Differentiating Antisemitism and Anti-Zionism


  • Israelism. A documentary exploring how Jewish attitudes toward Israel are changing. https://www.israelismfilm.com/ 
  • Atalia Omer, Days of Awe: Reimagining Jewishness in Solidarity with Palestinians. University of Chicago Press, 2019.
  • Shane Burley and Ben Lorber, Safety through Solidarity: A radical guide to fighting antisemitism. Melville House Publishing, 2024
  • Jewish Voice for Peace, On Antisemitism: Solidarity and the Struggle for Justice. Chicago, IL: Haymarket Books, 2017

“We need a different struggle against antisemitism. It should pursue Jewish equality, not Jewish supremacy, and embed the cause of Jewish rights in a movement for the human rights of all. In its effort to defend the indefensible in Israel, the American Jewish establishment has abandoned these principles. It’s time to affirm them again.”

From Peter Beinart, “Has the Fight Against Antisemitism Lost its Way?” New York Times, August 26, 2022. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/26/opinion/antisemitism-israel-uae-saudi.html 

“Our ancestors knew then what we are living through now — that each act we take can either lead us deeper into a cycle of violence, revenge, warfare and dehumanization, or that we can begin to lay the steps, one act at a time, on a ladder that we will use to climb out of the dark.”

From Rabbi Mónica Gomery, “What are the Jewish values underlying the call for a ceasefire in Gaza” Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations. Feb 27, 2024. https://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org/what-are-the-jewish-values-underlying-the-call-for-a-ceasefire-in-gaza/ 

“Anti-Zionist Jews are not and do not claim to be any more authentic or representative than any other Jews, nor is their protest against Israel any more valid than a non-Jew’s. But “If I am not for myself”, then the Zionists will claim to be for me, will usurp my voice and my Jewishness. Since each Israeli atrocity is justified by the exigencies of Jewish survival, each calls forth a particular witness from anti-Zionist Jews, whose very existence contradicts the Zionist claim to speak for all Jews everywhere.”

From Mike Marqusee, Excerpt from If I Am Not For Myself: a Journey of an Anti-Zionist Jew. The Guardian. March 3, 2008. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/mar/04/israelandthepalestinians.bookextracts

“…my ancestors knew that nonconformity can protect the community from narrow-mindedness. This proud Jewish history of non-consensus and dissent is currently being attacked.”

Rabbi Elliot Kukla, “Calling for Ceasefire in Gaza Is How I’m Honoring My Dad, a Holocaust Survivor,” Teen Vogue, March 6, 2024. https://www.teenvogue.com/story/ceasefire-gaza-rabbi-elliot-kukla?fbclid=IwAR19hpFcCxSxjHQnRXjEgy16J12_IsByaGYHjYkyQovIaD40Qrd99y_Ov-A

“I feel compelled to speak to what I see as a disturbing trend gripping our campus, and many others: The cynical weaponization of antisemitism by powerful forces who seek to intimidate and ultimately silence legitimate criticism of Israel and of American policy on Israel.”

Bernie Steinberg, former director of Harvard Hillel “For the safety of Jews and Palestinians, Stop Weaponizing Antisemitism.” Harvard Crimson. December 29, 2023. https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2023/12/29/steinberg-weaponizing-antisemitism/