In this episode of the Explaining History Podcast, we are joined by James Loeffler, the Felix Posen Professor of Modern Jewish History at Johns Hopkins University, to discuss his new book, An Exceptional Hatred: Antisemitism and the Fight Over Free Speech in Modern America.
The book traces a century of struggle over antisemitism and free speech in the United States, from the violent anti-Jewish riots of the 1940s to the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville in 2017, and the ferocious campus debates over Israel-Palestine today. Loeffler argues that antisemitism has always been a uniquely contested category in American life – weaponised by both the right and the left, and often used to obscure rather than clarify the fight against hate.
We explore the surprising rise of antisemitic attitudes in America after World War II and the Holocaust, the complex relationship between anti-communism and antisemitism in the 1950s, and the long history of Jews being viewed as "not quite white" – a racial ambiguity that has made them a persistent target of conspiracy theories.
The conversation also examines the politicisation of antisemitism. Today, conservatives often use the accusation of antisemitism as a weapon against the left, while some on the left dismiss legitimate concerns about antisemitism as a smokescreen for defending Israel. Loeffler argues that this instrumentalisation of hatred does a disservice to the victims of real antisemitism and creates a toxic environment where genuine debate is impossible.
Topics covered:
- The 2017 Charlottesville rally and its significance
- The history of antisemitic violence in post-WWII America
- The "Judeo-Bolshevik" conspiracy theory
- Jews, whiteness, and racial ambiguity
- The politicisation of antisemitism
- Free speech, hate speech, and the campus debates
- The Israel-Palestine conflict and its impact on American Jews
James Loeffler's An Exceptional Hatred is available from all good bookshops. Please consider buying from an independent retailer or directly from the publisher.
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