“What a week this has been for bigotry,” remarked Judith Timson in The Globe and Mail. Dior designer John Galliano lost his job after video came out of him making anti-Semitic comments. Then there was Julian Assange’s claim that a group of Jewish journalists was out to get him. And Glenn Beck compared Reform Judaism to “radicalized Islam.” But the highest-profile case of it came amid revelations that Charlie Sheen called his manager a “stoopid Jew pig” and referred publicly to his boss Chuck Lorre as “Chaim Levine.” Lots of reporters noted what appeared to be a rise in these incidents in recent days, leaving some concerned about a changing attitude toward Jews. Is this a legitimate worry? Writers for Jewish publications weigh in:
We don’t tolerate anti-Semitism: The Galliano incident proves “that anti-Semitism in the 21st century, despite what certain august bodies such as the Anti-Defamation League tell us, is simply unfashionable,” says Haaretz‘s Anshel Pfeffer. “Nowadays, being accused of anti-Semitism is such a liability” that even the pope this week reportedly cleared the Jews in the death of Jesus. “And if anti-Semitism has the pope running scared, I think that means something.”
But it’s still real: Offenders always apologize, says a JWeekly.com editorial, “but the vicious trash talk and bad behavior never seems to stop.” How can we get rid of it once and for all? “Why do these ignorant celebrities, like Mel Gibson before them, so easily give voice to simmering Jew hatred? Why is it that the virus of anti-Semitism continues to proliferate, despite all the many lessons of history?”
Stupidity isn’t always anti-Semitism: People say “stupid” things from time to time, and to “point the finger of the Jewish establishment and call Sheen anti-Semitic cheapens the weight of an ADL statement,” says a Jewish Chronicle editorial. Ever mindful of being treated as outsiders, “Jews must be wary not to label every criticism, awkward comparison or stupid remark as anti-Semitic.” If we “save that scarlet letter for when it’s truly deserved,” then “the world will pay more attention” when it should. “Toss it out to every Charlie Sheen-type who opens his mouth, and its power quickly fades.”
Let’s set a better example: “If there’s anything salutory about this parade of stories, it’s the rapid, direct way bad behavior is confronted,” says an editorial in The Jewish Daily Forward. Pretty much all of the offenders have suffered from their statements. Still, I wonder “what kind of culture do we live in when supposedly accomplished people who skillfully perform on the world stage — designing, acting, leaking information and, yes, even reporting — hold such nasty thoughts and feel free to express them?” We’ve seemingly lost our commitment to “good manners and civil discourse,” and we must quickly “excise it from public discourse.”
This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.
