Anti Semitism?

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  • ai_1
    ai_1 Posts: 3,060
    MichaelW wrote:
    The phrase anti-semitism was coined by german, anti-Jewish racist Wilhelm Marr in about 1879. He wrote "The Way to Victory of Germanicism over Judaism" and founded the League of Antisemites. Anti-semitism was, and is, specifically anti-Jewish, rather than anti-swarthy-foreign-types racism. It includes all the various conspiracy theories typical of anti-jewish racism and a-typical of other kinds of racism. Racism against black and asians included many strange theories, but taking over the world and pulling all the strings is not one of them.

    The modern anti-racist movement in the UK is specifically a left-wing movement with roots in parties such as the Socialist Workers Party of 1970s, even if the followers of the movement are not SWP or left wingers.
    Racism is seen by the Left, in their Marxist Analysis, as a tool of the ruling class to divide the working class. In this analysis, the "racial underdog" (eg black and asians) is always of a lower class than the "racial overdog" (eg white ruling class). Jews don't fit into this pattern of class-oppressed victims when Jews (in the UK/USA) are seen as part of the Capitalist class, rather than working class. The breakdown of Marxist Analysis when dealing with Anti-semitism leads to cognitive dissonance.
    First paragraph: Thank you for the clarification.

    Second paragraph: IMO irrelevant. Racism, regardless of the origin of the term, is not a movement or a left wing notion. It is a term which describes prejudice based on race. Racism was not invented by anyone. The term or local movements associated with racism whether perpetuating or fighting it are a differnt matter.