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Seeing Anti-Semitism in 3D

(Jerusalem Post) Natan Sharansky - This week the European Commission hosted a conference on fighting the new wave of anti-Semitism that has engulfed Europe over the last few years. My experience has convinced me that moral clarity is critical in taking a stand against evil. Evil thrives when moral lines are blurred, when right and wrong is a matter of opinion rather than objective truth. Since the new anti-Semitism can hide behind the veneer of legitimate criticism of Israel, it is much more difficult to expose. What emerged from this conference was an admission by European leaders themselves that not all criticism of Israel is legitimate. If not all criticism is valid, how then do we define the boundary line? I propose the following test for differentiating legitimate criticism of Israel from anti-Semitism. The 3D test applies the same criteria that for centuries identified the different dimensions of classical anti-Semitism. Demonization: Jews were demonized for centuries as the embodiment of evil. Therefore, today we must be wary of whether the Jewish state is being demonized by having its actions blown out of all sensible proportion. Comparisons of Israelis to Nazis and of the Palestinian refugee camps to Auschwitz - comparisons heard practically every day within the "enlightened" quarters of Europe - can only be considered anti-Semitic. Double standards: For thousands of years a clear sign of anti-Semitism was treating Jews differently than other peoples - the tendency to judge their behavior by a different yardstick. It is anti-Semitism when Israel is singled out by the UN for human rights abuses while tried and true abusers like China, Iran, Cuba, and Syria are ignored. Delegitimation: In the past, anti-Semites tried to deny the legitimacy of the Jewish religion, the Jewish people, or both. Today, they are trying to deny the legitimacy of the Jewish state. While criticism of an Israeli policy may not be anti-Semitic, the denial of Israel's right to exist is always anti-Semitic. If other peoples have a right to live securely in their homelands, then the Jewish people have a right to live securely in their homeland. If we check whether Israel is being demonized or delegitimized, or whether a double standard is being applied to it, we will always be able to see anti-Semitism clearly. The writer is Israel's Minister of Diaspora Affairs and Jerusalem.
2004-02-25 00:00:00
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