Being a Palestinian-German means carrying a double-burden: the burden of systemic racism, and the burden of Germany’s dark past.
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz has run a fascinating long report this week offering a disturbing snapshot of the political climate rapidly emerging across Europe on the issue of antisemitism. The article documents a kind of cultural, political and intellectual reign of terror in Germany since the parliament passed a resolution last year equating support for non-violent boycotts of Israel – in solidarity with Palestinians oppressed by Israel – with antisemitism.
Jewish scholars defend Achille Mbembe, one of the most important intellectuals in Africa, from attack by Germany’s antisemitism commissioner, Felix Klein. Klein, they say, is seeking to curb free speech about Israel and “is clearly obsessed by the
BDS campaign.”