Hate is the Most Toxic Virus in the World Today (Sarah Eklove, High School Intern)
March 2020 brought about new challenges in the world. Cities and countries began to shut down, schools and public buildings were closed, and travel was paused. The novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, turned the world on its head, and we are all feeling its effects. Israel began a strict quarantine in the earlier weeks of March and medical workers were requested and sought after. Everyone has, and is still, hurting from the virus in some capacity and we are learning how to live in the new normal.
Although the cause of COVID-19 has been identified, the media has found a way to spin it to fit their anti-Semitic rhetoric. A common theme in Jewish history is the idea that Jews are presented to be the source of all evil in this world. The Black Death of the Middle Ages mirrored this exactly. We saw persecutions due to the invalid accusations that the Jewish people were the cause of the plague. As we evolved as a nation, the hate has become less obvious and taken on many different forms, but never truly ceased to exist. The baseless attacks on Jewish people and the state of Israel are constant and this virus perfectly exemplifies the way anti-Zionism and hate for the Jewish nation takes its form in the 21st century.
Klu Klux Klan leader David Duke tweeted that global Jewry and Zionism conspire to undermine the world’s economic status. He also mentioned accusations in Turkey/Iran that Zionists created the virus as a direct attack against the Iranian people and Muslims. People are painting a picture to promote their untrue and biased facts that are meant to target the Jewish nation. Anti-Semitic hackers (also known as zoom-bombers) have been finding their way onto digital video calls, fake reports on Israel helping China to plant the virus, and many other similar incidents have occurred.
Now, what do we do? As a teenage girl who knows these claims to be false, how do I spread the word that the news and online resources are creating a hate-motivated reality? Advocate. Stand up and respond in the proper way to the biased media. Anti-Semitic and anti-Israel claims are easily spread but having counterclaims that show the real facts are important.
The coronavirus is worldwide and political, which is a perfect storm for hate to be spread. Do not let anti-Semitism and Israel hate be a virus in the world.
