Hello! I’m here with your regular reminder that Muslim-Americans aren’t Hamas and Jewish-Americans are not Israeli, have a hell of a lot more in common with other Americans than anyone on the other side of the world, and just want to live their lives as well as they can, safely.
Muslim-Americans and Jewish-Americans are not foreigners in America. The first Jews came to North America in 1654, escaping Spanish persecution. The first Muslim was brought to North America against his will as a slave in 1527. Jews and Muslims have been in America longer than many of the people who persecute them for being foreigners.
I live among the 2nd largest Muslim population in Michigan, and have not seen an increase in the number of Palestinian flags (but I probably would have misidentified them before October), nor any anti-Israel or anti-Jewish sentiment. They may be demonstrating in Dearborn, but nothing happening here.
I guess my point was that I haven’t seen an increase in violence or hatred among a population that’s routinely slandered as being violent or hateful.
I don’t think those are the ones whose hatred is increasing and I also don’t think it’s Muslim-Americans attacking Jewish-Americans or vice-versa. It’s a third party who hates one, the other, or both and are emboldened by this war.
I’m Jewish. Every Muslim I have ever met who was born in this country has been far more like me than any Israeli I have ever met, because we have both spent our entire lives steeped in the exact same American culture. And I think they realize that and so do we. We aren’t attacking each other, at least not generally. Because we aren’t the ones generally making these assumptions that Jews are Israeli and Muslims are Hamas. Even the Jews who support Israel and the Muslims who support Hamas who live in the U.S. don’t think those things are universally true in their communities.
I’ve seen a massive uptick in anti-Israel sentiment but not in anti-semitism
