Posted on 09/15/2023 6:50:50 AM PDT by SJackson
Elon Musk has threatened to sue the Anti-Defamation League for some $22 billion over its slandering of him as an antisemite, which he alleges has tanked X’s advertising revenue. “Based on what we’ve heard from advertisers, ADL seems to be responsible for most of our revenue loss,” Musk says.
Judging from my own feed, there are plenty of real-life antisemites who have taken to X, formerly Twitter, to participate in the #BanTheADL movement over this kerfuffle. It’s unsurprising that more open discourse brings out more bigots. That’s an unfortunate price of free speech. Clearly, those who campaign to “ban” accounts don’t care about an open platform. Nothing stops us from calling them out.
That said, though, Musk’s criticism of the ADL isn’t antisemitic. First off, the ADL isn’t a “Jewish” organization in any genuine ethnic or theological sense. Its primary mission is no longer to stop the defamation of Jews. The ADL’s CEO, Jonathan Greenblatt, a former Barack Obama appointee who often appears on MSNBC to chat it up with bigots such as Al Sharpton, has created a partisan leftist social justice outfit. And its primary goal these days is cynically using the organization’s historical position to advance often illiberal, completely irreligious, leftist ideas.
One of the ways it does this is by dishonestly framing an endorsement of free expression as an endorsement of the things people say using free expression, including antisemitism. That’s what it has done with Musk. So it would be no surprise if the ADL were leading a politically motivated boycott effort.
Musk, for example, contends that the ADL wants him to ban the Libs of TikTok, a popular account run by an orthodox Jew, Chaya Raichik, who gained fame by reposting real leftists saying real things. It’s certainly plausible, considering the ADL already has an entry for Raichik in its “glossary of terms.” Now, I’m not a big fan of nutpicking, but I haven’t seen anything in her feed that could be rationally construed as antisemitic. And that speaks to the problem of who gets to decide what “hate speech” entails.
For Greenblatt, who worked to get Tucker Carlson fired but can barely muster a word of disapproval for Jew-baiters such as Rashida Tlaib or any other elected progressive, hate speech is a finely tuned political weapon. The ADL has spent years exaggerating the threat of antisemitism on the right, finding offense not only in demonstrably ugly speech, but also in an endless number of dog whistles (including criticisms of leftist megadonor George Soros). At the same time, it gives perfunctory attention (but mostly ignores) the threat and normalization of anti-Jewish sentiment among leftists on college campuses, within activist movements, and in the government.
Don’t think of it as a double standard. Think of the ADL as a run-of-the-mill activist shop — something akin to the Southern Poverty Law Centery — and it all makes complete sense.
You only need to look at the organization’s educational recommendations to understand that its worldview is detached from any traditional understanding of Judaism. One strongly doubts the founders of the ADL could have foreseen their organization endorsing the idea that Jews were among the racial oppressors of American society.
Yet the ADL’s school curricula and readings on race and racism are littered with identarian tracts such as “How to Be An Antiracist” by Ibram X. Kendi, a fan of a number of brazen antisemites, and “White Fragility” by Robin DiAngelo. How can the ADL claim to fight against the defamation of the Jewish people and recommend authors who insinuate, or worse, that Jews represent a disproportionate amount of power in the United States — one of the most enduring tropes of antisemitism? The ADL also recommends the pseudohistorical 1619 Project and the podcast “The Urgency of Intersectionality” by Kimberle Crenshaw, a leading “scholar of critical race theory,” the teachings of which are also inherently anti-Jewish.
I’m not saying that many, maybe most, American Jews don’t agree with the ideological outlook of the ADL. But many do not. Nothing in Judaism teaches that our immutable appearances predetermine our societal role, actions or worth. Why is a group claiming to fight Jewish defamation spreading trendy ideological puffery? Because it is not what it says it is.
Now, the ADL, self-anointed arbiter of antisemitism, is certainly useful in providing lazy journalists with quotes confirming preexisting notions about antisemitism being largely a right-wing phenomenon. And risk-averse corporations might use them for guidance. But it has no moral standing to dictate appropriate speech. Certainly not in the name of Jews.
If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.
No.
It only speaks for those Jews who want to use the government to establish Heaven on Earth.
No. It was taken over by commie libtards.
It didn't start with Greenblatt. His predecessor Abe Foxman, supposedly an Orthodox Jew, turned it into a pro-pervert lobby. And now Foxman is turning against Israel because he doesn't approve of the new right wing government.
Even before that the ADL was anti-conservative, though the waters are muddied by many conservatives of a former era being anti-Israel (hard as that is to understand to an old Bible-thumper like me).
ADL is full of JINO commies scum. Should be disbanded.
If your rabbi can be a fat dyke, it isn’t Judaism.
Does any ethnic based organization speak for EVERYONE in that organization?
Two huge problems with ADL:
1. Communists took it over sone years ago, replacing its legitimate efforts helping people fight against antisemitic discriminations with just becoming a standard and quite boring leftist propaganda front. Of zero and sometimes quite negative value to the Jewish people needing its help.
2. It retains its name and pretends to speak for — and to help— Jewish victims of discrimination when it either ignores or actually advocates against them, this misrepresentation is dishonest
Either the commies need to be removed in favor of persons dedicated to the genuine traditional purpose of ADL, or else a new organization is desperately needed to help aggrieved Jewish people overcome the very antisemitism that the new ADL types are creating or engendering in society
I think the ADL speaks for the JINOs. “Jews In Name Only”.
Got that acronym from a coworker that is n Orthodox Jew who has said to me on several occasions:
“I despise them greatly because they are not genuinely Jewish and give real Jews a bad name. They live completely secular lives. They ridicule practicing Jews (and Christians), and do not observe our traditions or religious practices. They never go to Temple or even pray in the privacy of their own homes. There is nothing Jewish about them except for their last name and they sully the rest of us. Thus they are JINOs. They wish to destroy the lives of all Americans and hate both Christians and Jews equally. I despise them.”
True story.
over 90 percent of Jews vote democrat, support abortion on demand, support open borders, support the trans movement, and look at the number of Jews who attack Trump, attack white people in general. When you look at it that way, I’m guessing that the ADL which is an extreme left-wing hate group, does speak for the majority of Jews.
Not only “no”, but heck no. It’s just a leftist front group that uses Jews as a weapon and shield.
I’ll just leave this here:
ADL Hires Director for Jewish Outreach Who Hates Jews
https://www.frontpagemag.com/adl-hires-director-jewish-outreach-who-hates-jews-daniel-greenfield/
Jews have a history of being misdirected — RE: the Bible.
Maybe this is nothing new?
Lots of factual errors in your post. But you’ve made up your mind, so I’m not going to bother.
It sure does seem that Jews are not united in supporting Israel.
Many? most Christians, support Israel and acknowledge the fact that the Bible is written by Jews and is about Jews.
Modern Christians are not your enemy and I think that the leadership in Israel acknowledge this fact.
God Bless and yes, we believe in the same God.
While a majority of Jews do vote Democrat, it’s FAR from 90%.
Polling from the 2022 midterms estimated that Ron DeSantis got 45% of the Jewish vote. Lee Zeldin, who is Jewish himself, got about the same in his run for Governor of New York. In his case, the 45% Jewish vote was nearly the same as his vote among the total electorate of New York.
I’ll agree though that the ADL appeals to a certain constituency of VERY partisan and progressive Jews who share Jonathan Greenblatt’s crackpot politics.
The question naïvely ASSUMES that the Jews speak with one voice.
EVER.
ABOUT ANYTHING.
American Reform Jews are Demorats first Jews second.
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