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Whatever Happened to Antisemitism?: Redefinition and the Myth of the 'Collective Jew'
'This elegantly written, erudite book is essential reading for all of us, whatever our identifications' - Lynne Segal
Antisemitism is one of the most controversial topics of our time. The public, academics, journalists, activists and Jewish people themselves are divided over its meaning. Antony Lerman shows that this is a result of a 30-year process of redefinition of the phenomenon, casting Israel, problematically defined as the 'persecuted collective Jew', as one of its main targets.
This political project has taken the notion of the 'new antisemitism' and codified it in the flawed International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's 'working definition' of antisemitism. This text is the glue holding together an international network comprising the Israeli government, pro-Israel advocacy groups, Zionist organizations, Jewish communal defence bodies and sympathetic governments fighting a war against those who would criticize Israel.
The consequences of this redefinition have been alarming, supressing free speech on Palestine/Israel, legitimizing Islamophobic right-wing forces, and politicizing principled opposition to antisemitism.
Antisemitism is one of the most controversial topics of our time. The public, academics, journalists, activists and Jewish people themselves are divided over its meaning. Antony Lerman shows that this is a result of a 30-year process of redefinition of the phenomenon, casting Israel, problematically defined as the 'persecuted collective Jew', as one of its main targets.
This political project has taken the notion of the 'new antisemitism' and codified it in the flawed International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's 'working definition' of antisemitism. This text is the glue holding together an international network comprising the Israeli government, pro-Israel advocacy groups, Zionist organizations, Jewish communal defence bodies and sympathetic governments fighting a war against those who would criticize Israel.
The consequences of this redefinition have been alarming, supressing free speech on Palestine/Israel, legitimizing Islamophobic right-wing forces, and politicizing principled opposition to antisemitism.
336 pages, Paperback
Published June 20, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 6, 2026
A well-informed work with lots of references exploring the "new antisemitism" and its various definitions. Recent investigations into examples like Corbyn's Labour, were particularly interesting. Overall I found it hard to engage with this particular style of non-fiction but glad I persevered.
December 15, 2024
A really interesting and necessary book that looks at how antisemitism has been defined in the last 70 years and how those definitions is implemented within the current geopolitical considerations.
April 6, 2025
The writing was horrible on a sentence by sentence level (IMO). Way too repetitive on simple concepts.
Totally agreed with the message, and brought a TON of detailed facts to back it up.
Totally agreed with the message, and brought a TON of detailed facts to back it up.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews