The Student Room Group

Why is anti-semitism treated as worse than other forms of racism?

Why is it that when someone says something bad about Jews it's made into much more of a big deal then someone being racist about another group of people? Being Jewish myself I find this puzzling. Whilst I do obviously find anti-semitic remarks offensive, I find it just as bad as when someone is offensive to an ethnic group/relgion/nationality, that I don't belong to, racism is bad no matter who the victim is. But it seems that there is much more news coverage if it is anti-semitism. Take the John Galliano incident. Yes what he said was extremely offensive, but would it have had the same uproar and news coverage had it been gypsies, or muslims that he was ranting about? Also, Charlie Sheen's comment about Chuck Lorre. I personally didn't see how this was anti-semitic at all. Lorre called Charlie Sheen 'Carlos Estevez', his real name, but obviously trying to make reference to Sheen's hispanic roots, so in retaliation, Sheen referred to him as Chaim Levine. Why is it that anti-semitic? It just seems to me like for some reason us Jews are a no go area, and that when someone famous says something bad about someone who happens to be Jewish, it's immediately jumped on as 'anti-semitism' and they're portrayed as the most evil person in the world. I find it just as stomach turning as when my grandma refers to gentiles as 'Goys'.
(edited 13 years ago)

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Reply 1
You should watch more south park and family guy, if you think jews are a no go area.
Reply 2
Original post by Yawn11

Original post by Yawn11
You should watch more south park and family guy, if you think jews are a no go area.


True, but Family Guy is mainly Jewish writers, I'm not sure about South Park, but that's more self-deprecation
Really? To be honest I thought anti-semitism was more widely tolerated than most other forms of prejudice.
Reply 4
Original post by tieyourmotherdown
Really? To be honest I thought anti-semitism was more widely tolerated than most other forms of prejudice.


I thought the same :curious:
Reply 5
It is?
Reply 6
Original post by tieyourmotherdown

Original post by tieyourmotherdown
Really? To be honest I thought anti-semitism was more widely tolerated than most other forms of prejudice.


I'm not sure, I found the opposite. Maybe theres two extremes, and the one side is just trying to over compensate. Anyway, I just find stereotyping and generalizing pathetic in general. I don't care what race/religion/nationality someone is, as long as they're nice
Original post by tieyourmotherdown
Really? To be honest I thought anti-semitism was more widely tolerated than most other forms of prejudice.


Genuinely interesting article by David Baddiel on this:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/8363371/How-anti-semitism-entered-the-zeitgeist.html

Thanks to Steven Fry's twitter for this
Reply 8
ctrl + f

'holocaust'

>Phrase not found

wtf

real obvious answer talk
Reply 9
Only in America, Britain and France imo. John Galliano got offered rehab for making an anti-Semitic remark. :teehee:
Reply 10
That gay fashion guy on the news was the first 'big story' I've really seen about anti-semitism tbh.

Edit: Also if he was sat there calling some black guy a n.... Only loosing he's job would probably be quite lucky I think.
(edited 13 years ago)
Original post by FreakyStyley
Genuinely interesting article by David Baddiel on this:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/8363371/How-anti-semitism-entered-the-zeitgeist.html

Thanks to Steven Fry's twitter for this


That is quite interesting actually. I think because anti-semitism hasn't been a massive issue for many years now, people don't regard it as a genuine prejudice that people hold anymore, so when somebody famous makes anti-semitic remarks it tends to be seen as a joke or even cool, when in reality it's just as ridiculous as making anti-black remarks for example.
Original post by FreakyStyley

Original post by FreakyStyley
Genuinely interesting article by David Baddiel on this:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/8363371/How-anti-semitism-entered-the-zeitgeist.html

Thanks to Steven Fry's twitter for this


Interesting article. But David Baddiel is exactly the kind of person I don't like being associated with. He's the kind of guy who basis his whole persona around his 'stereotypical jewishness', and when anyone doesn't like him they're anti-semitic. Jewish isn't a race, it's a religion. My race is white, my religion is Judaism.
Original post by Pedrobear

Original post by Pedrobear
ctrl + f

'holocaust'

>Phrase not found

wtf

real obvious answer talk


Yes, but gypsies and other ethnic groups were also killed in the holocaust, but people in Britain, people like my mum still find it acceptable to be racist to them. Take the show 'My Big Fat gypsie wedding'. People just used it as an excuse to laugh at, and mock gypsies. Or Clarkson's comments about Mexicans on Top Gear. Yes you can say it's different because Mexican's are a nationality, and Jews a religion, but he still targeted someone because of cultural difference. So he said their food was rubbish, their men lazy, and pretty much implied they were dumb. So that's fine is it because Mexicans weren't in the holocaust?
Original post by sammynorton90
Yes, but gypsies and other ethnic groups were also killed in the holocaust


Yeah but most people don't know that.

Original post by sammynorton90
So he said their food was rubbish, their men lazy, and pretty much implied they were dumb. So that's fine is it because Mexicans weren't in the holocaust?


Nope. It's "fine" because it's just some annoying dick on the TV saying something in his annoying dick voice. Such is life. Doesn't bother me.

As an aside, in my view anyone can take the piss out of anything. The only 'barriers' are created in your mind. Honestly, who cares?
(edited 13 years ago)
Original post by Pedrobear

Original post by Pedrobear
Yeah but most people don't know that.



Nope. It's "fine" because it's just some annoying dick on the TV saying something in his annoying dick voice. Such is life. Doesn't bother me.

As an aside, in my view anyone can take the piss out of anything. The only 'barriers' are created in your mind. Honestly, who cares?


I agree with you on the take the piss out of anyone thing. It should either be a free for all where everyones fair game or nothing at all, why should we be able to pick and choose whats racist. Plus, my point is why is it blown out of all proportion, and made out that anti-semitism is the worst problem the world is facing right now, and us Jews are the biggest victims in the world, when in fact compared to problems such as starvation, aids, cancer etc its really not a big issue.
Original post by sammynorton90
I agree with you on the take the piss out of anyone thing. It should either be a free for all where everyones fair game or nothing at all, why should we be able to pick and choose whats racist. Plus, my point is why is it blown out of all proportion, and made out that anti-semitism is the worst problem the world is facing right now, and us Jews are the biggest victims in the world, when in fact compared to problems such as starvation, aids, cancer etc its really not a big issue.


Like I said, the Holocaust. Everyone learns it in school as the scary Nazi thing where all the Jews died. It almost seems as though people think it's the only genocide that ever occurred in the history of the world. For better or for worse, it's one of the few remaining 'untouchable' areas as jokes go, and in the public consciousness it's associated almost exclusively with Jews. Go figure.
(edited 13 years ago)
Original post by Pedrobear

Original post by Pedrobear
Like I said, the Holocaust. Everyone learns it in school as the scary Nazi thing where all the Jews died. It almost seems as though people think it's the only genocide that ever occurred in the history of the world. For better or for worse, it's one of the few remaining 'untouchable' areas as jokes go, and in the public consciousness it's associated almost exclusively with Jews. Go figure.


This is very true. If you think about what happened to Native Americans, Aborigines, various genocides in africa and asia, there is hardly any mention of this. I personally think its this way in the west, because Judaism is a fairly integrated part of our society, and Jews are almost all white, so Westerners feel they have a stronger link to them, whereas Native Americans and the other examples I have mentioned where all 'tribal' 'colored' people, so its as if it doesn't matter as much.
Reply 18
Original post by sammynorton90
True, but Family Guy is mainly Jewish writers, I'm not sure about South Park, but that's more self-deprecation


South Park also has 2 jewish writers
Reply 19
i thought anti-semitism was like the most popular form of racism, from the ancient egyptians to the germans in 1940 :tongue:

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