Conference on World Affairs: Drawing the line between anti-Semitism and discourse about Israel

Panelist says belief in Israel equals anti-Semitism

The line between critical discourse of the state of Israel and anti-Semitism is extremely blurry. What separates a heated discussion about Israel and a debate that teeters on edge of being anti-Semitic?

The answer, among other topics, is what four experts from around the globe discussed Tuesday at the UMC Center Ballroom as part of the 59th-annual Conference on World Affairs hosted by CU.

Mark Levine, host of the nationally syndicated radio talk show The Inside Scoop, tried to make the debate black-and-white.

“Everyone on this planet has the right to criticize the actions of the government of Israel,” he said. “But, if you criticize the existence of Israel, as in independent Jewish state, if you think it shouldn’t exist, are you an anti-Semite? In my view, yes you are.”

While this statement drew the ire of some audience members, the other panelists said nothing that would indicate they disagreed with Levine’s comment. In fact, the panelists seemed to agree on pretty much everything from anti-Semitism in the 21st century to the Christian Right’s support of Israel.

David Margolick, a contributing editor at Vanity Fair, is encouraged by the progress being made in America against anti-Semitism.

“I’m struck by the really remarkable disappearance of anti-Semitism in this country over the past 60 years,” Margolick said.

Chip Berlet, a senior analyst at Political Research Associates outside of Boston, agreed.

“Do I think that anti-Semitism is a major problem for either American-Jews or the political left? I don’t think it’s a major problem,” Berlet said.

The final topic that the panelists discussed was about the Christian Right’s unwavering support of the state of Israel. Many conservative Christians believe in the existence of the state of Israel due to their religious views on the land and what is said in the Old Testament.

Margolick, as a one-time legal affairs editor of The New York Times, had a strong stance on the subject matter.

“I don’t think that one has to wait for the second coming of Christ to see the danger of the Christian Right’s support for Israel,” he said.

All panelists agreed that it wasn’t the actual support of Israel that bothered them about the Christian Right, but the group’s reasoning behind its support. Berlet, co-author of Right-Wing Populism in America: Too Close for Comfort, led the charge.

“(It is) impossible to resolve a struggle over land when certain factions have raised the defense of that land to cosmological proportions,” Berlet said.

The conclusion of the debate was cut short by overly eager seniors (of the geriatric kind, not the upperclassman kind) prematurely entering the ballroom in anticipation of the next Conference on World Affairs event, Israel and Palestine: A Civil Conversation.

Contact Campus Press Staff writer Evan Acker at [email protected]