Antisemitism Help

Antisemitism Help

I have just watched an excellent clip by a Jewish comrade working with Jeremy Corbyn. Before I discuss that clip I want to look at some personal history.

For a long time I have considered myself anti-racist even though I was conditioned racist-by-default with my white middle-class (Sale) upbringing. After my upheaval as a young adult I was given great help by black colleagues to overcome that conditioning, I didn't want to be racist but I didn't always know when I was. I eventually facilitated some anti-racist training - helping others. One thing I had to learn was that when black people spoke about feeling that someone was racist or feeling that something I said was racist, then it was racist and I had to learn why. When discussing politics and race I am very careful that if I am critical of black people in politics, I take my lead from black people such as Black Agenda Report, my opinion on race alone is not enough - it could be conditioned. I repeatedly use the hammer of bell hooks to break away cobwebs.

When the Corbyn antisemitism row was manufactured by neoliberal forces within the Labour party and within Jewish groups, I questioned my own antisemitism. Please note that the row was manufactured and exaggerated for political purposes, but as Jeremy says comrades need to look at themselves. I spent a while looking at these 7 tenets that I was given by someone in jfjfp:-

It was eye-opening, and I strongly reccommend comrades attend antisemitic awareness training similar to anti-racist training based around these tenets or similar, I presume it exists.

What I like about the clip is that Tania discusses all the issues that I unearthed in my self-awareness training and more. It gives me a perspective to listen to. When I reacted to black people describing feelings of racism that I didn't understand, I shut up and listened - and as a result learned. When Tania speaks I have that same sense, that same feeling, that when she speaks I should shut the mental reactions (sankhara) and simply listen and learn.

I suspect Tania has offended some comrades in much the same way as conditioned white people are offended when black people describe them as being racist. We should not be offended - should not react emotionally. We were conditioned to be racist, we were conditioned to be antisemitic. So we should not be offended when that conditioning is pointed out. But what we should then do is learn to overcome our conditioning, and that help comes from people like Tania who are willing to offend people in order to help them. Thank you Tania.