In the last 24 hours, I’ve come to realize that a silent cultural divide has been growing since Sept. 11, 2001. It is dividing our country emotionally, intellectually and spiritually. Since the only way to come to an understanding regarding any issue is to be aware of and respect the perceptions of all of the people involved, I’ve been talking with a wide variety of people regarding this issue. What concerns me is the unity and disunity of the responses. Almost everyone I’ve related the incident to who is not Jewish had a mild reaction to the incident and the most extreme reaction was: “Well, that wasn’t the smartest way to communicate his anger at the Israeli government.” However, almost everyone I’ve related the incident to who is Jewish has had a virulent reaction and called Isaiah everything from a Nazi to a pervert. If what I’ve described above isn’t a cultural divide I don’t know what is.
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As a result of this divide, the Jewish Defense League has seriously misunderstood the actions of the president of the Bakersfield College Democrats, Isaiah Perez. In their oversimplification of his symbolic act, they have confused condemnation of what he considers to be an abusive government as condemnation of an entire culture, ethnic identity and system of beliefs. Isaiah does not feel that the government of Israel represents the people of Israel nor does he feel that the government of Israel represents the Jewish people who live on every continent of the Earth. Isaiah is one of the most compassionate people I have ever met — he can’t help but feel empathy for everyone involved in the conflict — especially the side that he sees as losing the most on a daily basis. He felt that he had to make a statement about the Israeli government and he chose to make a symbolic statement. Anyone who bothered to ask Isaiah the meaning of his symbolic statement immediately learned that he had great compassion for the people of Israel as well as the Palestinian people and he was simply making a statement about several specific actions made by the government of Israel. Once you understand the context, it isn’t difficult to understand why the Star of David was crossed off the flag — he felt that a symbol that sacred shouldn’t be polluted by the actions of what he considers to be a corrupt and dangerous government.
The club has no official position on Isaiah’s action. We haven’t yet discussed it and we haven’t taken a vote. However, as the adviser of the Bakersfield College Democratic Club, I stand behind Isaiah’s right to express his anger at a situation that he feels is out of control. Isaiah is not, by any stretch of the imagination, anti-Semitic, but even if he was, it would be my responsibility as an advocate of the First Amendment to defend his right to express himself no matter how repugnant that expression might be to me.
However, having spent the last several hours talking to most of my Jewish friends and one of my Jewish relatives, I think the BC Democrats need to sponsor a teach-in on the frightening increase of anti-Semitism since 9-11. We have had at least three forums on Islam since 9-11 and a teach-in for peace in Israel but, to my knowledge, we haven’t really brought any Jewish perspectives onto our campus in all of that time.
I think that what we are experiencing on our campus is endemic to liberals/progressives/Democrats nationwide right now. We have become ultrasensitized to the Islamic perspective because we truly believe that all people should have a fair chance based on their own merits and not the actions of people who just look like them/have the same general beliefs or are from the same region. As a result of this ultrasensitization, we seem to have become entirely desensitized to Jewish perspectives and experience in the world in the past few years. These perspectives are also entirely missing from the mainstream media at the moment. I did a news search a few minutes ago and learned how entirely ignorant I am regarding the violence against Jews that has been growing over the last few years. In Europe, violence is more widespread right now than at any time since World War II. Synagogues have been burned to the ground and violence against Jews in America is also increasing. This horrifying news makes it to The Associated Press but not to the local print sources and not even to the national TV news media. No wonder Jewish people would think that our student was an anti-Semitist — he unknowingly performed the same act that many anti-Semitists in Germany have this year. Isaiah isn’t an anti-Semitist but, in an environment in which people feel that their suffering has become invisible even the most rational people jump to conclusions. As my uncle said on the phone on Wednesday night — if it walks like a duck and talks like a duck — it’s a duck. My response — what if it is another animal entirely, has never seen a duck and has no idea that it could be accused of being a duck?
Here in Bakersfield, our Jewish community is almost entirely invisible. We have a temple but no one really knows that we have a Jewish community. To say that we are sheltered would be irresponsible. We can’t just discuss the need for a dialogue on the “cultural wars,” we have to begin a serious, well-reasoned dialogue now. It is really up to the students of the BC Democrats whether they want to host a forum on the increase of anti-Semitism. I chatted with Isaiah online last Wednesday night and shared this with him. As I was proofreading this letter, he responded that we should schedule the event as soon as possible — he was also shocked by his ignorance. I will talk with the rest of the club and encourage them to host an event. If they decide to do so, I will contact the Anti-Defamation League and our local rabbi immediately to set a date. If the students decide not to host the event I will consult with my department to begin this vital public dialogue.
— Acosta is a speech instructor and adviser to the Bakersfield College Democratic Club.