It's Israel, and they're the Israelis

It isn't the Jewish State and they are not Zionists.

When referring to the policies of the United States government or actions of its military forces, we might say "The United States did this" or "the Americans did that." As an American, I might say, "We bombed Yemen illegally" or "I hate what we're doing to Julian Assange," even though I claim no personal responsibility or guilt for the actions of a disconnected government that I do not support and have not supported for decades.

Just as I might say "We," someone from another country could easily say, "The Americans bombed Yemen" or "I hate what the Americans are doing to Julian Assange."

One could love the American people but hate "the Americans."

Just as one could love the Russian people but hate "the Russians," love the Chinese people but hate "the Chinese." 

"Hate" might be a strong word, but "I hate the Russians" is shorthand for "I have always had major and strong disagreements about the conduct of Russian foreign policy of today, of the Soviet era, and of the Czars going back centuries."

In this sense, I hate the Americans, even though I'm an American. I've disagreed with "our" foreign policy except maybe for 1942-1944. (U.S. aggression across the globe since the demise of the Soviet Union makes me strongly suspect that even the Cold War was a racket.) 

But of course, I do love the country called America and I love my American neighbors.

In the same sense, you may love Israel, you may hate Israel, or you may be indifferent. 

To criticize the Israelis is to criticize Israeli policy, in the same vein as criticizing Chinese policy. It means criticizing the Israeli government and nothing more.

Also, an Israeli is not a Jew, in the same sense that an American is not a Christian. 

Proportionally, there are barely more Jews in Israel than there are self-identified Christians in the United States. To hate what Israel is doing makes one no more anti-Semitic than hating the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq made one anti-Christian. After the invasion of Iraq, did we expect a Christian in Ecuador or Nigeria to answer for the Americans? Did not a lot of Christians, in America and around the world, protest the invasion?

In heated debates (online shouting matches) over Israel's war in Gaza, those who respond to critics of Israel by charging "anti-Semitism" are acting in bad faith. Jews and Judaism are not the issue and the pro-Israel faction knows this. But also, critics who conflate "the Israelis" with "the Jews" do out themselves as anti-Semitic. They're blaming people of an ethnicity, not a government.

I'm almost as suspicious of those who use the word "Zionist" for the Israelis, or who say they're "anti-Zionist."

Like all ideological terms, people interpret the word differently. If you're anti-Zionist, does that mean you oppose Israel expanding its borders? Or does it mean you don't believe Israel should exist, that it should be wiped off the map? Or does it mean something else? Because anti-Zionism does come close to anti-Semitism: if Israel doesn't have a right to exist, what's to become of the seven million Jews now in Israel? What kind of country do you want in the area?

The words Jews, anti-Semitism, and Zionism distract us from the issue at hand, which is continued U.S. support of, or withdrawing support from, Israel. These words are problematic not just because they trigger people, but because they're inaccurate.

James Leroy Wilson writes The MVP Chase (subscribe) and JL Cells (subscribe) and thanks you for your subscriptions and support! You may contact James for your writing, editing, and research needs: jamesleroywilson-at-gmail.com.