Jewish groups blast Biden’s anti-Semitic strategy; Shaped by the anti-Semitic CAIR

Jeoffro René2 weeks ago


The Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) on Thursday lambasted President Joe Biden’s new anti-Semitic strategy because it emerged it was crafted with the help of the Anti-Semitic Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR).

The strategy excludes extreme criticism of Israel from the definition of anti-Semitism, rejecting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition adopted by President Donald Trump in 2019.

As Breitbart News reported at the time:

[Trump’s] executive order would adopt the definition of anti-Semitism proposed by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA). He says: “Anti-Semitism is a certain perception of Jews, which can be expressed in hatred towards Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of anti-Semitism are directed at Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, at Jewish community institutions and religious establishments.

The State Department has already adopted this definition of anti-Semitism. And there is bipartisan support in Congress for legislation to adopt that definition of anti-Semitism as well, Kampeas notes.

However, pro-Palestinian groups have argued that the IHRA definition is too broad and defines opposition to Israel as anti-Semitic.

In F[c]t, the IHRA specifically states: “Manifestations [of antisemitism] could include targeting the State of Israel, conceived as a Jewish collectivity. However, a criticism of Israel similar to that leveled against any other country cannot be considered anti-Semitic.

The Biden White House bragged Thursday about its new anti-Semitism strategy, saying it is the first such strategy adopted by a White House. But the document excludes any extreme criticism of Israel as anti-Semitism.

Biden’s strategy also associates anti-Semitism with Islamophobia, which ignores the fact that the two are fundamentally different and that anti-Semitism is often driven by Islamic extremism.

Critics noted that CAIR had been involved in drafting the document, as acknowledged by the White House.

CAIR frequently used anti-Semitic rhetoric, blurring the line between criticism of Israel or “Zionism” and direct attacks on Jews and Judaism. For example, as Breitbart News reported in December 2021:

The executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in the San Francisco Bay Area has called for ‘know your enemies’ as she slams Jewish organizations, ‘Zionist’ synagogues and Hillel campus groups whom she accused of betrayal and supporting humanity. rights violations.

…

“We have to pay attention to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL). We have to pay attention to the Jewish Federation. We must pay attention to Zionist synagogues. We need to pay attention to Hillel chapters on our campuses,” she said.

…

Speaking against “Zionists,” a term historically used as a euphemism for “Jews” to avoid accusations of anti-Semitism, Billoo called for “standing against outspoken fascists” as well as “polite Zionists too,” saying that they “are not your friends”. .”

The group also has a notorious reputation that spans international borders, as Breitbart News noted:

In 2007-2008, CAIR was named an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development’s terrorism financing trial. This case, in turn, caused the FBI to discontinue its work with the organization. In 2009, a federal judge ruled that the government “produced extensive evidence to establish” CAIR’s ties to Hamas, the Palestinian terror organization. The United Arab Emirates labeled CAIR a terrorist organization in 2014 (a decision opposed by the Obama administration).

For its part, CAIR bragged Thursday about its involvement in crafting Biden’s anti-Semitic strategy, and specifically praised Biden for shielding critics of Israel:

In a statement, CAIR added (original emphasis):

CAIR noted that the White House National Strategy on Antisemitism does not adopt the disputed IHRA definition of antisemitism as binding policy…

As the strategy states, “When Jews are targeted because of their beliefs or their identity, when Israel is singled out because of anti-Jewish hatred, that’s anti-Semitism. And it’s unacceptable.” We underline.

This clear distinction based on the motivation for criticism of Israel underscores the administration’s commitment to combating anti-Semitism while safeguarding freedom of expression and the right to engage in human rights activism. male.

The strategy recognizes “several definitions of anti-Semitism, which are valuable tools for raising awareness and increasing understanding.”

The IHRA definition, criticized by CAIR and many American Jewish and Palestinian groups, as well as domestic and international human rights organizations, is seen as potentially confusing criticism of the Israeli government with anti-Semitism, limiting freedom of expression on the human rights of Palestinians.

RJC CEO Matt Brooks released an anti-Semitism strategy heavily lambasted by Biden, noting it was a step backwards:

Joe Biden had the opportunity to take a strong stand against anti-Semitism and he missed it.

The IHRA definition of anti-Semitism is the definition endorsed by all mainstream Jewish organizations. Biden’s special envoy to monitor and combat anti-Semitism has urged other countries to “embrace” it as an “integral” tool against the rising tide of Jew-hatred. The IHRA definition is indispensable because it recognizes that criticism of Israel is anti-Semitic when it delegitimizes, demonizes or applies double standards to Israel.

After initial reports that his new strategy would enshrine the definition of the IHRA, the Biden administration came under heavy pressure from the anti-Israel left, forcing a delay in the rollout. Now a few hours before a Jewish holiday [Shavout, or Pentecost, which begins Thursday evening] and in the closing days of American Jewish Heritage Month, the White House is attempting a last-minute overlap – undermining the IHRA definition by promoting alongside it an alternative definition that says applying double standards and targeting the Jewish State for criticism is not anti-Semitic.

This decision seriously weakens the strategy of the White House. It’s yet another example of Biden caving in to anti-Israel radicals who are building a growing Democratic constituency at the elected and local levels. It is clear that only a Republican President will fully embrace the IHRA definition and put the full force of the federal government behind the fight against anti-Semitism in all its forms.

Another Jewish group, the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under the Law, a nonpartisan group, said Biden had “forcefully embraced the IHRA,” but was also guilty of “ muddy the waters reluctantly by also recognizing a lesser standard” in the definition of anti-Semitism. The center also took issue with the fact that Biden appeared to back down from President Trump’s 2019 pledge to protect Jewish students on campus.

The Zionist Organization of America (ZOA), the oldest pro-Israel group in the United States, also lambasted the Biden administration’s anti-Semitism strategy and reliance on a leftist document called the “Nexus,” as well as the so-called “Jerusalem Declaration on Anti-Semitism” (JDA), another favorite left-wing alternative:

The JDA and the Nexus document are [] dangerous, wrongly protecting anti-Semites who attempt to mask their hatred of Jews by expressing it as hatred of the Jewish state. For example, the Nexus document states that opposition to Zionism – that is, the right of the Jewish people to self-determination and to live as a nation-state in their religious and ancestral homeland – is not necessarily anti-semitic. The Nexus document fails to understand that for many, if not most Jews, their connection to their religious and ancestral homeland is an essential part of their Jewish identity.

The Nexus document also states that “the disproportionate focus on Israel and the treatment of Israel differently from other countries cannot necessarily be considered anti-Semitic.” But if Israel – the one and only Jewish state in the world – is singled out for criticism and punishment, then there is no doubt that anti-Semitism is at stake.

The JDA is even more problematic. It does not even recognize that anti-Zionism, that is, denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, is anti-Semitism.

Biden’s effort has been led by Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, who has reportedly embraced his identity more vigorously since his wife, Kamala Harris, became vice president.

Joel B. Pollak is editor of Breitbart News and host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot Sunday nights from 7-10 p.m. ET (4-7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the new biography, Rhoda: ‘Comrade Kadalie, You Are Out of Order’. He is also the author of the recent e-book Neither Free Nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. He is the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellow. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.



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Jeoffro René2 weeks ago
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