The ongoing genocide of Palestinians is a crisis of ethnic cleansing, settler colonial violence, and land dispossession.
Framing this atrocity through the lens of Judaism distorts the reality of the situation, diminishing the suffering of Palestinians, while reinforcing identity politics in a way that weakens the anti-imperialist struggle.
Too often, identity politics is wielded in a way that divorces it from its original meaning.
The term was coined by the black feminist Comanche River Collective to describe a framework of liberation grounded in the lived experiences of oppressed people. In contrast, contemporary misuse of identity politics dilutes its radical potential, reducing it to a tool for centering identity over material analysis.
Identity, and protecting the superficial analysis of it, is prioritized over sacrifice and struggle.
“A lot of times in Palestine solidarity work that’s not in Palestine, we see an emphasis on either Palestinian identity, Jewish identity, or Israeli identity… that emphasis on identity is often combined with a complete lack of critique of what is being said… it really degrades the conversation.” -Leila Shomali and Lara Kilan
The genocide has never been about Judaism or Islam or religion at large — it has always been about colonial theft and ethnic cleansing. Centering Judaism, even in an anti-zionist framework, shifts the focus away from the Palestinian struggle and resistance.
“Not In Our Name” exemplifies this misdirection; while it is intended to distance anti-zionist Jews from zionist atrocities, it instead recenters Jewish identity in a conversation that should be focused on Palestinian liberation. If anything, this normalizes Zionist tactics of using religion as a tool of colonization.
“Not In Our Name” diminishes the harm committed against Palestinian Jews. It centers the genocide on Jewish people when it should be centered on *all* Palestinians—*all* our martyrs.
Solidarity means equal risk means equal action means sacrifice.
Solidarity doesn’t mean making the suffering of the oppressed about external identities.
“The goal for anti-zionist Jews should be to disrupt zionist narratives, not to attempt to ‘save the soul’ of Judaism or absolve the Jewish community of its culpability for its communal involvement in zionism.”
“The global struggle against zionism does not hinge on whether or not Jewish people support it. While Jewish anti-zionists can and should support this struggle in meaningful ways, centering their identity over the plight of Palestinians is counterproductive and harmful.”
-Good Shepherd Collective, “Guide for Jewish Anti-zionist Jews”
We must move away from the liberal misuse of identity politics and towards revolutionary anti-imperialist organizing.
Misuse of identity politics only becomes a distraction, shifting our focus away from the structures of oppression that we must dismantle. It is a tool of the enemy.
The fight for Palestinian liberation must remain rooted in the material realities of the occupation, genocide, and resistances. It must reject frameworks that shift conversations away from these realities and instead amplify the voices of Palestinians who are on the frontlines of this struggle.
Amplifying the Palestinian resistance, decolonial ideas and tactics, and identifying our enemies (weapons manufacturers, politicians, and institutions) is the priority and anything else is normalizing the tactics of oppressor.