Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on June 30, 2020

Zionism is a hotly debated topic in modern world politics and now the subject has been brought to the centre of British news after the Black Lives Matter UK movement were accused of using language associated with antisemitism following claims mainstream British politics is gagged of the right to critique Zionism. Express.co.uk has compiled a guide to explain what Zionism is and what it means.

Black Lives Matter UK (BLMUK) shared a post on Sunday which has incurred backlash from several Jewish organisation.

The tweet reads: As Isreal moves forward with the annexation of the West Bank, and mainstream British politics is gagged of the right to critique Zionism, and Israels settler colonial pursuits, we loudly and clearly stand beside our Palestinian comrades. Free Palestine.

The tweet was shared in the wake of Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer sacking shadow education minister Rebecca Long-Bailey after she retweeted a story which Sir Keir said contained an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory.

Jewish groups and some MPs welcomed Sir Keir's decision but Mrs Long-Bailey's allies on the party's left said it had been an overreaction.

READ MORE:Andrew Neil CATCHES out Labour frontbencher for 'repeatedly lying'

The BLMUK tweet sparked controversy on social media, prompting a number of responses.

Holocaust Education Trusts chief executive Karen Pollock said: I cant stop thinking about this.

Its irresponsible, disappointing and dangerous to post something like this to thousands of followers who sincerely want to fight racism.

Gagged? Gagged by whom? The insinuation is depressingly clear. You cant fight racism with racism.

The Jewish Leadership Council tweeted: We unequivocally support the fight against anti-black racism.

That people suffer abuse & prejudice because of the colour of their skin is abhorrent & we are actively involved in this fight as a community. But please do not fight racism with racism - we must be allies.

The Black Lives Matter UK group has not responded to requests for comment or confirmed the tweet, but did link the post to previous articles written about Zionism and Palestine.

The movement suggested more than 40 Jewish groups around the world had opposed cynical and false accusations of antisemitism that dangerously conflate anti-Jewish racism with opposition to Israels policies and system of occupation and apartheid.

The BLMUK tweets also link to an article published by The Independent in 2018 which drew parallels between the Palestinian cause and the struggle against anti-Black racism.

BLMUK also tweeted: We stand with Palestinians at this most urgent time, and against the accelerated attacks on their rights laid out above and in many other sources.

Ours is a united fight against colonialism in all its forms. Justice is indivisible.

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Zionism is Israels national ideology.

Zionists believe Judaism is a nationality as well as a religion and they believe Jews deserve their own state in their ancestral home, Israel.

The word Zion is a Hebrew term which refers to Jerusalem.

Throughout history Jews have considered certain areas in Israel as sacred, in a similar vein as Christians and Muslims.

The Jewish religious text, the Torah includes passages where ancient prophets were instructed by their God to return to this homeland.

Modern Zionism took root in the late 19th century and since that time the Zionist movement has successfully established a Jewish homeland in the nation of Israel.

But critics of Zionism have called the movement aggressive and discriminatory.

Arabs and Palestinians living in and around Israel have typically opposed Zionism, as well as many international Jews who disapprove of the movement because they do not believe a national homeland is essential to their religion.

Many disapprove of the movement and the privileges extended to Jews which are not available to those of other faith groups.

For instance, any Jew anywhere in the world can become an Israeli citizen, a right not extended to any other class of person.

Arabs often see Zionism as a species of colonialism and racism aimed at appropriating Palestinian land and systematically disenfranchising the Palestinians that remain.

The modern Zionist movement pits certain groups within the movement against one another.

The Zionist lefts typically wish a less-religious Government and support forgoing some Israeli-controlled land in exchange for peace with Arab nations.

Zionist rights defend their rights to land and prefer a government based strongly on Jewish religious traditions.

The Zionist right currently enjoys commanding positions in the Israeli government and popular opinion.

See the original post here:
Zionism meaning: What is Zionism, what does it mean? - Express

Category: Zionism
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