Nothing to be gained from silence about antisemitism

We had big dreams back then. We were filled with hope, glitter, love, and rainbows. It was the 1990s. The transition from the apartheid regime to a Mandela’s African National Congress (ANC) proved that we were more similar than we were different, and that despite our painful past, the Freedom Charter, the sparkling Constitution, and more than a few good men (and women) would lead us to prosperity.

We saw the good in each other back then. And when we didn’t, we chose to remain silent, because there developed an unwritten social contract that offered a quid pro quo: much of the ugliness of years prior would be ignored in exchange for some latitude in terms of the behaviour of our newly elected politicians.

The deal worked well for a time. Until it didn’t.

Today, the rainbow is all but gone. The skies have turned grey, the wind of mistrust is blowing, and similarities are harder to find. The level of trust for the ANC from the perspective of the South African Jewish community is arguably at its lowest point.

It didn’t start in October 2023, but that’s when it became clear just how much the community was despised. Not only has the ANC remained unmoved by the murder, rape, and kidnapping of Jews, it has actively tried to curtail Israel from acting against the perpetrators. Not only did the ANC ignore the plight of a nation attacked for being Jewish, but without shame, it mourned the deaths of the “martyrs” Ismail Haniyeh, Yahya Sinwar, and Hassan Nasrallah, the architects and leaders of the collective death cult. Together with Jew hater Ronnie Kasrils, who celebrated 7 October, and Arab Barghouti, they gathered to “honour” them for giving their lives for the “people of Palestine”.

The social contract between the ANC and the Jewish community, for whatever it was worth, burned in the flames of 7 October. And yet, for some reason, the community continues to honour the terms.

In a conversation with a friend about the appalling tweets of Professor Shabir Madhi at the University of the Witwatersrand, he asked me if I thought it was wise to call them out publicly and “give them oxygen”.

The question was a valid one.

There’s a well-known principle in marketing that negative press should be removed off the front page as quickly as possible, and that there’s little value in promoting someone else’s cause. That said, when a man of his stature and power is allowed, unhindered, to repeat the vile messaging of the professor’s feed, that gives him all the oxygen he needs. When News24 leads with an article that names a Jewish family and links its son to a unit in the Israel Defense Forces that it alleges is problematic, then not challenging the platform teaches it that there are no consequences for its “doxing”.

The ANC didn’t start courting Hamas in 2023. Its relationship was well established when Dr Naledi Pandor called Hamas immediately following its attack – and before Israel responded – to offer support. We clearly erred in our treatment of the ANC by not calling out its anti-Jewish behaviour until then. Because left unimpeded, it allowed themselves to be wooed and loved by the worst that the world has to offer.

And yet we seem to be applying the same approach to media, public figures, companies, and organisations. There’s no social contract that demands that we accept antisemitism in any form. And nothing to be gained by remaining silent in the face of it.

This is war of small steps. Anti-Israel comments on an industry or professional WhatsApp group that aren’t challenged will result in this becoming the norm. A biased statement by an organisation will lead to open antisemitism, and not challenging our press, government, or professors will create an environment that’s not sustainable.

There are many in the South African community who are standing up and calling out antisemitism. But there are also many who could but aren’t doing so. Many who have the strength, the respect, and power, but who choose, for various reasons, “not to give them oxygen”. Many who mistakenly believe that this is a Jewish thing, and that being Jewish themselves, they need to consider if it’s appropriate.

The answer is that it’s not “appropriate”. It’s essential. A society that allows antisemitism bodes poorly for the future. And an environment that scapegoats Jews never succeeds.

Antisemitism needs to be called out and addressed as soon as it appears. Those who are silent need to find their voices. And those who have been seated need to stand up. It can be ugly and unpleasant. But we have been doing this for thousands of years. It will come back quicker than you think.

It’s time for us to adopt zero tolerance for Jew hatred. We didn’t ask for this. But it’s time for us to answer.