By Lafe Tolliver, Esq
Guest Column
I do not know about you, but I am disgusted and ashamed that any Black person is openly or remotely engaged in any vituperative attacks on any person (or collectively as a nation) of the Jewish faith.
We as a historically shunned, humiliated, vilified, and degraded people ought to know better that trying to use Jewish people as objects of hatred, contempt, or abuse, should be beneath our dignity and intelligence.
Any person who makes snide remarks about “Jewish” people or their habits, or financial prowess or their personal features, is engaged in a pernicious form of hatred and bigotry.
What makes this even more alarming is the fact that lies and distortions about Jewish people, as was done to Black people, comes from sources that are not informed or civil about both Jewish people and people of color.
Hatred and vile memes about Jewish people originated in ancient history due to either envy or jealousy of what they have accomplished as a collective nation; and the distortions and lies only grew in kind and degree with each passing generation.
Just when you think that such blatant hatred has been tamped down, it arises again from petty jealousies and fabricated stories of Jews being spawns of Satan and benefactors of conspiracies of overthrowing governments or their reign and rule in certain occupations or industries.
For Black people, some of those hurtful distortions stem from stories, real or imagined, that Jewish people “invaded” hapless Black communities with high rental prices or shoddy goods at exorbitant prices; or that they were tagged with the label of being moguls that controlled certain industries or professions to wit: legal, academic, Hollywood, and financial institutions.
Now, let me introduce the powder keg that historical readings would indicate that much of the angst against Jewish people is that they were the original “Christ killers.”
Disregarding the blatant facts that it was the Roman government that crucified Jesus the Christ, many people nonetheless have hung that BIG LIE on Jewish people and to this date, that moniker is still invoked in certain illiterate circles.
Without stating the obvious, Jesus was a Semite. He was a Jew of Jewish parents and he adhered to Jewish laws and customs until he introduced the concept of salvation by grace and grace (meaning unmerited favor) alone as outlined in the New Testament.
From early Roman governments and the Caesars to that of Hitler and other miscreants, the Jewish people have been the object of scorn and ridicule for their seemingly ability to occupy places of favor and influence in the above-mentioned industries and all to the envy of men and women who hate that they and not them, occupy such positions of power, influence or financial well-being.
Sorry, friend, but if your anger is directed at Jewish people because of their status, perceived or otherwise, you need to get a life and move on, because the Jew is not your enemy. You are your own enemy, and you are held captive by ignorance and envy.
And now for the second powder keg in my argument. If you profess knowing God or Jesus the Christ, you should know the Scriptures and which Scriptures talk about the Jewish people being in covenant with God and that covenant is not subject to our whims of what is right or what is wrong.
It is a God-initiated covenant that God did not consult with either you or me about and its creation from the time of Abraham (continues through to his spiritual descendants), is still intact to those who follow the Christ.
I know…I know. You feel God plays favorites with the nation of Israel being his chosen nation and that one day Jesus will even return to Jerusalem… but that is for another column.
Suffice to say that if you speak antisemitic “stuff,” you are speaking against Jesus and for the untold millions of Black people who following the Christian faith (a semitic faith and not a European/Nordic faith), you are not permitted or allowed to act or speak in a manner that demeans Jewish people.
Matter of fact, the Bible says pray for the peace of Jerusalem and also that those who bless the Jew will in turn be blessed. (You can uncover your ears now).
Hard to hear, you say? Those are not my words. Read them for yourself.
You were made in the image of God, just as the Jew is, so what gives you the right to defame or speak evil of a Jewish person?”
I am hoping that these words would be a basic 101 lesson in history that you either should know or maybe you just forgot due to the recent episodes of Kyrie Irving and Kanye West and others spouting gibberish about what they do not know of.
Jews are not our enemy. Never have been. Never should be. The history of the Jew in America is “fat” with admirable and laudable Jewish support for civil rights, black colleges, the arts, and legislation for equal treatment.
Black people who have ears attuned to voices that hyperventilate against Jewish people and wish them ill or degrade them for their accomplishments, they are not your friends.
Gently correct them and do not support their endeavors or give them any credence.
Any and all ethnic groupings in America have engaged in conduct that we could or would find harsh and oppressive but let us not blindly categorize anyone, Jews included, as being perpetually hostile to our collective goal in pursuing the common good of all.
Contact Lafe Tolliver at tolliver@juno.com