Cincinnati rabbi disinvited from rally against Nazis over his support for Israel

[Shipwack]

6. Zionism has many definitions.

TL;DR anti-Zionism is against a political philosophy; anti-Semitism is bigotry.

The definition of Zionism depends on who you talk to. However, there is general agreement that Zionism is a philosophy that says that Jewish people need their own country, and that country has a right to defend itself. Zionism is a political philosophy. The devil is in the details (where is this country, what are its borders, what is self-defense, etc). The problem for me (and others) is how the government of Israel implements those goals. For example, purposely killing 15 people in an aid convoy (that had been properly identified) merely because there was a suspicion that a Hamas sympathizer was with them was wrong, and a warcrime.

Antisemitism is a prejudice against people who are of the Jewish faith, and/or those of Jewish ancestry. It doesn't care where they live in the world. It doesn't care if a person practices conservative Judaism, reform Judaism, or is a non-practicing person with Jewish ancestry.

What bothers me is when I criticize the actions taken by the Israrali government, or it's policies, and being told I'm anti-Semitic. There are people of Jewish faith that are against the actions of the people currently in power, or are even explicitly Anti-Zionist. Does that mean they are anti-Semitic?

I know nothing about this rabbi, and don't have time to research his beliefs. If he merely advocated that Israeli has a right to exist, then excluding him was wrong. If he advocates that the safety of Israel requires the death of every Palestinian man, woman, and child, I can understand why people might not want him associating with their cause.