No one’s stopping you from publicly making an antisemitic argument. Just like no one’s stopping me from saying that you sound like you really don’t like Jewish people. Did Lizzy Caplan steal ur man or something? Idgi
You absolutely did. You said I was framing antisemitism as an exceptionally bad form of bigotry, and I wasn’t. It just has a specific historical context that makes it uniquely positioned to be weaponized in our misinformation ecosystem. But that’s clearly too complex an idea for you to understand.
Just so you’re aware, saying “look at the number of Jewish people in power in America” to support your argument that antisemitism doesn’t exist is a pretty good example of something an actual antisemite would say.
In general, I think the claim that bigotry and hate are only present among one specific group of people is the very definition of myopic.
No. I didn’t say that. I think Israel’s war crimes are playing a huge role. Worse, they’re providing cover for actual rabid antisemites to spread their hate under the guise of legitimate criticism of Israel. But im also saying the claim that Israel causes *all* antisemitism is fucking insane.
I absolutely agree. Doesn’t mean that leftists do not have a responsibility to be careful with their language and not perpetuate that conflation, or platform actual antisemites.
Briahna Joy Gray is obsessed with Israel to the point where I would say it’s problematic. She’s appeared on Candace Owens’ podcast, and the majority of her views are extremely progressive.
The replies to my original thread are only proving my point. It’s not fucking OK that any expression of concern about antisemitism automatically invokes discussion of Israel. And bad actors like Fishback are taking advantage of people’s conflation of the two. This is a problem.
I regret posting that specific screenshot bc I see how ppl read it as me saying antisemitism is endemic among Mamdani voters, which was not at *all* my point. It was more that antisemitism is growing across the political spectrum and that is concerning
Its unfortunate tbh. I am a huge Mamdani supporter and I am appalled by the way he is smeared in NYC media but there also appears to be a small contingent of batshit ppl who voted for him as well. Similar to the small contingent of racist/sexist Bernie bros in 2016
Thank you for saying this much better than I did. I am a huge Mamdani supporter but it is insane to me to see people tying themselves into pretzels arguing leftists can’t be bigots. Bigots are EVERYWHERE.
I am harping on this because it is astounding how many people are saying this shit. Antisemitism is a centuries-old form of hate. Blood libel conspiracy theories predate the creation of a Jewish state by hundreds of years. I am not a Zionist, but this is a profoundly naive and ahistorical view.
I am actually not super familiar with her work though I did like this piece. I did not know that, thank you.
When conspiracy theories are framed in moral terms (the fight against good vs evil, corruption etc) it becomes far more difficult to deradicalize people and feeds into other forms of bigotry, meaning you’re more likely to hate other groups of people as well. It is a well documented phenomenon.
“Existential” is not a moral judgment. Antisemitism operates somewhat differently than many forms of hate in that it reaffirms conspiracy theories about power structures. In an information ecosystem where people are getting radicalized by misinfo every day, yes, that is an existential threat.
Re: your point about the woman quoted, I would go so far as to say that anyone who is seeking out Nick Fuentes’s content specifically is probably a bigot. Carlson at least uses dog whistles. Fuentes is really not remotely subtle about it x.com/rightwingwat...
That may be true for Fuentes and Carlson. It is unfortunately not true for Candace. And I know this because I spoke to her directly about it when I interviewed her. She has a lot of liberal viewers and she is proud of it. www.thecut.com/article/cand...
No. My position is that she is using legitimate criticisms of Israel as a smokescreen to feed her listeners antisemitism. Which is something she has been doing for years and years. The difference is more people across the spectrum are listening to her than ever before.
I don’t understand how to state this more clearly. Just because it is a bigger and more obvious problem on the right does not mean it is NOT becoming a more insidious problem across the political spectrum, largely thanks to people like Candace who are increasingly gaining a bipartisan audience
I am also a leftist, an anti Zionist, and perhaps most importantly for these purposes, a reporter who has written about online extremism for years. So this is coming from neither an uninformed nor remotely pro Israel perspective. The horseshoe effect is real. And ppl like Candace are exploiting it.
If you read my thread, you would know it was not about “antisemitism on the left” — it was about how it exists across the political spectrum. Which it obviously does, just as all forms of bigotry exist to varying degrees across the political spectrum.
I am saying this as an anti Zionist and a huge Mamdani voter/supporter: you are, objectively, wrong. www.nbcnews.com/politics/ele...
If you think hers is a marginal view then you have not been paying attention for the past 18 months
For what it’s worth, I am an anti Zionist Mamdani voter/supporter who staunchly rejects the idea that anti Zionism = antisemitism. But you would know that if you actually read my thread and made an effort to understand the point I was making.
Just because it is predominantly a right wing issue — which it definitely is, as I’ve said repeatedly — doesn’t mean it’s exclusive to the right. Bigotry is not exclusive to any one affiliation or party. I truly don’t understand how this is a remotely controversial statement.
Who is saying one form of bigotry is worse than another? Your interpretations of this thread are in bad faith and frankly reflect a total inability to think critically or with any nuance whatsoever
Probably not great that any conversation about Jewish people right now automatically becomes a conversation about Israel
You realize that Candace and Nick have been saying antisemitic shit for years, right? And that most of it had nothing to do with Israel until very recently?
I said *nothing* defending Israel or Zionism in my thread. YOU are the one equating Judaism with Zionism. YOU are the one blurring the lines.
I don’t see what is unreasonable about suggesting that people can be antisemitic regardless of political affiliation. Or that antizionism can *sometimes* be used as a cover for antisemitism. Historically all sorts of people have hated Jews for all sorts of reasons. Why would now be any different?
My point was that antisemitism exists all over the political spectrum, not that it’s a huge or bigger problem among progressives specifically (in fact I said the exact opposite — it’s a much bigger issue on the right). You are responding to an argument I did not make.
