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Antisemitism as Anti-Jewish Racism: Reflections on an Anti-Racist Analytic

In: Historical Materialism
Authors:
Abigail B. Bakan Professor, Department of Social Justice Education, OISE, University of Toronto Toronto, Ontario Canada

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https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4794-4693
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Yasmeen Abu-Laban Professor, Department of Political Science, University of Alberta Edmonton, Alberta Canada

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https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9880-9857
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Abstract

Advancing a consistent anti-racist analytic to challenge antisemitism demands standing with all those who suffer from systemic racism, and specifically with Palestinians. However, antisemitism and anti-Palestinian racism are rarely understood and opposed in a unified movement of solidarity. Here, we address what antisemitism is not, especially the false claim that equates antisemitism with criticism of the state of Israel – a claim that is reaching fever pitch at the current moment. Turning to context, we consider periodisations about how antisemitism has changed over time and place, suggesting we are in a new period of increasing supposed legitimacy for antisemitism in Western liberal-democratic capitalist states, associated with the rising influence of white nationalism. We then consider what antisemitism as anti-Jewish racism is, and how it is coded in certain ways, including: elite privilege; conspiracy claims; and symbolic marking for threats and violence. We conclude with notes on the potential for solidarity.

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