fbpx
Connect with Point of View   to get exclusive commentary and updates

Intersectionality and Anti-Semitism

Ilhan_Omar
Print Friendly, PDF & Email
By: David French – nationalreview.com – March 7, 2019

Something remarkable is happening on the Democratic side of the aisle. Faced with multiple anti-Semitic statements from freshman member of Congress Ilhan Omar, the Democrats are actually struggling to unite to condemn her remarks. This disunity is made all the more remarkable by the fact that there is nothing at all subtle about what Omar has said. In the past she’s tweeted that Israel has “hypnotized the world.” Recently, she’s claimed that American support for Israel was “all about the Benjamins” and has now twice raised the argument that support for Israel involved “allegiance” to a foreign country.

Each of these statements represents a classic anti-Semitic trope, and the latter statements were made after she came under fire for her previous comments. She knew she was under scrutiny and yet doubled down.

While multiple Democrats have condemned her comments forcefully and unequivocally, she’s also enjoying a curious wave of support. Just as a sampling, there’s this:

Rashida Tlaib  
@RashidaTlaib
I am so honored to serve with @IlhanMN, an incredible courageous woman. Every time I worry about her and the ugly attacks, I remember what she said to me two months ago: “I survived war, I can survive this.”

And this:


Natalie Johnson  
@nataliejohnson
All three headlines naming Ilhan Omar in WashPo today are in defense of her.

 

And this stunning statement from House majority whip Jim Clyburn, as reported at The Hill:

Clyburn came to Omar’s defense Wednesday, lamenting that many of the media reports surrounding the recent controversy have omitted mentioning that Omar, who was born in Somalia, had to flee the country to escape violence and spent four years in a Kenyan refugee camp before coming to the United States.

Her experience, Clyburn argued, is much more empirical — and powerful — than that of people who are generations removed from the Holocaust, Japanese internment camps during World War II and the other violent episodes that have marked history.

“I’m serious about that. There are people who tell me, ‘Well, my parents are Holocaust survivors.’ ‘My parents did this.’ It’s more personal with her,” Clyburn said. “I’ve talked to her, and I can tell you she is living through a lot of pain.”

What is going on? Why are we seeing so many prominent voices rally to Omar’s side? This is how intersectionality works. Essentially, the pattern goes like this. Under intersectionality theories, your identity grants you credibility, your experience grants you authority, and the responsibility then of your progressive friends is to act as your allies.

To see the remainder of this article, click read more.

Read More

Source: Ilhan Omar & Her Defenders: Intersectionality Elevates Bigotry | National Review