Letter: Criticism of Israel is not anti-Semitic. Or is it?

Phyllis Bennis’ claims in her Jan. 2 opinion, “I’m Jewish. I fight anti-Semitism and I support Palestinian Rights,” are disingenuous.

Bennis actually opposes Israel’s existence and rejects the right of the Jewish people to live in their religious and ancestral homeland — Israel — where there has been a Jewish presence for more than 3,000 years.

Bennis conveniently recognizes anti-Semitism when it is perpetrated by white supremacists and Klansmen.

But she doesn’t condemn the violence perpetrated by blacks against Jews in New York and New Jersey.

She’s silent about the murder of innocent Jews by Palestinian Arabs in Israel and about the monetary rewards these terrorists receive from the Palestinian Authority.

Not surprisingly, Bennis is on the board of the so-called Jewish Voice for Peace, a hate group that celebrated Rasmea Odeh, a terrorist convicted for her role in the murder of two innocent college students.

Despite Bennis’ claims, President Trump’s executive order does not define Jews as a separate race or nation.

It simply recognizes that Jews are entitled to the protection of our civil rights law when they are discriminated against based on their ethnicity.

The order doesn’t suppress criticism of Israel. It provides guidance as to when criticism of Israel is a mask for anti-Semitism, by reference to the definition of anti-Semitism used by the United States State Department, the Education Department, and about 30 countries around the world.

Sharona Whisler,

executive director,

Florida region,

Zionist Organization of America,

Hollywood