NYT writer Marc Tracy on our latest podcast
Discussing his op-ed on the idea of exile
After Oct. 7, some Jews are turning away from Israel—and toward ‘diasporism’
For much of the last century, Judaism became intertwined with Zionism—the belief that Israel is our homeland and being a good Jew requires support for, if not a migration to, the nascent State of Israel. But in the aftermath of Oct. 7, a sharp uptick of North American Jews have also begun speaking out more clearly against Israel—not just its government’s actions, but against the concept of Zionism. The movement, dubbed “diasporism,” embraces the idea of exile as either a secular, socialist philosophy, or perhaps an inspiration for greater emphasis on personal religious beliefs—depending on who you’re talking to.
The concept got a splashy treatment in a New York Times feature earlier this month, as Marc Tracy, a Times reporter covering arts and culture, published a piece called “Is Israel Part of What It Means to Be Jewish?“, which digs into the phenomenon. He joins Bonjour Chai to explain what diasporism means and why it’s in the spotlight after Hamas’s murder of 1,200 people and the resulting war in Gaza.
Leftist Jews are welcome to continue to imagine that by being the dancing monkeys of antisemitic pro Palestinians they'll somehow avoid being targeted by the anti Jewish hate at the center of the alleged 'only anti Zionist criticism' of their 'allies'.
The history of the Yevsektsiya and Jewish Autonomous Oblast of the Soviet Union maps well onto diasporism, or whatever idiotic delusions antizionist Jews want to believe in.