Recent demonstrations protesting Israel’s role in the war in Gaza claim that Zionism is racist, colonialist, even genocidal. The response among many Jews has been to accuse the demonstrators of thinly veiled antisemitism. Lawsuits charging universities with antisemitism are pending and the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has opened numerous investigations.
In 2010, the U.S. State Department proposed the following as a working definition of antisemitism: “Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.”
The State Department tried to clarify its position by providing numerous examples of the kinds of actions that would count as antisemitic. Unfortunately, their examples raise more questions than they answer. Chief among them: what is the relation between anti-Zionism and antisemitism? Or more precisely: what exactly is Zionism and how is it related to Judaism?
Is Zionism (A) commitment to a Jewish homeland, (B) some level of support for current Israeli policies such as the Israel-Hamas War, or (C) active involvement or total support for the war? I will take them up in turn.
Beginning in the 19th century, the need for a Jewish homeland became a hotly debated topic among world Jewry. Thinkers on the political left argued that in an enlightened age, Jews would be accepted as full citizens in the countries where they lived, making a homeland unnecessary. By contrast many Orthodox thinkers opposed the idea that a homeland for Jews could be created by secular means and put their trust in divine intervention instead.
For most Jews, the debate over Zionism ended after World War II. The idea that Jews would be accepted as full citizens in an enlightened age seemed to go up the smokestack at Auschwitz. While reliance on divine intervention might be a comforting trope in the prayer book, it did not answer the question of what to do with the thousands of Jews left homeless by Nazi devastation or who were expelled from Islamic lands.
It is also worth noting that unlike Christianity, Judaism is defined by birth rather than belief. A Jew is someone born to a Jewish parent (traditionally a Jewish mother) or someone who wishes to join the Jewish people by converting.
For example, if one were to list the various nationalities in the world, there would be Greeks, French, Koreans, English, Brazilians, Chinese, Italians — and Jews. If, on the other hand, if one were to list the great world religions of the world, there would be Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism — and Judaism. Jews are listed twice, which means they are both a nationality and a religious community.
Although one of the examples of antisemitism listed by the State Department is “Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, and denying Israel the right to exist,” there were and still are Jews who reject the idea of a homeland. A prominent Hasidic rabbi once claimed that the Holocaust was divine punishment for the sin of Zionism.
To be sure, these people are a minority. According to a 2020 survey undertaken by the Pew Research Center, 8 out of 10 American Jews thought that Israel was either essential or important to their identity. Most synagogues include a prayer for the State of Israel as part of their worship service.
But the tide may be turning among younger Jews. A Pew Research Study in 2022 showed that 41% of Jews aged 18 to 29 had a favorable opinion of Israel while 69% over 65 did. As the war in Gaza drags on, that gap has surely increased.
Regarding (B), many Jews oppose the occupation and the war in Gaza but still feel a tie to Israel. Huge crowds of Israelis have demonstrated against the Netanyahu government prior to Oct. 7. According to the 2020 study, only 1 in 3 American Jews thought Israel was sincere in its pursuit of peace.
That brings us to (C), whose adherents support Netanyahu’s goal of “total victory” regardless of the consequences. Although I don’t have exact figures, I suspect that in America, they too are a minority.
In sum, the relation between Judaism and Zionism is complicated depending on what era one is talking about and how one understands key terms. Criticism of Israel is not necessarily antisemitic. But one thing the State Department got right is that there is no basis for holding the Jewish people as a whole responsible for the actions of Israel.
The problem is that those who demonstrate against Israel rarely take the time to study history or consider definitional questions. Not surprisingly many contain slogans calling for a worldwide intifada, or complete elimination of the State of Israel, where half the world’s Jews now live.
Should the world tolerate a Jewish state? At present it tolerates more than 15 states which are officially Christian and 23 which are officially Muslim. As for me, I support a cease-fire in Gaza, humanitarian aid, release of the Israeli hostages and the creation of a Palestinian state to exist alongside a Jewish one; in short, a two-state solution.
Pundits on both side of the conflict say that it is unrealistic to think that after centuries of hatred and violence, Jews and Palestinians can live side by side and retain their respective identities. Perhaps so, but what does such alleged “realism” offer us other than endless brutality?
If it is realistic to continue fighting without ever stopping to ask what a more humane alternative would be like, then I say that being realistic amounts to moral bankruptcy.
Kenneth Seeskin is professor emeritus of philosophy and the Philip M. and Ethel Klutznick Professor of Jewish Civilization at Northwestern University.
