be doomed.
be well!!
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