It’s been two months since Hamas executed the most deadly attack on the Jewish people since the Holocaust. Since then, the ricochet effect in academia and elsewhere in the United States has been appalling: Every day we learn that Hamas treated Jews worse than anyone imagined and yet the bigotry and antisemitism here is also worse than we knew. Everything changed on October 7, for Israel, for Jews, and for Americans paying attention: How can we go on like it didn’t? How can politicians espousing conservative ideas go on about China or Trump or transgender bathrooms when Hamas is exacting terror on Israel that’s so evil and so inhumane, it’s palpable and unnerving? Those things are important, of course, but when an entire country is being targeted for being Jewish, it’s important to keep that in perspective too.
Several days ago, Hamas finally released a bevy of hostages. Though no one presumed the hostages would be treated well, as their stories have slowly leaked out, it’s become clear that Hamas treated them worse than anyone thought possible in a post-modern era. Former journalist and researcher for the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Jerry Dunleavy, posted on X about the screening he was invited to in order to review footage compiled and released by the Israeli Defense Forces of what Hamas did. The posts are difficult to read let alone imagine happening and then to know that in the United States, members of academia are applauding these actions is just devastating.
In the debate Wednesday night, Vivek Ramaswamy said what Hamas did was “medieval” and “subhuman,” and on that, he’s right. But he also said it wasn’t an attack on America. Of course, that’s correct, Hamas did not attack America, but the ripple effect landed here and it did expose an anti-religious bigotry and hatred and antisemitism that many people, including myself, did not know existed in America — and it grieves us.
Many of us, perhaps due to ignorance or busyness, or some other preoccupation, did not know that swaths of academia who purported to be beacons of feminism and progressive ideas, would label words violence but not actual violence. We did not know that while “believe women” was a mantra for the last five years post the #MeToo movement, it would not actually mean “believe women” but believe some women, not Jewish women.
We did not actually realize that people who advocated for women to have a choice to abort their babies and work 60-hour weeks at the same pay rate as men would also, actually, sneer and applaud when Hamas abducted and murdered toddlers and when they gang raped, mocked, then murdered beautiful Jewish women.
It was stunning to observe the rampant hate and antisemitism that has been hiding in plain sight and many of us have not been able to fully even process the realization of it let alone know or understand what our Jewish friends are dealing with and how they are coping. If it is remotely confusing, confounding, and enraging for us it must be thousands of times more so for them. They possess a mettle and grit that has carried them through this heinous time.
So it seems very superficial and petty and short-sighted now to watch four Republicans on a lit-up stage, three of whom have dedicated their lives to politics itself, argue and smear and levy pot shots at one another as if this is some kind of game show. It’s okay to appreciate sarcasm, wit, and a good appeal — I do — but these are serious times and America needs a politician that can make sober decisions about an enemy that has the capacity for evil we didn’t think possible. There is real evil among us and we’ve seen it first hand. We cannot be the same and we must not act the same.
