What The Gaza Conflict Taught Us About The Republican Party
While rockets may no longer be flying over Israel and Palestine and stories of conflict no longer find their way into our news feed the conflict in Gaza did teach us a valuable lesson about Republican politicians in Washington. It showed us an inconsistency in their treatment of racism.
During the 2020 presidential running president, Biden made a problematic statement saying, “if you have a problem figuring out whether you’re for me or Trump, then you ain’t black.” (Something which Biden has apologized for.) Such a statement that implies Black identity is tied to the democratic party. In response many Republicans argued, I think correctly, that an individual shouldn’t be barred from an ideology because of their identity, as this stifles the individual freedom of self-expression. But some Republican politicians have forgotten the lesson their party taught us. One of those politicians is house minority leader Kevin McCarthy who has argued that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was stoking anti-Semitic sentiment by criticizing the state of Israel. Arguing that criticism of Israel is anti-Semitic and in doing so tying Jewish identity to the state of Israel
The problem is criticizing a country is not the same as criticizing its people. If criticism of Israel’s government is racist that would imply criticism of the American government is also a racist attack on the predominant ethnic group living here. After all, there are more white Americans by percentage in the United States than there are Jewish people in Israel. But when it comes to our own country politicians have no issue separating our government from the people. If we can make a distinction between critiquing the American government and its people we can do the same for Israel.
So, we must ask, if criticism of the United States is not the same as hating its citizens, how does criticism of Israel’s government somehow become synonymous with hating those of Jewish descent? Particularly when almost 30% of Israel’s population isn’t Jewish, or when we realize the Jewish community is an international one where for many Israel plays no part in their identity. In the United States, for example, a majority of Jewish Americans don’t think caring about Israel is essential to being Jewish. In fact, a quarter of Jewish Americans believe Israel is an apartheid state. Why is it then some Republicans have forgotten their party’s own argument that tying racial identity to a political entity is racist and stifles individualism? Is a Jewish person who opposes Israel’s actions any less Jewish because of it, or a Black Republican any less Black for being a Republican? If it is racist to tie Black identity to the Democratic party it is racist to tie Jewish identity to the country of Israel.
But I cede McCarthy’s point that criticism of a country often does increase feelings of bigotry toward its residents. Criticism of a country should be done with care not to create attitudes of hatred towards its people. Something many Republicans politicians weren’t so keen on doing when discussing so-called “criminal” infested countries of South America and the Middle East, or Covid. If you are worried about AOC stirring up anti-Semitic attitudes here at home by criticizing Israel, without any mention of Jewish identity or the people of Israel, (which is far more care than many Republicans have shown in their own criticisms of other countries) imagine how Chinese and Asian Americans felt when their president began referring to the disease that shut down our country as the “Kung Flu,” “China Virus” or “Asian Virus.” Rhetoric that helped feed the recent 145% spike in anti-Asian hate crimes. A spike that could have been mitigated had politicians simply referred to Covid by its scientific designations. Something Trump and many of his Republican colleagues still have not apologized for. All of this works to effectively create an identity politics of in’s and out’s for Republican discourse. Utilizing identity politics to stoke outrage about racism affecting a Jewish in-group while using racism to stoke outrage towards an Asian out-group.
If Republicans politicians in Washington really worried about how criticisms of different countries can increase racism at home far more would have spoken up against the rhetoric of Donald Trump and their fellow politicians. Further Republicans in Washington would not be concerned only with the recent rise in anti-Semitism but also the accompanying islamophobia that has arisen due to the Gaza conflict. But it seems consistency is not a concern of many Republicans at the capitol (though there are notable exceptions) and seeing the inconsistency makes their concerns about antisemitism appear less genuinely about condemning bigotry, if it was they wouldn’t be selective about what bigotry they condemn. It appears to be about scoring political points, after all Israel is quite popular with the base.
