Reply to How does Trayon White still have a job?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=jsteele][quote=Anonymous]I'm the other poster who still feels strongly that White is anti-semitic.

I am unclear why whether or not he intends to be anti-semitic matters much. As I said earlier, what's missing for me is an indication that he sees the kind of anti-semitism that is so pervasive that it could reach someone who couldn't care less about Jews in the form of conspiracy theories about controlling the weather as a BIG DEAL. I don't see that; haven't heard it..[/quote]

I think that "anti-Semitism" and a failure to acknowledge the pervasiveness of anti-Semitism are two different things. Note, that "failure to acknowledge" is different than "deny". If White denied that anti-Semitism is pervasive, I would agree with you. But, I think simply not being informed about the topic is different and is not anti-Semitic. I think White has taken a number of steps to become more informed.

[quote=Anonymous]
Someone who did see it as a big deal would have stuck out the tour, WaPo reporter or not, and then issued a statement that made that reporter look like an ass for doubting his sincerity. Instead, White is annoyed that his PR tour was derailed, and is commenting on that.
[/quote]

I think you are being unfair to deride the visit as a simple PR tour. White closed his office and brought his entire staff to the museum. Rabbi Glazer said that White was "very sincere in wanting to come here.".

[quote=Anonymous]
Again, I don't care about White much at all. I care about the fact that we seem to have all come to understand that racism is so baked into our culture that it is easy to do racist things without intending to do them, and that the response should be self-reflection, not defensiveness. We don't seem to want to admit the same about anti-semitism, and as a result, it is free to grow.
[/quote]

When White's initial comments were publicized, there was a huge outcry from all quarters. White was self-reflective and he engaged in dialogue with Jews and Jewish groups. His visit to the museum was part of that experience. If anti-Semitism were free to grow as you suggest, there would have been no outcry, no apology from White, no seders, and no visit to the museum. You are just wrong in your analysis.

[quote=Anonymous]
As for "the facts on the ground" not supporting it, again, I will admit Jews may be hyper-sensitive to this since we were similarly successful and assimilated in Europe in the 1920s and 30s, and we all know how that turned out. If you're not sure, you could ask the people who are still alive today who lived through it. It's the casual anti-semitism that left unchecked grows into formal anti-semitism, probably these days starting in the form of asking American Jews to disavow Israel, and then working to get the gov't to sign on.[/quote]

Jews have a right to be concerned that conspiracy theories lodged in anti-Semitism are being spread by the likes of Trayon White. You certainly have a right to be concerned about the Nation of Islam and its inroads in DC. I would argue that non-Jews such as myself should also be concerned. However, it is also important to differentiate between actual anti-Semitism and actions that might trouble you -- such as leaving a museum tour or supporting Palestinians -- that aren't anti-Semitic.
[/quote]

Why should the Nation of Islam inroads in DC be concerning ?[/quote]
Because it's an anti-Jew, anti-white hate group whose leader advocates killing of people who aren't black. You don't think spreading that tyoe of vitriol is a bad thing?[/quote]

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