A review by lukes_ramblingwritings66
Erasing Palestine: Free Speech and Palestinian Freedom by Rebecca Ruth Gould

informative reflective medium-paced

3.75

A very important book with a clear and concise thesis statement. Timely as well with the current US govt. making attempts to conflate criticisms of Israel with anti-semitism. Rebecca Ruth Gould’s short work is well researched and moves between weaving her personal experience of being accused of anti-semitism (despite being Jewish) and with well researched examples of Jewish thinkers who were critical of Zionism such as Leon Trotsky and Abram Leon. The final chapter on free speech kinda lost me a bit since Gould’s argument is that leftists who demand free speech must be comfortable with allowing or tolerating the free speech of those who hold abhorrent perspectives. The paradox of tolerance comes to mind here and it reminded me of Foucault’s reasoning behind signing the lowering of the age of consent in France. Where Foucault argued that having such laws would give way to a slippery slope of the state creating other mandates and regulations against people’s bodies, I feel like Gould’s is similar where she argues that abhorrent speech and action greatly differs and if the state bans a certain speech because it is deemed racist or anti-Semitic, it’ll become a slippery slope into banning other speech it doesn’t want as well (for example, banning criticism on the military budget and campaigns). But I digress, I still think this is an important book to help understand the history of the current definition of anti-semitism and modern anti-semitism in general has been co-opted into a realpolitik employed by Israel to prevent criticisms of their cruel treatment of Palestinians.