'A Brief and Visual History of Antisemitism': Jew-hatred in many forms - review

“When the Babylonians conquered Judea… the Jews were allowed to identify and practice as they pleased. It’s only in the encounter between Judaism and Hellenistic Greek culture that we see conquerors wanting more than obeisance from the conquered… The Jews’ refusal to assimilate completely and their tendency toward exclusivity engendered a lot of hatred for the Jewish religion, what can be considered anti-Judaism, in Greek society,” writes Israel B. Bitton in his book A Brief and Visual History of Antisemitism.

One thing that never changes is how quickly the world is changing. Our world today, as 2023 begins, has changed immensely from what it was only a few years ago. Think about how drastically different our world is from the world of our own parents, grandparents and great-grandparents. If today’s world is a lot different than just a few decades ago, now consider how different it is from the world of Alexander the Great, who conquered the Persian Empire (which included Judea) in 334-323 BCE.

Yet this is where antisemitism began. And it is still with us today, in its countless forms and variations.

In ancient times, the fact that the Jews had their own unique understanding of God and their own rituals infuriated certain Hellenistic leaders, who wanted everyone to live life in the same way. They wanted the Jews to assimilate into the dominant culture, just as other conquered peoples did. The Jews simply wanted to live their own way of life, according to their own beliefs and customs. However, the Greeks and Romans could not accept the fact that the Jews did not want to live as they did.

“The Roman historian Tacitus famously stated, ‘The Jews consider as profane all that is held sacred with us,’ while Pliny suggested that Jews ‘despise the gods.’ This led to the charge and ancient stereotype about Jews being xenophobic, hating foreigners, and more generally misanthropic – they hated humanity and society at large,” Bitton notes.

This is where the stereotypes about Jews and the Jewish religion began, and just like the coronavirus, which continues to mutate into seemingly endless versions of the same virus, antisemitism has twisted itself into new shapes and configurations throughout the generations. 

Antisemitism appears as stereotypes; distortion of history and reality; denial of identity, history and victimhood; and appropriation of history or identity (such as when Yasser Arafat and Mahmoud Abbas try to show historical connections that are not real, or someone claims that Jesus was Palestinian).

The bottom line is that antisemitism has many different forms, and a wide range of tactics have been used to transmit the dogma throughout the centuries.

WHEN IT comes to book reviews, I always prefer to hold the actual book in my hands, if possible, rather than read it on a screen. In this case, I went in person to pick up A Brief and Visual History of Antisemitism from the Gefen Publishing office. I exclaimed over its size – the cover is colorful, and the book is filled with illustrations and photographs. 

At first glance, it looks a bit like a coffee-table book. At a second glance, it is clearly in a totally different category.

As soon as I had it in my hands, I understood that the word “brief” in the title was a total misnomer. It is more than 600 pages long, and anything but brief.

A Brief and Visual History of Antisemitism is a serious and comprehensive study of antisemitism. Packed with historical and sociological information, the tome explains antisemitism throughout the generations and how it has manifested itself from the moment it reared its ugly head in ancient times. 

This in-depth textbook/encyclopedia of antisemitism, from its very beginning until today, is an important work. For a creative teacher or college professor, it is an extremely valuable tool for teaching the next generation about antisemitism. 

As antisemitism is on the rise and an increasing number of young Jewish adults are being forced to deal with it on college campuses, this book will give them the knowledge and rhetoric to combat it confidently. Of course, it is a valuable resource for anybody of any age – whether Jewish or not. 

It is a book that will unlikely be read from cover to cover; it is more of a reference book that can be turned to for information. A Brief and Visual History of Antisemitism is extremely serious reading and is literally packed with material that needs to be digested a bit at a time.

The book includes hundreds of photos, political cartoons, and other visual examples of antisemitism in the media. It uniquely also features augmented reality that “allows for videos, images, and 3D objects/animations to literally pop off the printed pages using a special app.” The reader can download the free “AR Loopa” app and then use this app to scan places in the book.

Bitto, is the executive director of Americans Against Antisemitism, and his book is an initiative of the organization, with special support from the World Zionist Organization. The author, and the organization he leads, are to be highly commended for taking on what was clearly a complex and difficult project.

The book covers every possible aspect of antisemitism, including: defining antisemitism in the Greek-Roman and Christian periods; and understanding antisemitism during the period of European modernization as it developed into sociopolitical, socioeconomic anti-Judaism and Nazism. 

A large section is called “Easternization of Antisemitism,” which delves into the relationship between Nazism and Islamism and the experiences of Jews under Islam. Another large section, “Politicization of Antisemitism,” provides a thorough and multifaceted overview of the Jewish experience in the Land of Israel from the times of Ottoman Palestine through the British Mandate period to the independent Jewish state. 

Unfortunately, cases of antisemitism are increasing, and it is imperative that we understand the forms it can take and have the knowledge to combat it. The publication of A Brief and Visual History of Antisemitism is a significant achievement. 

It is an intense and difficult book to read; but then again, its subject is intense and difficult. 

I hope it will be read by as many people as possible to help combat what is a dangerous and threatening phenomenon. 

A BRIEF AND VISUAL HISTORY OF ANTISEMITISMBy Israel B. BittonGefen Publishing House640 pages; $49.83