Ken Coates: Standing with the Jews

Ken Coates: Standing with the Jews

Ken Coates

 

There is a grave and serious sadness among Jewish people in Canada and abroad.  The mounting criticism of Israel, much of unjustified and often leaning toward anti-Semitic attacks, focuses on Gaza and the bitter conflict between Israel and Hamas. While this struggle certainly warrants careful consideration, it masks a broader and very worrisome development. Far too little attention is being paid to the disquieting growth of anti-Semitic comments and attacks around the world.  There is even less awareness of the increasing sense of vulnerability among the Jews.

Over thirty years ago, as an undergraduate at the University of British Columbia, I stumbled into a course on Nazi Germany. Expecting a class on military tactics and warfare, I got instead an eye-opening introduction to European anti-Semitism and the Holocaust. A follow-up class on the founding of Israel and the roots of the Palestinian crisis connected the history of anti-Jewish feeling to struggles in the Middle East. One cannot study the history of the Jewish people without developing a strong understanding of their nervousness about the world, their passion for the state of Israel and the uncertainty of support from their neighbours.

Non-Jewish people, like and including me, have left it up to Jews to defend Israel and themselves.  I see this happening again.  Full page newspaper ads, signed largely but not exclusively by Jewish Canadians, recently declared support for Israel.  Media commentaries on current events routinely turn to commentators from Jewish organizations and the Jewish community to explain Israel's action and to respond to growing signs of anti-Semitism in Canada and around the world.  Hardly surprisingly, support for Israel runs very strongly in the Canadian Jewish community.

Jews are good at defending Jews.  Jews in Canada have done it in the past and they will do it in the future. Political and philanthropic support, targeted at Israel and Jews in other countries, is truly impressive, as is their support for general and non-Jewish causes. Their organizations move decisively to correct public misapprehensions and to provide a Jewish perspective on contemporary events. In this regard, the Jewish community in Canada is among the best organized, assertive and self-protective of any ethnic or religious group.

Jewish activism, however, masks another reality of our times – the relative silence of non-Jewish people on matters related to Israel and the Jewish community.  Far too often Jews and Jewish Canadians stand alone.  Most of the rest of us remain silent, perhaps nodding in quiet assent when a Jewish leader or organization speaks out, maybe disagreeing with Israel's specific actions but worrying about the general situation facing Jews in the Middle East and elsewhere.  The Canadian government has been consistent and forthright in defending Jewish and Israeli interests, and for that they are to be applauded. But this is more than an issue for states, national governments and special interest groups.

Even the most cursory review of the history of the Jewish people reveals periods of acceptance and integration followed by bursts of hostility.  We are starting to see some of this now, with conspiratorial anti-Jewish nonsense rearing its ugly head, with Israel being held to a different standard than other countries, and with a growing number of attacks on synagogues, anti-Semitic commentary and the like.  It is easy to stand beside one's Jewish friends, colleagues and fellow citizens when times are good and conflicts are few.  It is harder, but more important, to do so when the tide appears to be turning.

Jewish religion and culture are historically rich, both rooted in a deep understanding for and concern about the past. Jewish communities around the world have long lived warily, not knowing when circumstances will change, not sure when and if anti-Semitic outbursts will again become commonplace, not sure who, if anyone, will stand up with them.  They live, it seems, scanning the world in three directions: to history for lessons, to the present for immediate threats, and to the future for signs of opportunity and peace.

Standing with the Jewish people of Canada does not assume unquestioning support for Israel or the actions of the current government.  Standing with the Jewish people in this country means something much more basic.  It means that we respect and embrace them as Canadians, that we reject the gathering rumble of anti-Semitism, that we recognize and celebrate their presence among us and that we appreciate their contributions to Canada and the world.  Jews alone cannot and should not be expected to answer for the rise of anti-Jewish feeling and anti-Israeli sentiment.  

The world needs to know that, in Canada and elsewhere, there are many thousands of others who stand with the Jewish people.  We must make it clear, before hostile words turn into aggressive actions, that the Jews will never again stand alone.

— Ken Coates is professor of history, University of Waterloo.