No, Criticism of Israeli Government does not make Progressives “Anti-Semitic”
Misplaced Criticisms Fall on “The Squad”
The Progressive Teen Contributor
Four members of Congress known as “the squad” received much attention when President Donald Trump shared some tweets saying “why don’t they go back and help fix the totally broken and crime-infested places from which they came” on his account. The tweets about said “squad” were perceived as racist by dozens of black people such as Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, Former Gov. Bill Weld, and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker. ‘The squad’ consists of members of Congress Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, and Ayanna S. Pressley. They responded to Trump’s attacks at a press conference. “He’s launching a blatantly racist attack on four duly elected members of the United States House of Representatives, all of whom are women of color,” said Ilhan Omar, one of the women attacked.
One habit of President Trump is attacking this same now-famous ‘squad’ for being anti–Israel. However, these attacks are somewhat problematic as not all progressives or Democrats are against Israel. Take, for example, member of “the squad” Rep. Pressley and her position on Israel. She was clumped together with all progressives though she has a substantially different ideology than others concerning Zionism. In a tweet she shared after she voted for the anti-BDS bill, she stated she believes in Israel’s right to exist and supports a two-state solution though some of her political decisions such as supporting HRES 496 which contains anti-Israel language are questioned by some who seek a two-state solution. But she’s not by any means someone who hates Israel. Contrastingly, she supports the state and its right to exist.
On a broader scope, Trump has made the vehemently false argument that Democrats are the “anti-Israel” party. The same HRES 246 anti-BDS bill that Rep. Pressley voted for was also passed with overwhelming support by votes from 174 Democrats. Some of those who voted for the bill to oppose BDS’s efforts to delegitimize the state of Israel include those casting their names on the Democratic presidential primary ballot. Kamala Harris, Tulsi Gabbard, and Julian Castro all voted yes on the bill. There were only 17 Nays on the bill, 16 of which came from Democrat representatives and one from a Republican. The single Republican who opposed the bill, Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, stated in a tweet that he did so because he believes that the bill impedes on the public’s right to boycott. However, BDS has committed anti-Semitic acts as outlined in the bill’s text such as denying the right of the Jewish people to self-determination. So it seems that unlike president Trump initially claimed, some Democrats are pro-Israel and select Republicans are anti-Zionism.
This reflects on Trump’s greater agenda of delegitimizing progressive Jewish voters. In late August 2019, Trump accused all Jewish voters of either being misinformed or disloyal. Trump’s attack on the squad for “anti-Semitic and anti-Israel” further perpetuates another commonly used antisemitic trope by the GOP — that for Jews to be truly religious they must have full loyalty to Israel and its government. Even many progressives who support Israel’s right to exist tend to disagree with the Likud’s perceived Islamophobic rhetoric. By Trump’s definition, these Jews would be disloyal. By progressives failing to support this government, they are “anti-semitic.”
