OPINION | Joshua Marcus: SAJFP part of a proud history of anti-Zionist Judaism

Joshua Marcus, a member of SA Jews for a Free Palestine, responds to the SAJBD's David Saks, writing that he has conflated Zionism and Judaism by attempting to turn every criticism of Israel into an argument about antisemitism, distracting from what is happening in Palestine, while presenting a blatantly distorted image of what it means to be a Jew. 

The South African Jewish Board of Deputies is once again trying to delegitimise the struggle for a free Palestine and the call to end Israel's genocide, this time by attacking anti-Zionist Jews – with SAJFP as its particular target.

This is a tactic Zionists everywhere have used for centuries. By conflating Zionism and Judaism, Zionists attempt to turn every criticism of Israel into an argument about antisemitism, distracting from the ongoing apartheid, settler colonialism, and genocide in Palestine while presenting a blatantly distorted image of what it means to be a Jew.