X-rated
Mel Gibson's latest film had Zionist organisations sounding the alarm, writes Emad Gad
This week the Israeli media turned its attention to anti- Semitism. The heightened interest in the subject resulted from two recent incidents that gathered momentum over the past week. The first was the controversy surrounding Mel Gibson's latest film, The Passion, which dramatises the last 12 hours of Jesus Christ's life. As soon as the film was screened to a few interested groups, several Zionist organisations started protesting, directing an intensive campaign at Gibson, the film's producer, director and co- writer.
These organisations and many rabbis concluded that the film burnt the bridges built between Jews and Christians. Discussion panels on the film were convened in European and American cities, and Zionist organisations concurred that the film laid most of the blame for the crucifixion of Christ on the Jews. Some called Gibson an anti-Semite while others, even if they did not accuse him personally, stated that the film "portrays Jews as being bloodthirsty, which may -- even unintentionally -- lead to anti-Semitic violence."
Zionist and Jewish organisations protested against parts of the film's message, claiming it could gravely threaten the future of Jewish-Christian relations. Several groups participated in the campaign against the film, the most prominent being the Anti-Defamation League (ADL). ADL stated that the most worrying thing was that Gibson belonged to the Conservative Catholic Church, a growing sub-sect of the Catholic Church. Others claimed that Gibson had no other goal but to turn a profit from the film and suggested giving him money. "Mel Gibson doesn't care about anti-Semitism or history," one letter said. "Give him $100 million and he'll forget about the film. If not, they'll all produce historical films."
Since Gibson is a Catholic, several articles appeared in the Zionist press reminding readers of what happened to the Jews in Catholic Spain of the 14th and 15th centuries when they were brought before the Inquisition and forcibly converted to Christianity.
As soon as the controversy made it to Israeli Web sites, dozens of Jewish and Christian readers joined the fray. The Web sites contain a great deal of recrimination from both sides. One Jewish writer was moved to write, "all Christians are anti-Semites," while a Christian letter writer responded that the Jews' responsibility for the crucifixion is a given in the New Testament. It's a historical fact, the writer stated, in which all Christians believe.
The second incident to provoke the increased interest in anti-Semitism was a forum held in Brussels, sponsored by the European Commission (EC) and Jewish organisations, to examine the spread of anti-Semitism in European societies. The forum was held after the results of an opinion poll conducted by the EC in December showed that 59 per cent of Europeans thought Israel was the greatest threat to global peace. The publication of the poll coincided with attacks on Jewish institutions and sites in several European nations, including France.
All this sparked fear among many Jews of a new wave of anti-Jewish sentiment in Europe. Some immediately reminded the public of the Jewish tragedy during World War II, while others went even further, comparing the situation to that of Jews in Eastern Europe and the racism and discrimination they faced.
Although France was not at the top of the list of those nations which considered Israel the greatest threat to world peace -- that spot went to The Netherlands and Belgium -- Zionist organisations focussed their offensive on France, specifically French President Jacques Chirac, the subject of an intensive media campaign that at times was directed against the French people themselves.
These associations rapidly mobilised and pressured the EC, which was forced to issue a disclaimer denying that the poll represented official EC opinion. It was agreed to hold a series of conferences and forums to confront anti- Semitism, which was seen to be on the rise in Europe. Zionist organisations attributed this rise to Arab media activity, particularly satellite channels, which "distort the image of Israel and the truth of what is happening in the West Bank and Gaza". The new wave of anti-Semitism was also partly attributed to Arab communities in Europe.
Putting strong pressure on the French government, Zionists succeeded in obtaining Paris's consent to subject all media material related to Israel, Arabs and the conflict in the Middle East to strict censorship.
This was the context of the Brussels forum. Perhaps the most serious development there was the discussion of "political anti-Semitism", a term implying that attacking the policies of the Israeli government, Israel's aggression towards the Palestinian people and violations of human rights are also anti-Semitic. The term "anti-Semitism" -- which literally means racism against Semitic peoples, which would include Arabs -- is already being reserved exclusively for racism against Jews. Following this most recent conference, it can now include a critique of Israeli government policies or any objection to Israel's murder and terrorising of the Palestinian people.
Zionist organisations are now on the counter-offensive, challenging anyone who attempts to critique Israeli government policy in any field. This is the beginning of a process that will put Israel beyond ideological and political criticism, after it has already been put above international law. Can the trend continue?
The controversy over this issue and others can be followed on the Web site of Arabs Against Discrimination (www.aad-online.org).
