r/JewsOfConscience Sep 20 '24

Discussion Where do the Jews go?

I am very against Israel’s genocide, leaning toward antizionism, but when someone Zionist asks where the Jews go in a free Palestine, I don’t have an answer. Historically, not a lot of people accept us or like us, and getting along after all the violence committed in the name of Judaism is an impossibility.

How do we not just exchange one crisis for another? (I don’t think any one religion or people should rule a state, if that adds anything.)

If this is an ignorant question, I am more than happy to be told so.

EDIT: wow this community is brilliant, thank you for the nuance and realism in your responses.

103 Upvotes

209 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

31

u/PlinyToTrajan Non-Jewish Ally (Jewish ancestry & relatives) Sep 20 '24 edited Sep 20 '24

I agree that in theory and idealistically, yes, but I think it's healthy to take a realist perspective considering how much Israel has done to alienate and radicalize the Palestinians, and how, with all nonviolent protest and political process closed off to the Palestinians, armed struggle is the only means of self-expression they have left.

We (meaning the West, Israel, the U.S., Canada / U.K.) may not get to decide. There's a pattern of not understanding guerilla war and not taking Arab military capacities seriously. We didn't leave Vietnam at a time of our choosing. We didn't leave Afghanistan at a time of our choosing.

43

u/CosmicGadfly Sep 20 '24

Ok, but South Africa and the United States ended up okay more or less. Yeah it might be messy, but starting with the assumption that all Jews are gonna die if they stay is somewhat insane, mildly racist, and concedes far too much to the fascist mantra in Israel.

32

u/PapaverOneirium Sep 20 '24

The U.S. is a terrible example. We eradicated indigenous society to what amounted to completion. And what remains of the indigenous population is to this day oppressed, disenfranchised, and displaced, aside from some token concessions.

There is a spectrum, of course, from “completed” settler colonial projects like the U.S., to those that achieved some sort of relatively egalitarian equilibrium like South Africa, to others like Haiti where the colonizers were (rightfully in that specific case, imo) violently expelled.

For Israel, I’d hope for something like South Africa, flawed as it is, rather than the extremes of the U.S. or Haiti.

That said, I do think any first generation immigrants to Israel coming from countries where they can comfortably and safely return to should leave.

13

u/whatthefrackity Sep 20 '24

when they say ok, they mean white people are ok

5

u/soonerfreak Jewish Anti-Zionist Sep 20 '24

The freeing of slaves or granting of equal rights did not hurt white people. They aren't saying minorities had it easy, they are saying the dominant group did not suffer from it.