A Jewish Jew

Mark Oppenheimer, host of the podcast 'Unorthodox', wrote an opinion piece for the New York Times. In this he questions why commentators, politicians, and people in general talk about the 'Jewish' people, 'Jewish' neighbours, 'Jewish' writers, 'Jewish' artists, and not simply about 'Jews'. 'Jew' is a term that is used in many instances as 'something bad', not something to be proud of. This is the price Jews paid for acculturation and assimilation. They think of themselves as Jewish New Zealanders, Jewish Hungarians, Jewish Englishmen, Jewish Americans. It is a steep price. It enables antisemites to pick on Jews, to imply that there is something phoney about them, neither quite one thing, nor quite another. I much prefer to think of myself as a Jew, who happens to live in New Zealand. Being a Jew defines me not only in my own eyes but also in the eyes of my fellow citizens, the Scottish, Irish, English, Maori, Polynesian, Chinese and Indian New Zealanders. It makes me impervious to antisemitism. I am who I am and don't want to join someone else's exclusive club. There is a lot I can take pride in as a Jew. If there are some idiots in the world who take exception to Jews, so be it, I am not going to lose sleep over that. If antisemitism is on the rise in the world it is not a problem for Jews, it is a problem for those who subscribe to it.