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Why Jews Should Not Let Our Critics — Such as the Antisemites of Ireland — Define Us
Demonstrators wearing masks depicting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Democratic presidential nominee and US Vice President Kamala Harris hold signs, in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, in Dublin, Ireland on Oct. 7, 2024. Photo: Clodagh Kilcoyne via Reuters Connect
The political philosopher Sir Isaiah Berlin, a master of sardonic aphorisms, is purported to have defined an antisemite as “someone who hates Jews more than is absolutely necessary.” This wry observation perfectly encapsulates the peculiar persistence of this ancient prejudice, and came to mind this week after Israel decided to close its embassy in Ireland — a country whose history and present attitudes reflect a relentless and disproportionate criticism of the Jewish State.
Ireland’s longstanding track record on Israel is troubling. But since the October 7th massacre in southern Israel, and the war that has ensued with Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the Houthis in Yemen, Irish officials have dramatically escalated their rhetoric against Israel, taking it to new levels, perpetuating their long tradition of singling out the Jewish people and their state for unique contempt.
Truthfully, this antipathy to Jews and sympathy for antisemites is hardly new. Ireland’s dubious stance during World War II, during which it maintained “neutrality” as Europe struggled against the Nazi onslaught, reached a new low in 1945 when Irish Prime Minister Éamon de Valera infamously visited the German ambassador to offer his condolences after Hitler committed suicide in his bunker. This gesture only highlighted Ireland’s indifference to Jewish victims of the Holocaust, still fresh in their graves, leaving an indelible stain on its moral record.
This week, Irish leaders insisted they’re not antisemitic, but their actions tell a different story. Despite complex explanations to justify their positions, and claims that their stance is driven by human rights concerns for Gazans and has nothing to do with Israel, the facts speak for themselves. As the late Isaiah Berlin observed in another of his famous aphorisms: “The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.” In this case, Israel is the hedgehog, and it knows one big thing: Ireland’s rhetoric and actions are steeped in antisemitism.
Insistent justifications notwithstanding, nothing can obscure the fact that Ireland disproportionately criticizes and targets Israel while turning a blind eye to the atrocities committed by Israel’s enemies and countless other actors around the world. This selective scrutiny faced by Israel and Jews has sadly become the norm.
Ireland’s history of antisemitism is, frankly, troubling. And it’s not just about De Valera’s infamous 1945 visit to the German ambassador. In 1980, Ireland became the first European country to recognize the PLO, led by the arch-terrorist Yasser Arafat, as the “sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people.” That’s the same PLO whose charter at the time openly called for the total destruction of Israel.
In 2018, Irish lawmakers proposed the “Occupied Territories Bill” in parliament to criminalize Israeli imports originating in Judea and Samaria, the Biblical heartland of the Jewish people. Meanwhile, imports from China — whose treatment of Uyghurs and Tibetans has been widely condemned as a humanitarian crisis — continue uninterrupted and unchallenged. The contrast is glaring and hard to explain away. When it comes to Israel, the world’s only Jewish state, Ireland seems to operate by a different set of rules entirely.
Ireland’s president since 2011, Michael D. Higgins, is often at the center of controversy when it comes to Israel and Jews. This week, Higgins — whose role is mainly ceremonial and meant to be apolitical — accused Israel of breaching the sovereignty of Lebanon and Syria, even alleging, without a shred of evidence, that Israel intends to establish settlements in Egypt. These baseless claims prompted Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar to call Higgins an “antisemitic liar” — a harsh but telling response to the Irish president’s repeated inflammatory remarks.
In September, Higgins made the deeply sinister accusation that Israel had leaked a congratulatory letter he sent to Iran’s newly appointed president, Masoud Pezeshkian, to make him look bad. It didn’t take very long for the truth to emerge — Iranian officials had proudly posted the letter on social media. But the implication that Israel acted underhandedly revealed more than just poor judgment. It points to a pattern of reflexively pointing the finger at Israel and portraying it in the worst possible light, regardless of the facts.
It’s all part of a broader narrative in which Ireland consistently singles out Israel for condemnation, claiming to be concerned about human rights while ignoring far graver human rights abuses elsewhere. Take this week’s discovery of a mass grave in Syria containing the remains of 100,000 victims of Bashar al-Assad’s brutal regime. Where was Ireland’s outrage as Assad targeted minorities and perceived enemies for years, killing them in full view of the world? The silence was and remains deafening. But when it comes to Israel and Jews, Ireland is never short on criticism.
And the hostility towards Israel in Ireland isn’t limited to political rhetoric — it’s seeping into the education system. According to reports, antisemitism has now rooted itself in Irish public schools, with students exposed to biased narratives that single out Israel for condemnation. Jewish leaders in Ireland have expressed growing concern about how these attitudes are shaping the next generation, perpetuating a cycle of prejudice that blurs the line between anti-Israel sentiment and outright antisemitism.
This age-old pattern of singling out Jews for criticism is as old as the Torah itself.
In Parshat Vayeishev, we meet Yosef (Joseph), a young man betrayed by his brothers, sold into slavery, only to be accused of a crime he didn’t commit. Despite his innocence, the Torah tells us that Yosef was targeted because he is different — he’s an “Ivri,” a “Hebrew” — an outsider in Egypt, easy to blame and accuse, making him the perfect scapegoat.
Ivri is a label that sets Yosef apart and makes him vulnerable to the kind of unjust treatment that has become emblematic of the way Jews have been treated throughout history. Whether it’s Yosef in Egypt, Jews in Christian and Muslim lands, or modern Israel in the international arena, the parallels are striking. Time and again, the Jewish people are falsely accused, maligned, and held to standards no one else is expected to meet.
But being an Ivri isn’t all bad. The Noam Elimelech explains that Ivri denotes someone who stands on the “other side” spiritually — a person willing to stand apart from societal norms and dedicate themselves to a higher Divine purpose. Being separate is not only about vulnerability but also about inner strength. Yosef’s identity as an Ivri marked him as different, and while it made him a target, it also positioned him as a moral mentor in an environment of corruption.
Similarly, Rav Kook sees the term Ivri as an expression of the Jewish mission to remain distinct and steadfast in aspirational values, even when surrounded by hostility. For Rav Kook, Yosef represents the archetype of Jewish resilience — even when accused, maligned, and imprisoned, he remains true to his principles and emerges stronger. The Ivri identity is not a weakness but rather the foundation of the Jewish people’s strength throughout history.
Standing apart has always been part of the Jewish experience. Whether it is Yosef in Egypt or modern Israel in the international arena, being distinct comes with challenges — but it also comes with strength. No matter how loud the criticism or how relentless the accusations, we must hold firm to who we are.
For Israel and for Jews everywhere, the lesson is clear: the negativity of our critics should not define us. Like Yosef, we must rise above the false accusations and the unfair standards. We can’t control the world’s double standards or prejudices, but we can control how we respond to them. As Rabbi Jonathan Sacks so eloquently put it: “The only sane response to antisemitism is to monitor it, fight it, but never let it affect our idea of who we are. Pride is always a healthier response than shame.”
The author is a rabbi in Beverly Hills, California.
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Floyd Mayweather Donates $1 Million to United Hatzalah at Miami Gala
Floyd Mayweather speaks to the media during the press conference after the 12-round Undisputed Super Middleweight World Title main-event bout at Premier Boxing Champions, Canelo vs Charlo. at T-Mobile Arena on Sept. 30, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Photo: Alejandro Salazar/PxImages/Sipa USA via Reuters Connect
Undefeated boxing champion Floyd Mayweather made a hefty donation to United Hatzalah of Israel, an emergency medical service, at the organization’s gala in Miami, Florida, on Thursday night.
Wearing a massive diamond necklace that featured a Star of David, the retired boxer joined Eli Beer, the president and founder of United Hatzalah, on stage at the gala and announced that he would donate $1 million to the organization to help reach its goal of raising $12 million that night. Moments after, Neil Book, chairman and CEO of the Jet Support Services, joined the former boxer and Beer on stage and said he would match Mayweather’s $1 million donation. United Hatzalah of Israel reportedly raised a total of $13,000,000 at the event on Thursday night, which was held at the JW Marriott Miami Turnberry Resort & Spa.
At the gala, Mayweather also gifted philanthropist Miriam Adelson, a longtime United Hatzalah of Israel partner and donor, with a diamond necklace that featured the organization’s emblem, which is a combination of the Star of Life and the Star of David.
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Eurovision Song Contest Warns Israel About Participation in Future Competitions If Controversial Bill Passes Knesset
Eden Golan performing “Hurricane” for Israel at the Grand Final at Malmö Arena. Photo: Sarah Louise Bennett/EBU
The Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) reiterated to The Algemeiner on Thursday that if Israeli lawmakers pass a controversial bill to privatize the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation (IPBC], which operates the Kan television and radio network, it would affect Israel’s chances from participating in the international singing competition in the future.
“While they are member of the EBU [European Broadcasting Union], Kan remains eligible to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest,” the communications team from the Eurovision Song Contest told The Algemeiner. “The privatization of Kan would almost certainly lead to their exclusion from the EBU and therefore they would no longer be able to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest.”
The European Broadcasting Union, which represents public media organizations across Europe and North Africa, organizes the Eurovision Song Contest. The Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation has been a member of the EBU since 1957, which gives it access to news, sports and music content from its network of public service broadcasters.
Earlier this week, the EBU sent a letter to the Knesset Economic Affairs Committee expressing concern over proposed legislation in Israel that seeks to privatize the IPBC by ending its public funding and looking for a private buyer. The bill, sponsored by Likud MK Tally Gotliv, so far passed a preliminary reading 49-46 in the Knesset on Nov. 27. It states that if a buyer for IPBC cannot be found in two years, the broadcaster will be shut down completely.
The bill has been criticized by the Foreign Press Association, the Union of Journalists in Israel, the Attorney General’s Office in Israel, and the Kan network itself for its potential to hinder freedom of expression and press freedom for journalists. The EBU has previously released statements criticizing the proposed bill and related efforts in Israel to have Kan’s budget be controlled by the Israeli government.
“Public service broadcasting in Israel is under sustained political attack, facing threats that not only jeopardize its independence but its very existence in the future,” EBU Director General Noel Curran said in mid-November. “We share the concern of the Attorney General`s office that this is a political reaction to KAN`s content, from a Government that wants to either get more control over it or shut down the broadcaster altogether.”
In its letter to the Knesset Economic Affairs Committee this week, the EBU warned that if the IPBC goes private, “it will not be a member of the EBU and as a result – will not participate in Eurovision,” as cited by Israel Hayom. They asked the committee to “carefully consider” how the bill would affect IPBC’s ability to operate “in a sustained and independent manner.”
“The privatization of the IPBC would render this relationship unstable and would almost certainly lead to its removal from our union, diminishing the state’s role in major events and limiting Israeli citizens’ access to such content,“ the EBU added. “The potential loss of Kan would weaken the diversity of news, free sports broadcasting, local programming including quality children’s programming, and much more that is available to Israeli citizens, and there will be inevitable implications for international perceptions of Israel. We are ready to provide any essential support to preserve the future of public broadcasting in Israel.”
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ADL Launches Partnership to Combat Antisemitism in Higher Education
ADL chief executive officer and Jewish Graduate Organization chief executive officer Dave Sorani at ADL’s NYC headquarters on December 17, 2024. Photo: Anti-Defamation League (ADL)
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) is partnering with the Jewish Graduate Organization (JGO) to fight antisemitism in post-undergraduate education, according to a press release issued on Wednesday.
The initiative will see the ADL share “resources, specialized training for staff,” and “educational opportunities” with JGO, which was founded in 2011 with the aim of supporting Jewish students pursuing advanced degrees. Such students have been under strain since Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre across southern Israel set off an explosion of antisemitism on college campuses across the country, as they have been forced to manage their studies in hostile environments in which antisemitic discrimination and harassment is now normalized.
“Students are facing horrific levels of antisemitic harassment on campus, so this partnership could not come at a more important moment for Jewish students and those moving into the workforce,” ADL chief executive officer Jonathan Greenblatt said in a statement. “We are seeing a rise in antisemitism on grad school campuses across the country, and recognize the unique work that GO is doing to support Jewish grad students during these challenging times.”
As previously reported by The Algemeiner, antisemitism in graduate schools around the country has led to high profile lawsuits and civil rights complaints.
In August, the Graduate Student Union (GSU) of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) settled a discrimination lawsuit in which its Jewish members accused union officials of coercing them into paying union dues, which they had refused to do after it endorsed the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement. According to court documents, GSU bosses browbeat the students, telling them, presumptuously, that “no principles, teachings, or tenets of Judaism prohibit membership in or the payment of dues or fees to a labor union.” With the settlement of their case, they were released from an obligation which they said violated their core beliefs and freedom of association.
Harvard University is also being sued for allegedly ignoring the antisemitic conduct of a Harvard Kennedy School professor, Marshall Ganz, who pelted Israeli students with opprobrium and rejected their assignments when they described Israeli democracy positively. At one point, Ganz allegedly forced the Israeli students to attend “a class exercise on Palestinian solidarity” and the taking of a class photograph in which their classmates and teaching fellows “wore ‘keffiyehs’ as a symbol of Palestinian support.”
During an investigation of the incidents, which Harvard delegated to a third party firm, Ganz admitted that he believed “that the students’ description of Israel as a Jewish democracy … was similar to ‘talking about a white supremacist state.’” The firm went on to determine that Ganz “denigrated” the Israeli students and fostered “a hostile learning environment,” conclusions which Harvard accepted but never acted on.
Other egregious incidents of graduate school antisemitism occurred long before Oct. 7. In 2021, Jewish graduate students of City University of New York-Brooklyn College’s Mental Health Counseling program alleged in a civil rights complaint that they were repeatedly pressured into saying that Jews are white and should thus be excluded from discussions about social justice. The badgering of Jewish students, they said, was so severe that one student said in a WhatsApp group chat that she wanted to “strangle” a Jewish classmate.
These are kinds of experiences for which Jewish students must be prepared, JGO chief executive officer Rabbi Dave Sorani said in Wednesday’s press release.
“We recognize the unique challenges and opportunities that Jewish graduate students face,” JGO chief executive officer Rabbi Dave Sorani said in Wednesday’s press release. “Through this collaboration, we will work with the ADL to provide critical resources and programming to equip Jewish students with the tools they need to navigate and confront antisemitism effectively, stand up for themselves, and advocate for the broader Jewish community.”
Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.
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