“We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.”
As anti-Semitism creeps out of the shadows and back into the mainstream, Elie Wiesel’s words become more important than ever. President Trump again demonstrated where he stands in the fight against anti-Semitism by appointing Mr. Elan S. Carr to the position of State Department Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism.
One of the most classical definitions of anti-Semitism is holding Jews to a different standard than everyone else. Anti-Semitism has taken many forms throughout history. Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks summed it up perfectly. In the Middle Ages, anti-Semites didn’t hate Jews, they just hated their religion. In the nineteenth century, anti-Semites didn’t hate Jews, just their race. Today, they don’t hate Jews, just their nation State of Israel.
Today, anti-Semitism comes not only from Holocaust deniers and bigots, but from organized political groups and individuals who attempt to demonize, delegitimize, and apply a double standard to Israel, the most vibrant democracy in the Middle East. A new anti-Semitism fuels those who call for boycott, divestment, and sanctioning of the Jewish State. Our attention and efforts must also be focused on certain members of Western governments who openly express anti-Semitic views.
Rabbi Sacks continues, “[n]o society that has fostered antisemitism has ever sustained liberty or human rights or religious freedom. Every society driven by hate begins by seeking to destroy its enemies, but ends by destroying itself.”
By appointing a special envoy to deal with the issue of anti-Semitism, President Trump has taken decisive action. We thank President Trump for taking this step, and we look forward to putting meaning behind the words “never again.”
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