A submission to the Royal Commission argues that privileging antisemitism above other forms of racism, while suppressing criticism of Israel and Zionism, undermines freedom of expression and weakens social cohesion.

I have long hesitated writing a submission to the Royal Commission on Antisemitism and Social Cohesion because of its singular focus on antisemitism. I would have liked an investigation into the root causes and persistence of every type of racism in this country. Exceptionalising antisemitism is a form of racism in itself.

I am also unhappy with the Commission’s adaptation of the contested IRHA definition of antisemitism. Special Envoy for Combatting Antisemitism, Jillian Segal, made the preposterous claim that the March for Humanity paved the way for the Bondi Massacre.

I suspect that the objectives of prominent Zionists, like Segal, who pushed for this Commission, could well be to suppress criticism of Israel, ban Palestine protests and introduce censorship.

I identify as an anti-Zionist secular Jew. My Dutch childhood was deeply affected by my parents’ experiences surviving World War II. After Holland’s liberation they sought healing and reconciliation, not revenge. When I was in my teens, my father went to Tel Aviv to visit our family who had suggested we consider migrating to Israel. He returned shocked. He could never become a citizen of an apartheid state.

Whether such a state deserves unconditional support from Jews anywhere in the world became highly questionable. As for me, working in a kibbutz lost its attraction when it sunk in that Israel was stolen land, and that the notion of “a land without a people for a people without a land” turned out to be a manufactured fantasy.

Fast-Forward to October 2023, when Israel unleashed its genocidal war on the people of illegally occupied Gaza. My anti-colonialism translated into intense activism. I became a member of Jews Against the Occupation ’48 (JAO48), regarding it my moral duty to show through direct action that “Never Again” means to anyone.

As an artist, my work is sustained by inquiry and freedom of expression. When a government censors the arts, a society is at risk of losing its heart. I mention this, because since October 2023 a number of Australian artists have been falsely accused of antisemitism. As a consequence, their contracted engagements were cancelled.

To name just a few: Lebanese-born Australian artist Khaled Sabsabi (the 61st Venice Biennale scandal), Palestinian........

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