Prior to the Nazi rise to power, Jews in Germany were as well accepted and respected in society as we are here. They held positions in government, held leading positions in every profession. Not only that, but they were viewed as more ‘mainstream’ than we are here due to their ‘yekish’ appearance.
Do you think the Germans woke up one day hating the Jews? They were systematically brainwashed through the media, Goebel’s use of false tropes specifically aimed at dehumanizing the Jews, describing them as repulsive, money hungry and spreaders of disease. Laws were enacted to alienate the Jews and force those who were still sympathetic to Jews to avoid them. Do you think there was no outcry in Germany, or Jews partnering with government officials, who assured them that “the idiot” would never succeed? Holocaust survivors have described and recorded their experience, you just need to listen.
They weren’t just rounded up one day. They were dehumanized, made to be ‘other’ and ‘less than’ through law and indoctrination. It didn’t start with the Gestapo beating the Jews on the streets, it was German citizens first. Hitler youth walked through the streets preying on Men, Women, Children, Elderly – anyone who could be identified as Jewish. All of this began in the early 30s and continued for years before Hitler even decided to pursue his “Final Solution” and Jews were rounded up to be exterminated.
Jews in Germany tried following the law and laying low, thought if they complied it would all pass. They blamed it on the communist Jews and the illegal Polish-Jewish refugees, who weren’t as well off or as polished as they were. They normalized and minimized the persecution until it was too late.
Yes, it’s different in the sense that this isn’t a public attempt at rounding us up and exterminating us. However, the beginnings of a tragedy are peaking around the bend and it’s frightening that you can just sit back and write it off. Did you know that a large percentage of American youth have no idea about the magnitude of the Holocaust? A pretty high percentage even reported that the Jews CAUSED the Holocaust. Statistics show that there’s an average of more than one physical attack on religious Jews each week in NY. Do you think that Cuomo and DeBlasio’s rhetoric haven’t played into that? Other minority groups have had a MUCH higher positivity rate than the Jews, with many more cases. Can you imagine either the governor or mayor getting away with slandering them and blaming them the way he does us?
Non-Jews are literally walking down the street yelling at Jews to put on their masks. “Jews spread COVID.” Jews have faced 56.9% of ALL violent religious hate crimes in the US, we’re just a mere 1.7% of the population. And that was in 2018, imagine how high the percentage would be this year, with more than one violent incident being reported each week. Does that not spark fear in your heart? Is it okay for the government to malign our community with false reports, such as the “planning a mass wedding” or “Mass gatherings” in shuls who had the audacity to have 20 people in a building that could accommodate hundreds?
200 years ago, owning slaves in the US was lawful. In Nazi Germany attacking and murdering Jews on the street was lawful. In Brooklyn NY, violating our fourth amendment rights by breaking into batei midrashim through windows without a warrant, threatening attendees with arrest is ‘lawful’. Violating our first amendment right to assemble is lawful.
Do you know that our communities have NOT had the highest rates over the past month? Cuomo staffers stated that there was no consistent method used in identifying ‘Red Zones’. Secular establishments, streets and parks all over the five boroughs are filled with non-Jews who aren’t wearing masks, in neighborhoods with higher transmission rates. I see this with my own two eyes while driving to and from work. And we’ve been testing at crazy high rates, just trying to appease the government and prove to them that we aren’t “disease spreaders”. It is a targeted attack on the Jews, an attempt at blaming us for this current, PREDICTED rise in cases.
It scares me that you can write this off while blaming your fellow Jews.