Antisemitism, Anti-Zionism, and Anti-Capitalism: Untangling Modern Prejudice

Donald Harvey Marks examines various contemporary and historical issues through the lens of social, political, and moral critique. One of his writings on Substack and on his personal blog www.DHMarks.blogspsot.com scrutinizes the history of antisemitism at UCLA, distinguishing between legitimate criticism of Israeli policy and anti-Zionism that devolves into antisemitic tropes, and notes that modern antisemitism often originates from liberal or leftist political spheres. Another of his writings conducts an ethical and rhetorical analysis of conservative figure Charlie Kirk's controversial statements regarding LGBTQ+ and especially transgender individuals, comparing his language to that used by some conservative Muslim clerics, and concluding that while his speech is highly problematic and can lead to harm, it does not justify violence against him. Two related pieces argue that the pro-Palestinian–antisemitic alliance is often rationalized through a leftist anti-capitalist ideology, which falsely casts Israel as a capitalist-colonial oppressor. A final writing analyzes the historical context of Shylock from Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice to understand the centuries-old stereotype of the Jewish moneylender and the theme of revenge against antisemitic persecution.