The StopAntisemitism.Org group, which publishes an Antisemite of the Week award, allowed voters to choose the Antisemite of the Year award. When Ilhan Omar won, Israel’s ambassador to the UN Danny Danon tweeted:
.@StopAntisemites just named Congresswoman Ilhan Omar it’s 2019 Antisemite of the Year. Here is a clear opportunity to prove that all the talk about standing up to #antisemitism is not just an empty promise, but will be followed by action. https://t.co/dxtQlnl5dQ— Ambassador Danny Danon | דני דנון (@dannydanon) January 6, 2020
Haaretz interpreted this as Israel interfering in American politics, which is a bit of a stretch.
Leftists on Twitter denounced the award for a different reason – in a year where Jews were killed in antisemitic attacks in Poway and Jersey City and attacked in Monsey and Brooklyn, it seemed political to choose Omar as the biggest antisemite of the year.
I actually agree. Omar is an antisemite, and her words and actions prove it, and she is very public about her attacks on Jews and Israel, but she was not the biggest antisemite of the year in terms of effects. Not even close.
I decided to make my own list of the top antisemites of the year.
Here are my top four antisemites of 2019:
1. The antisemite of the year 2019 would be Louis Farrakhan, whose Jew-hating philosophy was behind the Jersey City murders and is certainly at least partially responsible for the daily attacks on Jews by black youth in NYC. He is unrepentant and influential, and this year it was proven that his antisemitism is literally deadly.
2. A close second would be Qassem Soleimani, who is now being hailed by Hamas and Islamic Jihad as being instrumental in their strategy and weapons acquisition. Several Israelis (Jews and Arabs) were murdered by weapons provided by Iran to Gaza terror groups in 2019.
3. Third place is Jeremy Corbyn, whose toxic blend of virulent anti-Zionism and tolerance/condoning of traditional antisemitism in the Labour Party was undeniable. British Jews lived in real fear in 2019 because of Corbyn and his supporters; tens of thousands actually said they would uproot their lives and emigrate if he won the elections.
4. 8chan, the antisemitic online group that helped inspire John Timothy Earnest to attack Jews in synagogue in Poway, California, killing one and injuring three.
In terms of actual influence, I think my top four far outdistance Omar.
This list, which I believe is accurate, also is useful because it covers all the four major streams of antisemitism that exist today: Black antisemitism, Muslim antisemitism, Leftist antisemitism and right-wing/conspiracy theory antisemitism. They are all evil, they all affect actual people’s lives, and they show that ignoring any type of antisemitism is dangerous.
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