The Royal Commission on Anti-Semitism and Social Cohesion is currently underway in Australia.
I spoke to Michael West Media about the need for more critical Jewish voices:
Antony Loewenstein, an independent journalist, film-maker and author of The Palestine Laboratory, and an advisory committee member of the Jewish Council of Australia, said it was “highly questionable” whether the organisations appearing before the commission reflect the breadth of Jewish opinion in Australia.
“The Australian Jewish community is culturally, politically and religiously diverse, and
it’s highly questionable if the most pro-Netanyahu, pro-Israel lobby groups represent the majority of Jews in the country.Loewenstein criticised the tendency among these organisations to conflate Jewish identity with the actions of the Israeli state.
“Conflating Israel and Judaism, pursued by the so-called mainstream Jewish groups in Australia, is both historically inaccurate and dangerous, tying Jews to the actions of a genocidal Jewish state.”