Omar God!

Antisemitism’s a complicated form of bigotry. I say that because, more than others, it relies on complete, and lacking, power and influence. Jews, according to Antisemitism, are both super wealthy and incredibly poor. They control everything, and they control nothing. They’re part of the system, yet they’re also outsiders. Even minorities, who paint Jews as “white privilege”, still can’t comprehend white privilege rejecting Jewishness regularly.

Antisemitism also mutates to meet the flavour of the day: 1000 years ago, Jews were “Christ killers”. 500 years ago, they were “greedy merchants”. 100 years ago, they were “outsiders”. Less than 100 years ago, they were “parasites out to corrupt the Aryan race”. And now, they’re “colonialists in a foreign land”, except they’re referred to as “Zionists”.

This past month, a bill was introduced in American politics to combat the influence of BDS. I don’t think you need me to repeat my stance on BDS, but the bill was passed almost unanimously. It went through The GOP ranks without question, and only 6 Democrats were opposed in The Senate to it. Considering that Democrats and Republicans are known enemies, this is huge!

The bill has also seen its share of Antisemitic backlash. In particular, AIPAC, a committee whose purpose is to improve Israeli standings in The US, has been slammed as being “the puppet-master”. That alone would be cause for concern, AIPAC isn’t as influential as people claim, but what bothers me is how American critics have been handling this bill. In particular, one politician is becoming a household name due to her off-colour and tone-deaf remarks: Minnesotan Congresswoman Ilhan Omar. This isn’t the first time Omar’s made questionable comments, but it’s the first time that one has blown up in her face.

A Jewish journalist named of Glenn Greenwald openly commented on the American fascination with Israel, to which Omar, ever shrewd, responded with a “Benjamins” reference. When asked by another Jewish reporter, Batya Ungar-Sargon, to elaborate, Omar responded with “AIPAC!”. Of course, this prompted politicians from both sides of the aisle to express disappointment, but it wasn’t until House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a well-known Democrat, publicly shamed Omar that she recanted. I like her redaction quite a bit, it sounded sincere and was phrased well, but I didn’t realize until later that she opened her mouth again and praised a Jewish activist for defending her initial position.

Politicians gonna politish, amirite?

I’m not a fan of politicians in general, as I find that even the most-sincere of them still have to be kept in-check. They are, after all, working for us, and it’s really easy for them to forget that. So whenever one of them slips up, it’s not unexpected. Especially when their slip-ups cause serious ramifications.

I’m definitely disappointed in Congresswoman Omar. I know she already gets a lot of undue backlash because of her background, backlash that’s completely-unwarranted, but like Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, with whom Omar shares her Muslim faith, I try to focus on her policies and actions. Sadly, the issues of Israel and Antisemitism, already hot-button topics in progressive circles, occasionally surface with Omar and Tlaib anyway, since they’ve made it clear where they stand. Given that Tlaib has used the “dual loyalties” card when it comes to American Jews, I was wondering, half-afraid, when Omar would one-up her.

My issue with this mess is that, despite it never being a good time for Antisemitism, her underlying issue is one I sympathize with. The influence of lobbies in The US can’t be overstated. It’s an influence that even my Grade 12 Ethics teacher, a centre-right libertarian, had openly brought up in high school. Considering the decay of politics in 11 years, no doubt a result of the backlash Obama received for being president, it should be no surprise that the lobby influence in The US has gotten worse. Whether it be The NRA, Wall Street or The Tea Party, lobbies have money to spend, and they’re incredibly strategic in how they spend it.

What does this have to do with AIPAC? In many people’s eyes, AIPAC’s part of the problem. And I sympathize to an extent, I’m not a fan of AIPAC either, but there are several misconceptions that need debunking, too. For one, AIPAC’s a committee. They might have influence in politics, but, as Lahav Harkov has pointed out, they’re legally not allowed to donate large sums of money to politicians. At best, their biggest crime is inviting people to speak at their events, followed by angry letters when these individuals let them down.

Which leads to misconception number two: their foreign influence. Ignoring Sheldon Adelson and George Soros, because they’re not even relevant here, AIPAC isn’t allowed to take foreign money from Israel. They also, on that note, aren’t allowed to give to Israeli causes. Their influence is strictly limited to American affairs. They can express disappointment in how Israel’s perceived, but that’s about it.

Misconception number three, therefore, involves who the real financial backers in Israeli affairs are: Evangelist Christians. That’s not to say wealthy Jews don’t partake somewhat, but most are wealthy Christians who believe it’s their duty to back Israel because “the end of days”. That VICE even did a documentary on this a few years back should be a tip-off, but it bears repeating: Christians, in many ways, care more about Israel than many Jews, which is surprising. I’d add that it’s also impressive, but their motives are pretty misleading.

I say this all because it not only contextualizes the extent of AIPAC’s power, it also re-contextualizes Omar’s initial complaint. Because calling AIPAC a boogeyman is a classic, Antisemitic trope on-par with representing Africans as monkeys. Jews were frequently scapegoated via their financial power in Medieval Europe, and that’s carried to today; after all, why blame the European bourgeoise when Jews, who were often in the courts, could suit the oppressed people perfectly? It’s not as though blood libels and expulsions weren’t partly-motivated by money and influence!

This is why Jews were so mad at Omar: even ignoring her clarified response about lobby interests, which she later crapped on, her claim about AIPAC holding “the Benjamins” leans heavily into that trope. She may not have “intended” it that way, which I find dubious given her education, but it still comes off that way to left-leaning Antisemites. That’s what makes dogwhistles dangerous, as it doesn’t matter the intent. All that matters is the perception.

I probably wouldn’t be so flummoxed if progressives understood this. Yes, the right is awful and Antisemitic too. Yes, their condemnation of Ilhan Omar is hypocritical, especially since Steve King and Donald Trump are represented in The GOP. But no, that doesn’t mean Antisemitism and other forms of bigotry don’t exist in liberal circles. Because they do, and not acknowledging that’s incredibly unhelpful because bigotry isn’t a contest.

I’d be more content, possibly, if Ilhan Omar weren’t an educated Democrat. But she is, and she’s representing the people of Minnesota. If this is how a newly-elected official is going to behave, then I’m not sure I want her in politics. But I don’t know who I’d want to replace her, either, which makes it tough.

Lastly, I urge my fellow progressives to stop and reflect more about this behaviour. I get that Israel’s a difficult topic, and I’m not saying it shouldn’t be. But Ilhan Omar’s no saint. And if my Block-List on Twitter includes more liberals than conservatives because of nonsense like this, then what does that say about politics in general?