Anti-Semitism: One Jew's perspective about recent events (long read)

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28. The language can be problematic precisely because there is substantial discrimination

against other Semites. Much bigotry against Arabs exists in western countries and also in Israel or in Iran, where Arabs are a form of underclass.

If, now, in the context of discussions of anti-Semitism, an Arabic person who experiences discrimination were to point out "I'm a Semite", they would be linguistically correct to do so. But the OP would classify that as an instance of bigotry.

This is not an academic example. The only few times I have in fact seen this distinction become relevant in practice were precisely cases in which a person of Arabic origin attempted to claim the term "anti-Semitism" for themselves to describe a factually existing discrimination against them. If the OP classifies such as an act of bigotry one could then argue that this in turn is minimizing the experience of said individual. In short, the imprecise use of language can be problematic because some may see it as an attempt to downplay discrimination against other individuals against which discrimination also factually exists (as in "Semites, but not the kind that you are&quot .

As for the second point: There have been plenty of threads on DU (seemingly by a faction that lost their shit because Bernie Sanders used the phrase "identity politics", but I digress...) where people have invoked white supremacy in an attempt to "provide a broader perspective" on, for instance, events like the assassination of police at a BLM protest or riots as a response to police violence. So no, it is not only about language. It is ultimately about the dynamics of power and violence. I'd be interested in the OPs take on said events. Should we ever acknowledge that such a broader perspective for attitudes or behaviors may exist? Or is it "bigotry against whites" to express that people in certain African American communities had solid reasons to engage in rioting?