A policy paper published by Reut Group, an organization that "creates and scales innovative models that tackle critical challenges facing the State of Israel, Israeli society and the Jewish world," argues that pro-Israel communities are facing a very real opportunity to battle the current wave of anti-Semitism, to meaningfully engage with black movements, and to join forces with anti-racist groups during these times of social unrest in the US that have followed the killing of George Floyd.
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While a traditional brand of blatant anti-Semitism is on the rise, a newer anti-Semitism that emanates from progressive movements is temporarily declining. The underlying shift directly relates to the current anti-racist struggle, which advances an inclusive call to stand behind a demand for black rights.
The Reut Group's 'policy intervention' paper highlights a current decline of 'progressive anti-Semitism' within the context of the anti-racist struggle, which presents an opportunity to meaningfully and authentically engage with black and anti-racist movements. In an anticipated resource-challenged period precipitated by the coronavirus pandemic, the community relations field will be the key area that the Jewish community cannot afford to fail to cultivate.
In stark contrast to the aftermath of the Ferguson Riots 2014, which were marked by the slogan #from-Ferguson-to-Palestine, attempts by anti-Israel groups during current anti-racist protests to draw parallels to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have not gained notable traction.
The report acknowledges the rise of a more 'classic' blatant anti-Semitism, also in forms specific to some black communities. These often echo expressions of Louis Farrakhan, leader of the Nation of Islam. However, these statements are broadly condemned within political and social discourse. Most high-profile celebrities who quoted Farrakhan, for example, apologized and entered into constructive dialogues following broad public condemnation.
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Daphna Kaufman, an expert on the positioning of the Jewish and pro-Israel communities in the US progressive movement and one of the writers of the document, added that "anti-Semitism that has emanated from the progressive movement in recent years has an insidious effect because it has failed to garner widespread outrage from society-at-large or to generate a cohesive and united front of Jewish communities that stand against it. Far more subtle than 'classic' forms, progressive anti-Semitism is characterized by prejudice or discrimination against Jews related to their association with the Jewish state; as well as a rejection of claims of Jewish collective historic and continuous vulnerability, in fact denying a Jewish voice in defining their own experience."
The paper concludes that the ability of the Jewish community to engage in the anti-racist struggle can significantly impact Jewish identity and continuity; Israel's relations with world Jewry; and, ultimately, Israel's relations with the US.
