CCOJB

In 1968, Poland’s communist regime launched an antisemitic campaign that drove out much of the country’s remaining Jews. How was that possible in a system that officially claimed to outlaw antisemitism? Because the regime changed the language, not the substance. The communists called the campaign “anti-Zionist.” In practice, however, “Zionist” functioned as a coded term for Jew. Anti-Zionism became the politically acceptable vocabulary through which antisemitism could once again be expressed, legitimized, and enforced. The same mechanism is visible today. Once again, communists, Islamists, and their fellow travelers mask antisemitism in the language of anti-Zionism. Legitimate criticism of Israel is one thing. Turning “Zionist” into a slur, treating Jews as collectively suspect, and excusing threats, intimidation, or violence as anti-colonial resistance is something else. At that point, this is no longer principled political criticism. It is an old hatred dressed up in a new ideological costume. The lesson of 1968 is that antisemitism rarely speaks in its own name. It hides behind fashionable slogans, moral grandstanding, and ideological camouflage. But the target remains the same. We know where that road leads. That is why it must be identified early, called what it is, and confronted before rhetoric once again turns into expulsion, violence, and fear.