Q&A: Racism
Racism
Question
Hello Rabbi,
I heard the claim that when Jews don’t want to sit next to Arabs on the bus, that’s racism, because it generalizes that Arabs are murderers and dangerous, and that this is a stereotypical and racist claim. What do you think about that?
Answer
The concept of racism needs clarification, and I’ve dealt with this more than once here on the site and in my booklet, which is supposed to be published soon by Ivrit.
If a person is afraid of Arabs and therefore does not sit next to them, that is certainly not racism. At most, he is more fearful than is reasonable. And even if he is mistaken, that is a mistake and not racism. Being mistaken is not a moral offense. If he does not sit next to an Arab because he is Arab, regardless of any danger, that has the smell of a flaw.
Discussion on Answer
See column 445
I admit I didn’t completely understand what is meant by the statement, “And even if he is mistaken, that is a mistake and not racism.”
After all, the Nazis also thought that the Jews were racially inferior and had a harmful influence on the Germans and on humanity as a whole. Does that mean they were not racist?!
And true, there is a difference because the Nazis took practical action and tried to destroy the Jews, but they wanted to kill the Jews because they were racially inferior. The conclusion that the Jews should be killed follows naturally from the Germans’ perception of the Jews. Shouldn’t we treat that as racism?