What is Anti-Semitism?

Question

Whenever a critic or dissident of anything Jewish is perceived to be bigoted or prejudiced, he gets labelled as "anti-semitic". The same does not happen to critics of ARABS, who comprise almost all of the Semitic race. The obvious conclusion (IMO) in the first case would be that the person is "anti-Jewish", yet this seems to have been leap-frogged as a possibilty at some point in the past, and universally adopted as a truth.

My question is: What reasoning was/is used to preclude the possibility that (X) is anti-Jewish, and so therefore MUST be anti-semitic? Is there a reason, or does it just sound better?

Incidentally, my dictionary defines "Semite" as Arabs, Jews, Phoenicians and Assyrians. It defines ANTI-semite as someone who dislikes Jews. There's a glaring mismatch. Also, the term "anti-Jew(ish)" is ABSENT from the same dictionary.

Answer 1

Anytime someone says something that the Jewish community doesn't like.

Similarly to racism when someone says something that the blacks don't like.

Answer 2

Antisemitism (alternatively spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism; also rarely known as judeophobia) is the prejudice against or hostility toward Jews as a group. The prejudice or hostility is usually characterized by a combination of religious, racial, cultural and ethnic biases. While the term's etymology might suggest that antisemitism is directed against all Semitic peoples, since its creation it has been used exclusively to refer to hostility towards Jews.

Antisemitism may be manifested in many ways, ranging from individual expressions of hatred and discrimination against individual Jews to organized violent attacks by mobs or even state police or military attacks on entire Jewish communities. Extreme instances of persecution include the German Crusade of 1096, the expulsion from England in 1290, the Spanish Inquisition, the expulsion from Spain in 1492, the expulsion from Portugal in 1497, various pogroms, and the most infamous, the Holocaust under Adolf Hitler's n**i Germany.

Answer 3

I think being called 'anti-Semitic' is one of those phrases that is used as a cheap jibe against someone with whom a person doesn't agree on the subject of Israel, etc. A bit like calling someone 'racist' if they show concerns about immigration.

I remember James Mates, a television journalist, said that most of the big film studios in Hollywood were being run by Jews and he was ostracised for being anti-semitic, when what he said was actually accurate.

There is, of course, a problem of true anti-semitism that has existed for centuries, using the stereotypes of moneylenders, bankers and devious individuals that should always be challenged as most Jewish people live similar lives to gentiles.

As a secular Christian I would stand up for anyone who was persecuted because of their religion.  

Answer 4

The hatred of the Jews or Arabs

Answer 5

Yeah, I never got that either.  If you don't like Jews, it's should be 'anti-jewish' or 'anti-arab'.  So Arab muslims who don't like Jews are really saying they don't like themselves too....so it seems..

Answer 6

Generally it is used to mean anti-Jewishnesss or racism against Jews. But more often it is the race card being played by Zionist bully groups like the ADL to suppress any criticism of them.

Answer 7

The semitic race is classified as an Asian race

Answer 8

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-Semiti...

Answer 9

Then just use anti-Jew.  Why wear yourself out over semantics...