A recently discovered article by Winston Churchill has cast him a rather unflattering light. It seems to indicate that Churchill’s perception of the Jewish people was of a type that is typically negative and stereotypical. It contains phrases and description one often hears today from some of the most extreme fringe elements in American society, like the KKK or the Neo Nazis. Or any of the "holocaust revisionist" crowd:
"Every Jewish moneylender recalls Shylock and the idea of the Jews as usurers. And you cannot reasonably expect a struggling clerk or shopkeeper, paying 40 or 50 per cent interest on borrowed money to a 'Hebrew Bloodsucker'
And, it seems that this document is not the only instance of anti-semtic references by Churchill. He had on nan earlier occasion referred “to the Russian Bolshevik leadership as "Semitic conspirators" and "Jew Commissars.”
But as is the case with many non Jews who harbor such stereotypes about us, his hatred was not really translated into action. There has been criticism of Churchill not doing enough to help the plight of Jews during the holocaust. He should have been more forthcoming during the holocaust with respect to allowing the British mandatatory in Palestine to open its doors to refugees. The blame, however, cannot be laid entirely at his feet. He had to deal with a British bureaucracy that was at least as inherently anti-Semitic as FDR’s State department. But the truth is that he was appalled by what was happening to the Jews of Europe and unable to really do anything about it politically. Churchill redeemed himself somewhat by his strong support for the State of Israel:
“Churchill supported the Zionist cause throughout his career, often vigorously so and in the face of fierce opposition within his own cabinet.”
And this is true about many of our friends throughout history. In many cases where not so latent anti-Semitic feelings existed, actions spoke louder than words. Harry Truman and Richard Nixon come to mind. Both harbored internal feelings of anti-Semitism and expressed them often in private. This has been documented. But when the need was there, both men unflinchingly lent their support to the Jewish people.
There has always been a latent anti-Semitism in the world. Esav Sonei L’Yaakov in not a modern day invention. Those words were written almost a thousand years ago by Rabbi Shlomo Itzchaki, better know as Rashi. And throughout the history of the Jewish people in the diaspora, those feelings were acted upon, sometimes with a vengeance that reflected the Tochacha, that portion of the Torah that tells of how the Jewish people will fare if they do not listen to the word of God.
Until our present era post holocaust this hatred had existed both in overt and latent forms. As Rabbi Aaron Soloveichik points out in his book “Logic of the Heart, Logic of the Mind”, even Thomas Masaryk who was considered a righteous gentile by his generation, once admitted to a confidant that here was still latent prejudice against Jews in his heart, .
So was Churchill an anti-Semite? Not in any meaningful way that would cause us harm. Certainly no worse than Truman or Nixon. And for a European, maybe that’s the best we can hope for.
That said I would re-state my oft made assertion that in our time the vast majority of the American people are not anti-Semitic at all. The worst of them are no worse than Churchill. And the ones that matter, those sometimes referred to as the moral majority, do not as a group, harbor any anti-Semitic feelings. They do not qualify under the rubric of Esav Sonei L’Yaakov at all today for a variety of reasons, mostly having to do with the nature of the American ideal.
The founding fathers were descendants of those who came to these shores because of religious persecution. Freedom of religion was built not only into the constitution but it was in the very fiber of their being. Post holocaust there has been a sea change in attitude amongst those who call themselves fundamentalist Christians and it is they who are the true religious heirs of the Pilgrims. No where is this better demonstrated than by what happened at a recent AIPAC meeting.
Those who might identify as the "moral majority" actually look up to religious Jews as something to admire. This was demonstrated when Senator Joe Lieberman was nominated for VP. That event gave Vice President Al Gore a 10% boost in the polls evening him out with President Bush in the 2000 Presidential election. When voters were asked about whether Lieberman's Orthodoxy was a concern, most replied that they saw it as an asset.
God bless the American people.
