When does anti-Zionism become anti-Semitic?

Anti-Semitism is rearing its ugly head once again on the Left this week. Or at least talk of anti-Semitism. What does it mean? What qualifies as “anti-Semitic”? What is Zionism? Where do we draw the line? These are questions surfacing throughout our public debate and I am often asked by my friends to explain Zionist ideology and its relevance to Judaism and the Middle East.

To be frank, Zionism is a far more innocent doctrine than its public perception suggests. Quite simply, to be a Zionist is to profess support for the principle that the Jewish nation should have a right to self-determination. Some literature then adds on the qualifier “in Israel” to that definition and this is what is causing so much controversy.

Naz Shah, Ken Livingstone, Jeremy Corbyn and many more on the Left have spent years of their respective careers campaigning with the Palestinian Solidarity movement by criticising the deplorable actions of the Israeli state in the occupied territories but on its own this does not make them anti-Semitic. Many prominent Jews have been equally condemnatory of Israel including American academic Dr Norman Finkelstein and the great German scientist Albert Einstein. Most Jews living in the United Kingdom express similar disapproval at the occupation.

Criticism of Israel then is not anti-Semitic and more importantly, is not sufficient to even meet our definition of anti-Zionism either, since one can support the right of self-determination of the Jewish people while voicing their criticisms towards the state which manifests in the real world.

But what about criticism of Zionism more specifically? This is an altogether different matter. Understood as the right to self-determination of Jews, one can argue that even opposing this ideology, one which the vast majority of Jews consider to be of at least some importance to their Jewish identity, is not on its own anti-Semitic. But this only applies if you also oppose the right of self-determination for all nations everywhere.

The problem with the anti-Zionist movement is that they are dedicated to the cause of condemning Zionist ideology but seem to be absolutely comfortable with every other national group having the right to self-determination. This is the fundamental double standard. If you oppose rights for one national group but not another then this is discrimination and in this regard the focus by Mr Livingstone, Ms Shah and their friends on the left seems to be rather unfairly targeting one particular national group, so I would suggest there is at least some anti-Semitic sentiment to their words.

I myself have changed my mind on the blurred line of anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism. I used to defend critics of Zionism (of which the majority of my politically-minded friends are), on the grounds that Jews who self-define as ‘Zionist’ should be ready to condemn the oppressive actions of a state acting in our name.

But my change of heart stems from my awareness of this particular double standard. The anti-Zionist movement is not an anti-Nationalist group, concerned about the presence of borders everywhere. They are a movement with an agenda to specifically deprive Jews of this right to self-determination and they pose their campaigning as ‘compassion for Palestinians’, enabling them to present themselves as more innocent than they are.

It is possible to express solidarity with the Palestinian people without jumping on the anti-Zionist bandwagon. Former Labour Leader and my fellow North-London Jew Ed Miliband is one such advocate of a two-state solution – a man consistent in his support for the right of self-determination for Palestinians as well as for the Jews. He is a far more vocal critic of Israel than Tony Blair or Gordon Brown ever were, and rarely got the praise he deserved for the stance he took.

Discourses inform not only our understanding of social phenomena, but they also actively shape how we interact with them. The longer Palestinian sympathisers continue to eviscerate Israel publicly, the more they undermine their own ‘sympathetic’ credentials. Similarly, the longer Jews on the Right are unapologetic for Israel’s actions, or worse still take offence whenever anyone dares to criticise the government, the more hypocritical they are in only advocating Jewish nationhood.

The discourse is far too polarised and I am calling for politicians, journalists, and people of all political and racial colours, to speak up for the radical middle-ground. Don’t sit on the fence, but rather chop this fence down. It is only when we put serious pressure on constructing a two-state solution in Israel and Occupied Palestine, that justice for both races can ensue, and eventually, anti-Semitism will cease to be an issue for the political Left.