Pearls and Irritations

In the wake of the deliberately lit fire in a synagogue in Melbourne on Friday 6^th of December much has happened. It’s been categorised as a terrorist act, the Commonwealth government has established an anti-Semitism task force, claims of anti-Semitism have increased and, at press conferences, senior lawmakers and enforcers have called for restraint.

Those who lit the fire have not been identified. But much media and political commentary implicitly links the fire and the rise in anti-Semitism to pro-Palestinian rallies. Greater law enforcement is demanded and enacted. In the media, calls to address anti-Semitism have been amplified while discussions of other expressions of racism and the Palestinian-Israeli war have been muted.

And thus, government demands for social cohesion seed further racial division.

Critical racial literacy

Pleas for social cohesion are empty. In contrast, we all need to be informed about the issues associated with the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Critical racial literacy helps us understand the related politics of representation.

It helps us recognise the connotations and contexts associated with the labels, definitions and narratives linked to this conflict. We should be aware of how issues are framed and how framing directs and confines meaning. The ‘illusory truth effects’ of regular repetition and the ways that semantics are deployed as distractions also need to be grasped.

Such interrogation also demands an understanding of the power of history and the history of power regarding the Israeli state and the Palestinian people. Faith, geopolitics and territory are intertwined.

Framing narratives

Framing shapes understanding. For example, in response to the Israeli/Palestinian war, the Australian Government appointed two envoys: Jillian Segal to combat anti-Semitism [1] and Aftab Malik to combat Islamophobia [2].

These appointments are divisive. They encourage each envoy to work only for their people and to build a compendium of injuries only experienced by their people. This leads to an injury competition. Protective barriers are erected, and compassion is quarantined.

Envoys are part of a $90 million plan to tackle the ongoing impact in Australia of what the government has labelled the ‘Hamas-Israel conflict’— not the Israel-Palestinian war. Framing the ‘conflict’ this way presents it as ‘evil’ versus ‘good’. Australia’s National Security lists Hamas as an ‘extremist terrorist organisation’ and defines it as a movement that is ‘guided by Islamic principles’ [3]. This implicitly links Australian Muslims’ religion to terrorism which contradicts the government’s declared intent to combat Islamophobia.

Further, presenting the conflict as between ‘Hamas’ and ‘Israel’ detaches Hamas from its Palestinian context. Hamas is a complex political entity [4]. Amongst much else it represents anti-occupation armed struggle and is one of many Palestinian resistance movements against the Israeli state. Recent polls by International and Israeli Media show that armed struggle is increasingly supported by the Palestinian people [5; 6].

The right for the Palestinians to try to gain independence is supported by the UN. In 2023 it commemorated the 1948 Nakba (‘catastrophe’ in Arabic) whereby the newly created state of Israel displaced 700,00 Palestinians from their land. This led to the ‘the world’s longest-standing protracted refugee crisis’. In its resolutions on the Question of Palestine, the UN affirms ‘the legitimacy of the struggle of peoples for independence … [and] liberation from colonial domination, apartheid and foreign occupation by all available means, including armed struggle’ [7].

After October 7, Israel’s UN ambassador Gilad Erdan made a speech to members of the UN Security Council. He claimed that Oct 7 ‘has nothing to do with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, or the Palestinian question’ [8]. Rather, he asserted, ‘Israel is at war with the genocidal jihadist Hamas terror organisation’—’modern-day Nazis’ [8]. Such claims are a common feature of Israeli narratives. These deny Palestinian people’s history of suffering — a 76-year-long displacement, apartheid, massacre and oppression because of Israeli occupation [7; 9].

Definitions of anti-Semitism are not definitive

Definitions of anti-Semitism differ. These differences mainly hinge on the question ‘Is criticising Israel anti-Semitic?’ A recent report by the Australia Palestine Advocacy Network [10], states that Jillian Segal called for formal endorsement of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s Working Definition of Anti-Semitism (2016) [11]. This includes criticism of Israel as an example of anti-Semitism. She argued against the Jerusalem Definition of Anti-Semitism (JDA – 2021) [12].

In contrast, the JDA presents ‘criticism of Israel’ and ‘BDS: Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions’ as examples of political speech that are not anti-Semitic. The JDA states that its definition of Anti-Semitism is a response to the IHRA’s Definition, which the JDA describes as ‘unclear’, ‘widely open to different interpretations’, ‘causing confusion’, ‘generating controversy’, and ‘weakening the fight against Anti-Semitism’ [12].

Where does this leave us? Certain tropes, stereotypes and images about Jews are clearly anti-Semitic. So too is certain behaviour. These must be condemned. Beyond this, the definition of the term will be ‘inevitably contested’ [13], To disagree with Jews’ claims that certain language or events cause them fear, is not anti-Semitic unless it involves ‘racism against Jews for being Jews’.

This concise definition exposes the disingenuousness of politicians, university spokespeople and others who deploy the defective definition that includes criticism of Israel. Such deployment often involves public shaming and punitive actions.

And then there is lobby power. Pappe (2024) offers a definitive study of the Israel or Zionist lobby in the USA and Britain [14] saying ‘In 2024, Israel will not allow any show of solidarity with the Palestinians in Britain or the U.S. … … It will brand these activities as anti-Semitic and tantamount to Holocaust denial.’ (p.13)

The dominant narratives in Australia adopt a similar logic. In contrast, the narratives of those defiant Jewish groups that say, ‘Not in my name’ and ‘Never again for anyone’ are sidelined

What of Islamophobia?

Currently anti-Semitic grievances attract disproportionate media and political attention. This imbalance further harms those who experience Islamophobia. Their injuries are often ignored or minimised — despite the rise in Islamophobic incidents — see A war of words: preliminary media analysis of the 2023 Israel-Gaza war (Islamophobia Register Australia 2023).

Further, some critics of anti-Semitism draw on Islamophobic tropes. They almost automatically look to Muslims and Palestinians as the instigators of anti-Semitism because they see them as inherently violent. Support for Palestine is likened to support for terrorism.

In contrast, the principles and values of Islam support Palestinians’ resistance to occupation, their search for independence and their yearning for freedom of worship. Palestinians, both Muslims and Christians, are prevented from accessing their significant places of worship in Occupied Palestine. On this issue, the United Nations [15] calls upon Israel ‘to ensure non-discrimination on grounds of religion or belief” (April 2024).

Palestinian resistance movements call October 7 the ‘Al-Aqsa Flood’. To them it signifies combating religious discrimination, trying to regain freedom of access to their significant places of worship, the most holy of which is Al-Aqsa Mosque, liberating their occupied homeland and releasing thousands of Palestinian prisoners.

Let’s talk about Palestine

Using the term ‘Islamophopia’ allows governments to avoid mentioning Palestine. Anti-Palestinian Racism is the term they should use. This includes such dehumanising terms as ‘human animals’, ‘savages’ and ‘barbarians’ — used by Israeli senior officials to describe Palestinians.

Anti-Palestinian racism defames, excludes and erases Palestinians, their narratives, the Nakba, collective identity and their rights in occupied and historic Palestine [10]. It presents Palestinians and pro-Palestinians as ‘inherently anti-Semitic’, ‘terrorist threat/sympathisers’ and ‘opposed to democratic values’ [10]. This allows anti-Palestinians to justify violence against Palestinians without remorse.

These perspectives have led many authorities to try to ban certain Palestinian signifiers. These include wearing the Kefeyya and such terms as ‘from the river to the sea’ and ‘free Palestine’. They are seen as anti-Semitic, causing fear and inciting division. This is a prime example of anti-Palestinian racism. It seeks to suppress historical and political perspectives that differ from those of the Israeli state— particularly those about the right of Israel to exist ‘on a certain land’. For example, such repressed perspectives include the following: ‘Jews do not have the right to establish and maintain a state for themselves at the expense of others (especially another group residing there)’ [13 p.9].
To be clear, some charges can be silencing devices— silencing discussions of anti-Palestinian racism and of Israel’s acts of genocide and racial discrimination against Palestinians. But more. Such silencing also seeks to un-voice those who recognise and spread awareness of the identity and rights of the Palestinian people.

Critical racial literacy must be attached to an affirmative ethical agenda — one that invites us all to take an anti-racist stance. As the 2024  National Anti-Racism Framework [17, p. 36] says ‘Being anti-racist involves actively attempting to combat racist policies, practices, cultures, and ideas.’ Anti-racist approaches acknowledge that racism is expressed differently in relation to different groups. But they do not prioritise one subjugated group over another or pit subjugated groups against each other. Rather they adopt ‘systemic, intersectional, strengths-based, and coordinated action.’ [17, p. 27]. 

This is a far cry from the government’s insensitive social-cohesion-underpinned-by-repression approach. Cohesion requires critical racial literacy and an anti-racist approach to the ongoing Israel/Palestinian conflict—not blinding dust floating in blustery air.

References

1.https://www.pm.gov.au/media/special-envoy-combat-antisemitism

1. 2.https://www.pm.gov.au/media/special-envoy-combat-islamophobia
2. 3.https://www.nationalsecurity.gov.au/what-australia-is-doing/terrorist-organisations/listed-terrorist-organisations/hamas#:~:text=Since%202001%2C%20Australia%20has%20listed,Nations%20Security%20Council%20Resolution%201373.
3. 4.https://www.chevaliersbooks.com/book/9781682196342
4. 5.https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/poll-shows-rise-support-armed-struggle-by-palestinians-2024-06-13/
5. 6.https://www.timesofisrael.com/poll-support-for-hamas-on-the-rise-among-palestinians-now-double-fatahs/
6. 7.https://www.un.org/unispal/document/auto-insert-184801/
7. 8.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7tmepPKIJE&t=895s
8. 9.https://www.thomasfazi.com/p/a-year-of-horror-76-years-of-oppression
9. 10.https://apan.org.au/media_release/apan-aman-report/
10. 11.https://holocaustremembrance.com/resources/working-definition-antisemitism
11. 12.https://jerusalemdeclaration.org/
12. 13.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01419870.2021.1960407?scroll=top&needAccess=true
13. 14.https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lobbying-for-zionism-on-both-sides-of-the-atlantic-ilan-pappe/1140975483
14. 15.https://www.un.org/unispal/document/monthly-bulletin-30apr24/#_Toc167201889
15. 16.https://humanrights.gov.au/anti-racism-framework
16. 17.https://humanrights.gov.au/anti-racism-framework

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