By Dror Etkes, Haaretz (Hebrew original), 15 March 2009
The demand to change Israel’s ethnocentric regime is a consequence of its 40-year long policy, which included the cultivation of the settlements.
“Durban 2″, scheduled for April in Geneva, of all places, again places the issue of boycotting Israel and the international community’s recognition of Israel’s right to exist, or lack thereof, on the agenda.
In the prevalent Israeli discourse, which is bolstered by the political establishment as well as by local media, initiatives for a partial or full boycott of Israel are perceived as a clear expression of antisemitism. Indeed, it is not inconceivable that some supporters of such a boycott are motivated in part by antisemitic sentiments. Antisemitism is a product of modern European culture, and despite the changes Europe has undergone over the twentieth century, it is plausible that certain norms and modes of thinking that originated in antisemitic ideology also affected parts of the European Left, whether consciously or not.
Nonetheless, the conclusion that most or all the supporters of a boycott of the Israeli state, or even those who negate Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish national home, are antisemitic, is self-righteous and unfounded. There are various reasons unrelated to antisemitism, leading different people, including many decent ones, to the conclusion that the idea of a Jewish state in the heart of the Arab Middle East is unjust, or at least, unfeasible.
Continue reading ‘Calls for a boycott not motivated by antisemitism’
