The text “The Fake Threat of Jewish Communism” discusses the reasons for
the spread of fake threats from extremist religious groups. While the article
does focus on the Jewish people, it also mentions how the dynamic has shifted
to other groups throughout history. Unfortunately, this interesting article regarding
fake threats is a not just written in old textbooks. It is still going on in
different forms across the globe.
According to the article, there was fear that Jews from Russia were
trying to take over Europe in the early twentieth century. However, this did
not exist. The Jews in Russia were actually fleeing to Europe rather than trying
to control it. All these readings discussed in this freshmen seminar are
connected in some way. This one currently matches with this week’s theme of the
impact of conspiracies. Everything read in class show what happen if a conspiracy
is not extinguished in time.
Even though many articles may seem boring because they are irrelevant to today, this one is not the case. Towards the end, Browning mentions that he believes that Antisemitism still exists, but it is in a different form. The idea that a myth goes through phases is fascinating. Antisemitism is as talked about as it used to be, however, fear of radical Muslims invading the United States is relevant. The topic changed, but the concept stayed the same.
While I found this article as a great incite and addition to our discussions on dangerous rumors, it was still had to read emotionally. I am very easily disgusted whether it is about violence or hate speech. Even though it was discussed briefly, the words used to describe Jew in that time period make me nauseous. In the end, this article was worth reading because it gave me a better understanding on the unfortunate growth of Antisemitism.