Mazinter turns Protocols of Elders into fiction

BRIAN JOSSELOWITZ

Pictured: Rodney Mazinter, author and activist

Now he has turned his hand to fiction and written a book, “By A Mighty Hand” (Quickfox). Rooted in fact it is based on the infamous canard, Protocols of the Elders of Zion, a virulently anti-Semitic document, which, while only a slim volume, still has had repercussions for Jews worldwide.

As far as can be ascertained, it is only one of two novels with the Protocols as its theme. The other one is “The Prague Cemetery” by Umberto Echo.

“I became interested in the origins of the Protocols during the Durban International Conference on Racism in 2001. I had heard about it, but it was to me another snippet of history, and consigned to the literature of the 20th century as a lesson to be learnt. I was taken aback to find that this banned publication was freely on sale at the conference,” Mazinter said.

“My interest was piqued and I started reading whatever I could find on its origins. I felt that I would like to write an article or two about this very interesting topic, when I came across the scholarly work by Hadassa Ben-Ito, a judge of the Israeli High Court, who wrote “The Lie That Wouldn’t Die”. I bought a copy and read it avidly.

“It was an eye-opener but I soon realised that a factual book on the same subject from me would be a waste of time. However, it struck me that in looking for a way of bringing this vile piece of literature to the attention of the general public, my vehicle could be a historical novel. So that’s what I did and ‘By A Mighty Hand’ is the result.”

Umberto Eco, best-known for “The Name of the Rose”, criticised the Protocols as a forgery, and finally wrote a whole novel about it. In all his books he usually mixes facts with fantasy.

“I read extracts of the Protocols out of curiosity and while researching for my book.

“I have read extensively about the origins of the Protocols, Maurice Joly’s role in it, and Tsar Nicholas II court’s plot in bringing it into being. It is the one book that has never been published in Hebrew, but into every other language in the Western and Eastern world.

“Judge Ben-Itto told me that it sold more books than the bible.”

Mazinter said he started writing “By A Mighty Hand” five years ago.

“The events are set in the 20th century and encompass both world wars and the Holocaust.

The epilogue is a poem, “Children Are Not Born to Hate”, which Mazinter wrote and which was published in Jewish Affairs last year. “Given the state of anti-Jewish propaganda being pumped out of the Middle East today, I felt that it was an appropriate end to my story.”

The Protocols of the Elders of Zion is arguably the most notorious and most successful work of modern anti-Semitism and uses popular anti-Semitic notions which began in Europe with the Crusades.

Among the libels are that Jews used the blood of Christian children for Pesach, poisoned the wells and spread the plague. These were excuses for the destruction of Jewish communities across Europe. The virulent document posits that the Protocols were drawn up at a secret meeting of Zionists, with the aim of exterminating Christians.

As Mazinter points out, it has long been proved in court that it is a fraud and forgery.

* “By A Mighty Hand” follows the fortunes of the Berg and Meckler families and the Nazi Viktor Schultz. It’s on Amazon, or e-mail mavrod@iafrica.com to order a copy.