Jo Salmon
19
February 13:02
On (not) being Jewish
Going to Israel last September has really changed my perception of many things, from Jewish culture to the conflict to how nice it would be to live somewhere with better weather.One unintended consequence of my 5 day trip is this: since going, three different people have assumed I am Jewish.
One, when I was in Israel (an easy mistake - I was on a trip organised by the Union of Jewish Students!).
The second time was in November at the IPSO event. I asked a question about the representation of the conflict in the British media, saying I had spent a few days in Israel back in September. When he answered my question, the guy from the Palestinian General Delegation to the UK suddenly started using the word "you" when he spoke about Israel or the Jewish people. "You" do this or "you" promised that.
Finally, a nasty far-right columnist on a nasty far-right website (no, I'm not linking to them!) has described me as "a Jewish lesbian NuLabourite". How they ended up mentioning me is a long story, but it involves a post I wrote about David Irving, which was then mentioned by someone else, and his post was picked up by the columnist....
Now, panic not, I don't care if someone thinks I'm Jewish. I'm not, but then again, I've spent my entire life being mistaken for a Christian and I'm not that either. I'm an atheist and I long to live in a secular, socialist society.
I'm bemused by my secret identity (so secret that I know nothing about it) because I can only think of one reason why this assumption has suddenly been made: I went to Israel for five days so I must be Jewish.
Is it me, or is that just part of the anti-Semitism that still plagues society? Maybe not intentional (some of the time) but there is something distasteful about the way this assumption works.
Oh, and I don't care what far-right Nazis think of me, though in conclusion, I would like to take this opportunity to refute the "NuLabourite" accusation. Bastards...
And for those of you who have been asking, I promise that one day, I will get round to blogging the rest of my trip to Israel. It's just that I can't find my notebook...
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