Anti-Semitism Is Dying: Yemen And Libya Counter The Accepted Celebrity Racism
ANTI-Semitism has made a comeback of late. Charlie Sheen, Julian Assange, John Galliano (sacked by Dior for his alleged anti-Jewish comments or anti-Asian ones?), Mel Gibson – he’s in a new Hollywood film called The Beaver: so much for the Jewish control of the place – and Iran have been giving the old staple an airing. When Aaron Porter, the NUS president was heckled with cries of “Jew” by some students there was no mass protest.
The racism never went away in the UK, of course, it just slid into the cracks in liberal dinner tables, often masked as anti-Israel rhetoric – that’s a democratic country of all colours with equal rights for women and gays being held accountable to standards that seem higher than those applied to other nations.
Consider the words of BBC stalwart Ken Loach, for whom all Jews can be blamed for Israel’s actions – in not the same way that all Chinese are linked to China’s cross-boarder adventures, blacks are linked to Robert Mugabe’s anti-white campaign, or America’s politics stoke anti-Christian hatred:
“If there has been a rise I am not surprised. In fact, it is perfectly understandable because Israel feeds feelings of anti-Semitism.”
But are things changing? Daniel Pipes writes:
The revolts over the past two months have been largely constructive, patriotic, and open in spirit. Political extremism of any sort, leftist or Islamist, has been largely absent from the streets. Conspiracy theories have been the refuge of decayed rulers, not exuberant crowds. The United States, Great Britain, and Israel have been conspicuously absent from the sloganeering.
That sounds encouraging. The youth might be moving on from the old routine. With a day of rage looming, Gaddafi tried to unite his countrymen against Israel. He failed.
In Yemen, as Al Jazeera reports, the old guard, are trying the same thing. Yemen’s president has news:
He said “there’s an operations room in Tel Aviv with the aim of destabilising the Arab world” and that it is “run by the White House.” . . ,
Will his words work? Are are the Arab people starting to see Israel less as an enemy and more as a model for how a country in the region can work..?
Posted: 4th, March 2011 | In: Politicians Comment (1) | TrackBack | Permalink
