When Jews are considered victims

OPINION:

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In 1945, as Nazi Germany surrendered unconditionally to Allied forces, the horrors of the Holocaust began to emerge and disclosed to the world that some 6 million Jews had been murdered in the single worst episode in the long trajectory of the Jewish people.

The Holocaust and its aftermath were but the beginning of a roller-coaster ride for Jews in the second half of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st.

While the Holocaust was a horrific moment in Jewish history, it served to engender a widespread sense of sympathy for Jews. Perhaps more so than at any other time in modern history, the Western world saw Jews as victims and demonstrated concern and support for them in their moment of profound difficulty. Throughout the Western world, there was a recognition that antisemitism needed to be tamped down and that amends needed to be made to the Jewish community for the failure to prevent their mass murder.

In that context, the United Nations agreed to partition the western portion of Palestine into two states, one Jewish and the other Arab. The Arab world, seemingly oblivious to the evident sympathy for the Jews throughout the Western world, rejected any compromise regarding Palestine. Notwithstanding that rejection, most nations supported the small Jewish enclave and its citizens, who were perceived as brave pioneers. When the new state of Israel survived the onslaught of its Arab neighbors, there was much rejoicing.

There was continuing support for Israel as the new nation struggled to develop a successful nation in the traditional Jewish homeland. The Jewish creators of the new state, in their determined efforts to create a sanctuary for persecuted Jews, were considered worthy of worldwide support and even admiration during their time of renaissance and renewal.

That support would be short-lived. In 1967, Israel scored a massive victory against three of its neighbors that yet again sought to destroy it. The phenomenal victory, which changed Israel’s image from that of a David to that of a Goliath, began a slow and steady erosion of Israel’s image. Israel was no longer a vulnerable and weak new nation. It was a resourceful and successful state, democratic and tolerant, and therefore no longer meriting the solicitous concern of much of the enlightened world.

By 1973, when once again Israel’s neighbors sought to destroy Israel, there was a mixed reaction to the coordinated attack that occurred on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar. The early sympathy for Israel was increasingly being replaced by growing antagonism and resentment as Israel repeatedly demonstrated its ability to defend itself and its values.

These events reinforced the notion that Jews are loved when they are victims and reviled whenever they are successful. Many of those on the left, in particular, seem to admire Jewish victims but despise Jews who thrive.

We have now been witness to an accelerated version of this phenomenon.

On Oct. 7, Hamas terrorists and their allies attacked southern Israel. They slaughtered and raped over a thousand Jews. They took hundreds of hostages, including children and the old, many of whom appear to have been killed in captivity. Suddenly, Jews were once again victims and, in an echo of the pattern of generations, appeared worthy of much sympathy throughout the Western world, even, with evident reluctance, from some progressives.

But again, in an echo of the past, that sympathy was short-lived. As Israel began to take steps to protect itself from Hamas’ promise of a repeat of the horrific violence of Oct. 7, Israel and by extension the Jewish community began to appear resolute and forceful once again.

This was so unacceptable to the progressive left and its allies that demonstrations have erupted across the United States and other Western countries (although interestingly not in the Arab world or in Asia). Those demonstrations have been staged ostensibly to oppose Israel’s war against the Hamas terrorists. They have rapidly veered, however, into blatant antisemitism, with calls for the destruction of Israel and violence against Jews. On many U.S. campuses, it is difficult if not impossible for Jewish students to attend classes without passing through a gauntlet of antisemitic signs and being subject to hateful epithets, including threats of violence.

There is little good in all of this. But there is one modest element that may, with some irony, be considered beneficial.

If the pattern of past generations continues, then the outburst of antisemitic activities and the hounding of Jews in many venues could actually redound to the advantage of the Jewish community. With all of the aggressive and downright nasty outpouring from the antisemitic left, Jews are appearing to be victims. Large anti-Israel and antisemitic demonstrations accompanied by cries of “Death to America” may serve to reverse the momentum of the anti-Israel forces and the attendant antisemitism.

In the United States, underdogs are always favored. Jews are beginning to look yet again like victims, like quintessential underdogs. If this perception continues, it remains a possibility that the “oppressor” Jews will be converted into “oppressed” victims. That evolution would suddenly reverse the current momentum against Israel and the Jewish community.

Tragically, the fate of Israel and the safety of the Jewish community could depend upon both being perceived as victims. Victimhood should not be the test of worth, but, increasingly and sadly, in our era, it has become the ultimate and saving virtue.

• Gerard Leval is a partner in the Washington office of a national law firm. He is the author of  “Lobbying for Equality: Jacques Godard and the Struggle for Jewish Civil Rights During the French Revolution,” published by HUC Press.