The Uses of Antisemitism Mike Rappaport

Nelson Ascher writes:

Besides being anti-Semitic themselves, the Nazis used anti-Semitismbrilliantly to subvert other countries and societies. Though Nazism was(among other things) a form of German expansionism, wherever there wereanti-Semites the Germans would also find collaborators. Anti-Semitismwas used by the Germans to undermine from the inside countries,societies and armies that could or would stand up to them.

The Nazis managed to convince millions and millions of Frenchmen andPoles, Belgians, Norwegians etc. and, yes, Brits and Americans that,since they were fighting a common enemy, the Jews, they weren t reallythe mortal enemies of France and Poland and Belgium and Norway andEngland and the US. Untold millions were eager to believe that Germanywasn t really threatening them and their countries, that the Germansdidn t really want to conquer, exploit and kill them. Why? Because theyeither thought that they could make a common cause with the Nazisagainst the Jews, or remained indifferent, neutral and defenselessbecause, being indifferent to the fate of the Jews, they believed itwas none of their problem. Many of them even turned against those intheir own countries who wanted to fight the Nazis and blamed them forputting everyone else in danger just to protect the Jews .

That s just what is happening once again before our very eyes. Thoughthe Jihadists have their own clear, even megalomaniac goals, and whilethey kill thousands in the US or fight for Shari a in Europe, whilethey complain about East Timor or fight for Kashmir, it is enough forthem to involve the Jews, particularly Israel, in their struggle ortheir declared agenda to get the active support or at least theindifference of those in Europe, the US and elsewhere who would like tobelieve that their complaints, grievances and goals are restricted toor only motivated by Israel. Of course, they also declare they refighting against America, but then, for those who hate America anyway(and often the Jews and/or Israel too), the same logic works perfectly.

This is an important piece.  Putting aside for a second how much anti-semitism there is now, it seems quite clear that it is being used for political purposes once again.

How much anti-semitism is there?  My guess is there is a great deal in the Islamic World (as well as hatred of Christians) and there is a significant amount in many countries of Europe including Britain and France.  But I don’t think there is much in evidence in the United States.  That was not the case before World War II and even into the 1960s.  But, now, there just does not seem to be much.  Hopefully things will stay that way.

Update: Matt in the comments raises some good questions about Ascher’s claims.  Still, rereading the excerpt, I have little doubt that antisemitism reduced the criticism of the National Socialists and increased their support.  The only question is how much of an influence it had.  Based on what I know about the period, I don’t believe it was unimportant.  Interestingly, I am quite confident that today anti-semitism and similar hates are a significant obstacle to Israel.  It would be surprising and interesting if it were less so during the 30s.