Anti-Zionism Is Racism

[Forstater, Mathew]

wrong. Palestinian nationalism is comparable to Black Nationalism--the
nationalism of oppressed peoples.  Prior to the founding of the state of
Israel, during times when Jews were being oppressed in Europe, some
Jewish nationalism could have looked like some nationalisms of other
oppressed peoples, (but even then I would want to be careful since I am
convinced that Political Zionism had roots in colonialist and
imperialist ideology from it inception). But as for Political Zionism
once it arrived in Palestine, nothing whatsover in common with Garvey or
Black Nationalism.  Oppressor Nationalisms and Oppressed Nationalisms
are two different things entirely.  Nationalisms of oppressed peoples
can be progressive, since often class oppression took the form of
national oppression, so class struggle took the form of national
struggle (as Samir Amin, among opthers, has pointed out).  As Said,
among others has pointed out, Zionism came out of an era of imperialism
and colonialism and nationalist struggles--and chose to model itself
after the imperialists, not with Third World Nationalist Struggles.
sorry, I don't think your argument holds a drop of water.  

 
I do think that Jewish *cultural* nationalism in some U.S, varieties are
similar to some forms of black cultural nationalism, but that is a
different topic.

 

-----Original Message-----
From: LeoCasey at aol.com [mailto:LeoCasey at aol.com]
Sent: Saturday, July 28, 2001 11:29 AM
To: lbo-talk at lists.panix.com
Subject: Anti-Zionism Is Racism

Marcus Garvey, the great African-American nationalist who hailed from 
Jamaica, once wrote a text entitled "Black Zionism." As many a
commentator 
has noted, and as was recently noted in an LBO discussion, the parallels

between Jewish Zionism and Garvey's African-American Zionism/nationalism
are 
remarkable. 

I draw attention to this striking parallel because they point out that 
Zionism is simply one more species of nationalism, the national
liberation 
ideology of the Jewish people. It has all of the political strengths and

political weaknesses of every nationalist ideology. 

That is why I found completely suspect the continual singling out of it
by 
some here on LBO-Talk, as if its failings are somehow unique, with no 
parallels in African-American nationalism, in Irish nationalism, in
South 
African nationalism, in Chinese nationalism, in Russian nationalism, in 
French nationalism, in Basque nationalism, in Quebecois nationalism and
in 
Palestinian nationalism. If Zionism is racism, so is every nationalism.
The 
singling out of Zionism alone as racist is the singling out of the 
nationalism of Jews, and a fairly transparent cover for anti-Semitism
and 
racism, in the humble opinion of this goy.    

Leo Casey 
United Federation of Teachers 
260 Park Avenue South 
New York, New York 10010-7272 (212-598-6869) 

Power concedes nothing without a demand. 
It never has, and it never will. 
If there is no struggle, there is no progress. 
Those who profess to favor freedom, and yet deprecate agitation are men
who 
want crops without plowing the ground. They want rain without thunder
and 
lightning. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its waters. 

-- Frederick Douglass --