On 6 October, the BBC published new data from the Anti-Defamation League Center for Extremism (ADL). This suggested that antisemitism reached record highs in the US. But in true BBC fashion, its headline is misleading.
BBC antisemitism article: muddying the waters
Towards the end of the article it stated that the figures also include anti-Zionism – which we all know is not the same as antisemitism. Similarly, data the BBC published back in August which related to antisemitism in the UK also used the same qualifier – but it completely failed to mention this then too:
Ah. https://t.co/wfEAxBrhT0 pic.twitter.com/9Eg8ekV7Er
— hannah gais (@hannahgais) October 7, 2024
The ADL data suggests that there were more than 10,000 incidents of antisemitism in the year up to 24 September. This was more than a 200% increase compared to the previous year.
Importantly though, over halfway through the article the BBC stated:
Part of the overall increase comes from a change in methodology to include “expressions of opposition to Zionism, as well as support for resistance against Israel or Zionists that could be perceived as supporting terrorism”, the ADL said.
Whilst we could argue it should have led with that, the important thing is that the BBC just repeated this ADL line. At no point did it question it, or let the readers know that anti-Zionism is not the same as antisemitism. As we have seen in other reports this week, the BBC is afraid of stepping out of line.
So much for ‘impartiality’.
On a deeper dive into the ADL report, it concluded:
ADL’s preliminary data also found that over 3,000 of all incidents took place during anti-Israel rallies, which featured regular explicit expressions of support for terrorist groups including Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), one of the most concerning antisemitic trends ADL captured since Oct. 7, 2023.
Over the last year, we have seen countless media reports of antisemitism at pro-Palestine rallies:
1,350 of these incidents (15% of the total) were included as a result of a methodology update that ADL implemented after the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, when we saw an explosion of anti-Israel activism that incorporated expressions of opposition to Zionism, as well as support for resistance against Israel or Zionists that could be perceived as supporting terrorism or attacks on Jews, Israelis or Zionists.
When they occur during public activism (such as at protests), in confrontations between individuals or in the form of vandalism (such as graffiti), these expressions constitute an implicit attack on the great majority of American Jews who view a relationship with Israel to be an important part of their religious, cultural and/or social identities.
Such rhetoric can be traumatizing to many American Jews and has led to their exclusion from some spaces simply because of that element of how they define and express their Jewishness.
However, this quote from ADL clearly conflates ‘anti-Israel’ with ‘antisemitism’. Obviously, if any country starts a genocide there will be an explosion of anti-whatever country started it. In this case, it’s Israel.
Anti-Zionism, not antisemitism
In August of this year, the BBC published an article titled:
Big rise in antisemitic incidents in UK – charity
The article stated that the Community Security Trust(CST) recorded 1,978 ‘anti-Jewish hate incidents’ from January to June 2024.
It goes without saying, we should not tolerate antisemitism in any shape or form. The important thing here though, is that the BBC article made zero mention of the CST conflating anti-Zionism with antisemitism. Upon reading the full report, it is clear they have.
Anti-Zionism and antisemitism are not the same. Criticising the state of Israel or Zionism is legitimate – especially when Israel has murdered, at medical professionals’ best guesses, over 118,000 Palestinians. If we can’t criticise a genocidal regime, then what really is the point in anything?
Earlier this year, the World Socialist Web site (WSWS) commented that:
The CST’s “Antisemitic Incidents Report 2023” was targeted at the movement against Israel’s genocide, at Muslims and left-wing opponents, as the main source of antisemitism. This reinforces the campaign by the Conservative government, backed by the Labour opposition, to criminalise opposition to the genocidal actions of the Israeli state by equating antizionism with antisemitism.
The Canary also previously reported on the glaringly obvious bias from the Western corporate media and right-wing politicians, branding pro-Palestine protest demonstrations as antisemitic on multiple occasions.
What do the figures really say?
During the reporting period, CST noted that 1,026 (52%) of the antisemitic incidents referenced or were related to Israel, Palestine and the situation in the Middle East. Of these, 836 had ‘anti-Zionist political motivation’ and the terms ‘Zionist’ or ‘Zionism’ were used in 208 incidents. In which case, this article will be included in the next figures.
This number is an increase of 547% from the first six months of 2023 – which was before 7 October and Israel’s genocide in Gaza. Who would have guessed that when you start carpet bombing an entire country, you might face a bit of criticism?
The CST report also stated:
In at least 210 instances, the phrase “Free Palestine” was employed, either in speech or writing. CST does not regard this in itself as an antisemitic slogan but, in each of these cases, it was targeted at Jewish people or institutions – who had not solicited discussion about the Middle East – simply for being Jewish, or comprised part of a larger tirade that did include blatantly anti-Jewish hate.
The report did not specify which institutions or people were targeted. However, it does mention ‘members of parliament’ and ‘public figures’. The important question has to be, whether people targeted these MP’s for being Jewish or for their support of Israel’s genocide and ethnic cleansing in Gaza. If the latter is true, then we also know it’s true that people have also targeted plenty of non-Jewish MP’s for their unwavering support of Israel.
Evidently, the ADL’s latest data is another instance where a pro-Israel lobby organisation is seeking to suppress Palestinian voices. The BBC’s reporting on this amounts to little more than shameless propaganda for Israel, and those in the US trying to shut down opposition to its horrific ongoing genocide.
Feature image via the Canary
