A Response to the Globe & Mail's Opinion Piece by Raja Khouri

The Globe and Mail published an opinion article by Raja Khouri. It is Judaiophobia masked as “anti zionism”. You can read that article here: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-as-a-palestinian-this-is-what-i-wish-the-jewish-community-could-hear/

Let’s pull some quotes directly from the article and unpack it:

1. “Why is this community raising a flag of a country most did not originally come from? Why do so many Jewish organizations defend Israel, regardless of whether it’s right or wrong?”

Israel is a staple feature of Judaism. A Jew who disagrees with this is Judaiophobic and seriously misunderstands the religion. Jews are indigenous to Israel. There is clear historical evidence that Jews do originally come from Israel. If Raja’s family was forced to move to England, and then left for Canada - would they say that they were from England? Of course not - Raja would say that he was a Palestinian. To neglect this fact is Judaiophobic

2. “My people have been paying for the historical antisemitic sins of Europe ever since the Second World War.”

The notion that Palestinians are paying for the sins of anti-semitism in Europe is an absurd, sensationalist claim, that can never be backed up. It is conjecture and part of the Judaiophobic narrative.

3. The massacre committed by Hamas two years ago sadly was not the first to occur during the struggle between our peoples. We had massacred each other many times before, and almost daily since. From the time when Britain’s Lord Balfour made his empire’s infamous commitment to “the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people” in 1917, we have struggled to share the land.

Raja is minimizing the horror of October 7th by citing it as just another massacre in a long string of massacres. This is another classic Judaiophobic trope and strategy of false moral equivalence.

4. And are Jews truly safe, when Palestinians are not? More than a century of struggle tells us it cannot be so.

This is also an absurd claim, one group’s safety is never contingent on another group’s safety.

5. It pains me that many Jewish organizations have been largely silent about the genocidal acts being done in Gaza in the name of Jews.

Calling Israeli actions “genocidal” is a classic Judaiophobic trope. There is a war going on, Israel is fighting with the government of Gaza. The population of Gaza has increased since the start of the war.

6.”it pained me that many mainstream Jewish organizations stood against Canada’s recognition of a Palestinian state”.

Raja completely neglects to mention the fact that Hamas themselves have boasted about how this is a direct consequence of their actions.

7. “As Sharon Brous, a Los Angeles rabbi, said in a recent Rosh Hashanah sermon:”

Raja is cherry picking a fringe rabbi who does not speak for any significant % of Jews. This is another Judaiophobic tactic - to take one opinion of a (Judaiophobic) Jew and say "this is what Jews must think in order to please me."

8. “Our problem is political – over land and identity that Zionism took away from us. Do not conflate our struggle with Zionism with hatred toward Jews; our animosity is reserved for those who oppress us.”

Raja is using a classic Judaiophobic trope, justifying his animosity for Jews by trying to relabel them as “Zionists”. “Zionism” is a central tenant of Judaism.

When we look at this piece through the Judaiophobic lens, it is clear - Raja is a Judaiophobe. He is masking his disdain while glossing over assumptions that completely ignore the truth and reality of the situation and he does so because he is Judaiophobic. You can tell because he doesn’t even have the courtesy to pretend to condemn the actions of October 7th. This is not a serious article and the globe and mail should be held to account for platforming someone with Judaiophobic ideas.