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The Real Reason Antisemitism Survives

JL;DR SUMMARY Melissa Brodsky examines the perennial nature of antisemitism, arguing that its survival stems from a societal tendency to avoid introspection and accountability by using Jews as scapegoats during periods of crisis. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

EnvyJewish HistoryScapegoatingAccountabilityMedia LiteracyHistorical PatternsEdward KritzlerReligious TheorySocietal Failure

Places mentioned

Belgium
"artwork depicting the scapegoating of Jews (photo: KBR - Bibliothque royale de Belgique)"
Granada, Spain
"Columbus set sail, a voyage financed in large part by conversos, the Catholic Monarchs, Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon, signed the Alhambra Decree in Granada, Spain, and expelled every Jew who wouldnt convert."
São Paulo, Brazil
"Saint Joseph of Anchieta (15341597), Spanish Jesuit missionary to Brazil and one of the founders of So Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, who was a descendant of Jewish converts through the maternal line (photo: Wikipedia)"
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
"Saint Joseph of Anchieta (15341597), Spanish Jesuit missionary to Brazil and one of the founders of So Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, who was a descendant of Jewish converts through the maternal line (photo: Wikipedia)"
Amsterdam, North Holland, Netherlands
"Amsterdam extended legal protections to its Jewish population and became the financial capital of the world."
Port Royal, Clarendon, Jamaica
"Port Royal, Jamaica? Same story from the other direction."
Brooklyn, New York, United States
"Safta, an Israeli eatery in Brooklyn, was vandalized on the eve of Yom Kippur last year."

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Cairo Item ID 81895
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Retrieved 2026-05-09 05:31:10 UTC
Curated 2026-05-09 08:31:19 UTC