Originally, I was pro-Palestine. Most of my friends in the punk community were. They probably still are.
I absorbed all of the agitprop about how Israel was allegedly built on stolen land, how Jews are nothing more than a religious faith, how Palestinians are the real Israelites, and how Jews would have been better off immigrating to the United States and serving as goody two shoes "white" allies to "real minorities". I wasn't equipped to challenge any of it at the time, so I didn't.
But after a while, I began to have misgivings. The way people spoke about Israel and obsessed over it was unlike anything I had witnessed before, or since. This zealotry oftentimes bled into hostility against Jews qua Jews, all while they furiously denied any antisemitism on their part. It was disquieting.
In 2011, I met Israelis online who challenged my views. They were very patient with me, although I didn't deserve it. They would have been well within their rights to tell me to go fuck myself with a cordless drill, but they didn't. They were extremely knowledgeable. They had etiquette, erudition, and a wealth of sources to back up everything they said. All I had were rehearsed lines.
I didn't immediately have the courage to call out my friends, but I kept everything in my back pocket. Until one night, I gently pushed back against the settler colonialism charges being bandied about. I said something to the effect of "but don't Jews come from that land too?". The room fell silent. Some of them looked at me as though I had just swallowed a kitten whole, others began chuckling and saying "ooooooook?". I left the room without saying anything else.
When I got home, I began posting about Jewish indigeneity on Facebook. This was long before most Zionists were talking about it, so I was nervous. But I did it because, on some level, I felt like I had to.
I lost more than 100 friends within 3 hours. The comments ranged from "fuck off you Zionist pig" to "are the ZOG paying you" to "I hope Iran builds nukes and evens the score with the Zionist regime" (this was said by a self-professed anti-war activist). One quoted the Protocols and "TrueTorahJews" at me.
I was confused and, increasingly, isolated. I was no longer welcome in my old spaces. I got into a lot of fights, some of which became physical. On a few occasions, I was stalked by people who chucked garbage at me.
I became reclusive from that point on, and largely have been ever since.
13 years later, I still have no community. Out of the large scene I was once part of, I only have contact with 2 people.
But, I have no regrets either way. I wouldn't have been able to live with myself if I didn't speak out.
Trump promised Iranians freedom. He told them to go out and protest.
40,000 were murdered in a span of two days. All because Iranians believed help was coming.
Now he's negotiating with their captors.
Cannot think of a worse betrayal than that.
Like I said, the Black, Jewish, and LGBTQ+ CA base doesn’t play. It was only a matter of figuring out who had the best chances of winning, but we weren’t going to let antisemitic leftist take over our state.
Bro, let’s stop pretending.
Muslims make up about 25% of the entire world’s population — over 2 billion people across 50+ countries.
Japanese people? About 1.4% of the world. One single country.
Shinto exists only in Japan.
So when people say “Japan should prioritize minorities and be more accommodating to Islam,” who exactly are we talking about?
The global majority is coming to one of the world’s smallest ethnic and religious groups and demanding that Japan change its culture, food, and traditions for them.
That’s not “protecting minorities.” That’s the majority trying to colonize a tiny minority.
Japan has every right to protect its own people and culture first.
If Muslims want to live under Islamic rules, they already have dozens of countries where they can do that. They don’t need to come to Japan and turn it into another one.
The same way leftist are saying they are going to not vote for Becerra, even saying they’ll vote for Steve Hilton, is the same way they would have reacted had Crockett won the nomination in Texas.
So don’t let them tell you “vote blue no matter who.” Make them EARN your support.
Calling them terrorists doesn't offend them.
Calling them colonizers does. They fly into a defensive rage every time you do.
And it's twice as accurate to boot.
The way this man speaks about people of color is so gross. And imagine saying that Becerra represents billionaires and that Californians should instead vote for the actual billionaire in the race is so absurd.
If I were the Prime Minster of Israel 🇮🇱, the very first thing I would do is downgrade relations with Canada 🇨🇦, Spain 🇪🇸, the UK 🇬🇧, and France 🇫🇷 and announce that "if Amal Clooney, Mark Carney, Pedro Sanchez, Emanuel Macron, or Keir Starmer set foot here, they will be arrested".
If you're against Zionism, focus on making your own country safe for Jews.
Don't demand that Jews prostrate themselves and beg for acceptance. You are not kings. You are not owed respect - you have not earned it.
Shocking but somehow unsurprising: A Jewish NHS doctor reveals colleagues openly admitting they would REFUSE to save dying Israelis in A&E.
“If they’re from Israel, I will not treat that person.”
This is pure antisemitic hatred infecting our hospitals. Where is the GMC? Where is the outrage? Jewish lives matter too. #NHSAntisemitism
https://t.co/pWcbxFXzgB