Echoes in the culture war against the West – The Jewish Star
By Melanie Phillips
In Britain, statues of historical figures associated with colonialism or slavery are being pulled down or slated for removal. This is to appease the Black Lives Matters activists and their supporters, both black and white, who have seized upon the appalling death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody to claim that Western society is fundamentally racist.
The destruction of these statues and similar artifacts, which are part of the cultural memory of a civilization, inescapably calls to mind another act of cultural extermination the Nazi regimes burning of books in the 1930s. They threw into the fire books by Jewish, socialist, liberal or any other authors they deemed to be inimical to Nazi ideology. They did this to erase a Western culture they wanted to destroy and replace by their own horrific ideas.
The removal of Britains statues is not just a protest against racism. Its an attempt to destroy an entire culture and replace it by a society organized according to an unchallengeable dogma.
Of course, theres anti-black, racial prejudice in America and Britain. Theres also vicious black anti-Semitism, just as there are black people who are deeply sympathetic to the Jewish people and Jews who are prejudiced against black people.
The point is that racial prejudice exists in every single society, in the developing world as well as in the west. To single out the West as endemically racist is therefore a gross double standard and calumny.
As usual, however, liberal Jews have taken the wrong side in this most explosive development of the culture wars against the West. Having fully internalized the inversion of truth and lies, victim and oppressor involved in identity politics, they have uncritically embraced black victimology, which casts black people as the invariable victims of white society, and championed the agenda and values of Black Lives Matter.
Endorsing that groups representation of its own anti-white, racist, anti-Semitic animus as anti-racism, they have also engaged in the vicious demonization of anyone who dares call out BLM activists for what they really are.
After the Zionist Organization of America president Mort Klein denounced BLM on Twitter as a a Jew hating, White hating, Israel hating, conservative Black hating, violence promoting, dangerous Soros funded extremist group of haters, Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union of Reform Judaism, denounced him as a racist and tried to get the ZOA kicked out of the influential Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations.
In Britain, the Board of Deputies of British Jews has set up a commission to investigate racial prejudice within the Jewish community. It isnt clear whether this is to be confined to alleged racism by the community towards its tiny number of black Jews or whether it will cover alleged community racism towards non-Jews.
There may be instances of community prejudice against some black Jews or Jews married to black people. Those who have experienced the isolation and rejection resulting from this deserve sympathy, and it is a worthy aim to seek to address it. However, the context in which this inquiry has been launched is not auspicious.
In both Britain and America, anyone who criticizes black victimology for its anti-white, anti-Jewish, insurrectionist or subjectively suspect side is called a racist. A Twitter mob then assembles to strip such people of their reputation, platform or job for the crime of telling the truth.
In an atmosphere redolent of the 17th-century Salem witch trials, the risk is that the Board of Deputies may have appointed a hanging jury to find Britains Jewish community guilty under rigged cultural rules. If so, this would be yet another example of the board taking a knee to people with a rotten agenda, but who have the power to dictate the terms of public debate.
Its not just that many liberal Jews are on the wrong side of this titanic struggle to defend civilization.
Its not even that they dont recognize the danger to themselves from an agenda of destroying a culture whose roots lie in the Hebrew Bible. Its also a striking fact that the tactics now being used in this ramped-up onslaught against the west are mirrored in the attempt to bring down the State of Israel.
Pulling down the statues is the physical manifestation of the decades-long attempt, through the hijack of the education system, to destroy the West by erasing the record of its achievements and presenting it instead as intrinsically racist, colonialist and evil.
In Israel, Palestinians have systematically vandalized archeological digs in Jerusalem in order to tip into the garbage excavated materials containing possibly priceless artifacts. They do this to destroy the evidence that is constantly being dug up of the ancient kingdom of Israel and thus the unique claim of the Jews to the land. By attacking these ancient items, they are physically trying to erase the Jews own history.
Black victimology routinely blames others for all disadvantage suffered by black people, denying the part the played by chance, misfortune or their own behavior, while claiming moral impunity as victims for any wrongs they may themselves do.
Palestinians blame Israel for all their misfortune, falsely accusing it of driving them out of their homeland and denying them their own state.
At the same time, they deny their century-old war to destroy the Jewish homeland and have always refused the offer of a Palestine state that has been repeatedly made to them ever since the 1930s.
BLM activists smear Western society with distorted claims about slavery and oppression in order to both facilitate and obscure their real agenda of overturning white capitalist society.
Palestinians smear Israel with false claims about occupation and oppression in order to both facilitate and obscure their real agenda of wiping Israel off the map.
Anti-white racists project their own offense of racism onto others, falsely accusing anyone who criticizes the sinister agenda of black victimology of being a racist.
Palestinians, whose aim is a Palestine state from which all Jewish residents of the land would be driven out, project their own agenda of racist ethnic cleansing onto Israel, which they accuse with malicious and demonstrable absurdity of committing genocide against the Palestinians.
BLM supporters who single out the West as the endemically racist perpetrators of slavery while ignoring the same or worse in the rest of the world subject the West to a double standard.
Palestinians and their supporters who single out Israel as a human-rights abuser while ignoring Palestinian anti-woman, anti-gay, anti-free-speech and other human-rights abuses, as well as ignoring the human-rights abuses of the other tyrannies and terrorist regimes of the world, are practicing a double standard straight out of the anti-Semitism playbook.
Palestinianism is the poster cause of Western progressives. It is no coincidence that the tactics being used in the culture war against the West turn out to be the same tactics used against Israel.
What starts with the Jews never stops with the Jews. In this current mayhem on the streets of America and Britain, so it is now playing out before our horrified eyes.
Melanie Phillips is a British journalist, broadcaster and author.
View post:
Echoes in the culture war against the West - The Jewish Star
- Opinion | The culture wars: Trumps takeover of the Kennedy Center - Toronto Star - July 4th, 2025 [July 4th, 2025]
- Walter Kim: Reaching Every GenerationCuriosity, Connection, & Culture Wars - ChurchLeaders - July 4th, 2025 [July 4th, 2025]
- From Cornbread to Culture Wars - iHeart - July 2nd, 2025 [July 2nd, 2025]
- As a visibly Muslim woman, I'm so tired of bearing the brunt of the UK's toxic culture wars - Glamour UK - June 29th, 2025 [June 29th, 2025]
- Eamon Ryan: We cant afford to let the climate crisis get swallowed up in the culture wars - The Irish Times - June 24th, 2025 [June 24th, 2025]
- Bikinis and burgers: How the culture wars are remaking advertising - AFR - June 20th, 2025 [June 20th, 2025]
- Conservatives lose culture wars because they don't show up - Washington Examiner - June 20th, 2025 [June 20th, 2025]
- Revolutionary Ideas || Marxism and Culture Wars: How We Fight Oppression - International Socialist Alternative - June 20th, 2025 [June 20th, 2025]
- The dangers of imported American culture wars on Scottish women's rights - TheNational.scot - June 20th, 2025 [June 20th, 2025]
- Paul Elie on Culture Wars in Music and Art - Christianity Today - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- Co-Learning Intersectionality and Social Justice during Culture Wars - E-International Relations - June 12th, 2025 [June 12th, 2025]
- How the word womyn dragged the National Spelling Bee into the US culture wars - The Guardian - May 28th, 2025 [May 28th, 2025]
- EDITORIAL | Student Speech: Schools that wade into culture wars should expect pushback - Texarkana Gazette - May 28th, 2025 [May 28th, 2025]
- Jerry Falwell and the Chistian Culture Wars - CounterPunch.org - May 28th, 2025 [May 28th, 2025]
- Kudlow: President Trump Is Gradually Winning The Culture Wars - Real Clear Politics - May 24th, 2025 [May 24th, 2025]
- Larry Kudlow: Trump is gradually winning the culture wars, but much more must be done - Fox Business - May 24th, 2025 [May 24th, 2025]
- Here come the culture wars: can Queenslands LNP resist wading into the ideological mire? - The Guardian - May 24th, 2025 [May 24th, 2025]
- Trump Is Gradually Winning the Culture Wars but Much More Must Be Done - The New York Sun - May 24th, 2025 [May 24th, 2025]
- From Barbiecore to the Culture Wars: Alex Clarks Podcast Pivot Exposes the Right-Wing Media Machine - CEO Today - May 24th, 2025 [May 24th, 2025]
- John Rustad: It's time for B.C. NDP to end culture wars and wedge politics - Vancouver Sun - May 24th, 2025 [May 24th, 2025]
- Gary Lineker, the culture wars and why his BBC exit became a sad inevitability - The Athletic - The New York Times - May 24th, 2025 [May 24th, 2025]
- Why culture wars and anti-wokeness is really nothing new - NZ Herald - May 15th, 2025 [May 15th, 2025]
- In the way it addresses culture wars, Labor is acting more like a truly liberal party - ABC Religion & Ethics - Australian Broadcasting... - May 15th, 2025 [May 15th, 2025]
- Religious freedom laws: Albanese has shied from culture wars. This one waits for him when parliament resumes - The Sydney Morning Herald - May 15th, 2025 [May 15th, 2025]
- Trumps firing of Hayden brings culture wars to the Library of Congress - Baltimore Sun - May 15th, 2025 [May 15th, 2025]
- Culture comes first in cybersecurity. That puts cybersecurity on the front line in the culture wars - theregister.com - May 8th, 2025 [May 8th, 2025]
- While His Admin Delights In The Culture Wars, Trump Tiptoes Around Abortion. At Least For Now. - Talking Points Memo - May 8th, 2025 [May 8th, 2025]
- Australians have soundly rejected Trump-style culture wars. Now Albanese must act with courage and vision - The Guardian - May 8th, 2025 [May 8th, 2025]
- Culture wars, political polarization and deepening inequality: the roots of Trumpism - The Conversation - May 8th, 2025 [May 8th, 2025]
- THE OCEANSIDER: An Aside About the School Board Elections Culture Wars Trickle Down to Tillamook - Tillamook County Pioneer - May 8th, 2025 [May 8th, 2025]
- OPINION: Book bans draw libraries into damaging culture wars that undermine their purpose - The Hechinger Report - May 8th, 2025 [May 8th, 2025]
- PG Tips enters the tea culture wars with NCA - More About Advertising - May 8th, 2025 [May 8th, 2025]
- Debate over partisanship, culture wars in Mansfield ISD at center of school board race - Fort Worth Report - May 3rd, 2025 [May 3rd, 2025]
- Oklahoma Watch: The Supreme Court had classroom culture wars on top of mind in oral arguments - Duncan Banner - May 3rd, 2025 [May 3rd, 2025]
- The Supreme Court Had Classroom Culture Wars on Top of Mind in Oral Arguments - notus.org - May 3rd, 2025 [May 3rd, 2025]
- Culture wars and costings: election special podcast with Michelle Grattan and Amanda Dunn - The Conversation - May 3rd, 2025 [May 3rd, 2025]
- Online pile-ons and culture wars: how did we get here? - The Sydney Morning Herald - May 3rd, 2025 [May 3rd, 2025]
- Opinion | Can the Catholic Church Quit the Culture Wars? - The New York Times - April 30th, 2025 [April 30th, 2025]
- Morning Mail: Dutton switches to culture wars in last debate; Canada heartbroken after car ramming; Liverpool win league - The Guardian - April 30th, 2025 [April 30th, 2025]
- How your showerhead and fridge got roped into the culture wars - Grist.org - April 30th, 2025 [April 30th, 2025]
- Libraries have been in the crosshairs of culture wars throughout history - Houston Public Media - April 30th, 2025 [April 30th, 2025]
- Symbol of Injustice and the culture wars: Volleyball trans athlete and her teammates are caught in the middle - Genetic Literacy Project - April 30th, 2025 [April 30th, 2025]
- Fundamentalists in the Public Square: Evolution, Alcohol, and Culture Wars after the Scopes Trial - The Gospel Coalition - April 30th, 2025 [April 30th, 2025]
- Culture Wars talk New Single Typical Ways, And New Upcoming Album - Soundsphere magazine - April 30th, 2025 [April 30th, 2025]
- Can culture wars win elections? - Australian Broadcasting Corporation - April 30th, 2025 [April 30th, 2025]
- Peter Dutton flicks switch to culture wars as cost of living proves tough egg to crack - The Guardian - April 30th, 2025 [April 30th, 2025]
- VIDEO: Costings and culture wars as last week begins - Australian Broadcasting Corporation - April 30th, 2025 [April 30th, 2025]
- Justices Consider the Culture Wars During LGTBQ Storybook Hearing - Law.com - April 30th, 2025 [April 30th, 2025]
- Laura Tingle's Election: polls and culture wars in the final week - Australian Broadcasting Corporation - April 30th, 2025 [April 30th, 2025]
- Capitol Update: Rep. Brandon Woodard says GOP put culture wars over real solutions this session - Johnson County Post - April 21st, 2025 [April 21st, 2025]
- How Emerging Adults Have Historically Responded To Culture Wars - Forbes - April 21st, 2025 [April 21st, 2025]
- Campfire and culture wars: the history of the American summer camp - MSN - April 21st, 2025 [April 21st, 2025]
- The charts that show youngsters are rejecting the Lefts culture wars - The Telegraph - April 3rd, 2025 [April 3rd, 2025]
- Beyond the culture wars: How mysticism can get us beyond polarisation - Catholic Outlook - April 3rd, 2025 [April 3rd, 2025]
- Work and money worry young people more than culture wars or climate, UK poll finds - The Guardian - April 1st, 2025 [April 1st, 2025]
- Ag Secretary Uses Purse Strings to Press Culture Wars in States - DTN Progressive Farmer - April 1st, 2025 [April 1st, 2025]
- Lionel Shriver: Trump has ended US culture wars but UK is lagging - The Times - April 1st, 2025 [April 1st, 2025]
- No 10 happy to dip its toe into culture wars in row with Sentencing Council - The Guardian - April 1st, 2025 [April 1st, 2025]
- Canada ditches divisive culture wars for focused hyper-nationalism thanks to Donald Trump - Daily Maverick - April 1st, 2025 [April 1st, 2025]
- Disneys New Snow White Film Fights Culture Wars and Wins - Bloomberg - March 22nd, 2025 [March 22nd, 2025]
- Culture wars reach the classroom: What is the best way to teach children about gender and identity? - The Irish Times - March 22nd, 2025 [March 22nd, 2025]
- 'I thought we were done with the culture wars': Democrats push back on measure clarifying what makes school books 'harmful to minors' - Creative... - March 22nd, 2025 [March 22nd, 2025]
- Letter: Culture wars drove me away from the GOP - Bangor Daily News - March 9th, 2025 [March 9th, 2025]
- Beth Ann Rosica: Pennsylvania culture wars to be waged in the courtroom - Broad + Liberty - March 9th, 2025 [March 9th, 2025]
- I have a pathological need to be right: Ash Sarkar on culture wars, controversy and Corbyns lost legacy - The Guardian - March 7th, 2025 [March 7th, 2025]
- Alex Gibney to Exec Produce Doc About College Culture Wars and Freedom of Speech (EXCLUSIVE) - Variety - March 7th, 2025 [March 7th, 2025]
- Embrace of authoritarianism in US fueled by culture wars more than economy, study finds - The University of Kansas - March 7th, 2025 [March 7th, 2025]
- Memo to Hollywood: Theres No Running or Hiding From the Culture Wars - TheWrap - March 7th, 2025 [March 7th, 2025]
- Culture wars reach warfighters as area military bases ordered to scrub online content - Fredericksburg Free Press - March 7th, 2025 [March 7th, 2025]
- The WA election campaign has been about big promises, but culture wars are inescapable in contemporary politics - The Conversation Indonesia - March 7th, 2025 [March 7th, 2025]
- How the Right Hijacked the Working Class for Culture Wars - Social Europe - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Culture wars: Trumps takeover of arts is straight from the dictator playbook - The Guardian - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- A correspondence from the Culture Wars - Carter County Times - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Hands on Wisconsin: School children are pawns in the culture wars - The Daily News - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Is a Trump backlash on its way? Well, eggs are as expensive as ever and you cant eat the culture wars - The Guardian - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- How Donald Trump and his MAGA inner circle plan to win the culture wars - New York Post - February 9th, 2025 [February 9th, 2025]
- Gaming Is Becoming More Diverse, Opening a New Front in the Culture Wars - New Lines Magazine - February 9th, 2025 [February 9th, 2025]
- The Creed vs. the culture wars: Hunkered down in the Catholic demilitarized zone - America: The Jesuit Review - February 9th, 2025 [February 9th, 2025]
- The Guardian view on class politics: it has faded as culture wars have risen | Editorial - The Guardian - February 9th, 2025 [February 9th, 2025]
- US spending suggests that Irish culture wars are indeed imported by the Left - Gript - February 9th, 2025 [February 9th, 2025]