Israeli fans were assaulted after a soccer game in Amsterdam by hordes of young people apparently riled up by calls on social media to target Jewish people, Dutch authorities said Friday. Five people were treated for injuries at hospitals and dozens were arrested.
Ahead of the game, large crowds of supporters of the Israeli team could be seen on video chanting anti-Arab slogans as they headed to the stadium, escorted by police.
“Let the IDF win, and (expletive) the Arabs,” the fans chanted, using the acronym of the Israeli military, as they shook their fists. It also showed police pushing several pro-Palestinian protesters away from a Maccabi fan gathering in a square earlier in the day.
First, that was an awesome reply. You’re the best.
I agree with you. People often say offensive things when they’re in heated (verbal) conflict and we frequently make more of it than what it is. We react like, in those moments, people expose their true feelings when what they’re doing is saying ‘what is the most hurtful thing I could say to you.’ I don’t think that someone saying something racist in conflict like that makes something a racially motivated attack.
But there are two categories of things that happened here. One was the thing you described (and that we agree on), the other was something premeditated and coordinated. And there is a difference between saying “Jew hunt” and planning a Jew hunt. You don’t plan and execute ambushes in the heat of the moment. This planning occurred before most (maybe all) of the things people are saying the attacks were a response to.
When this British man was attacked, they didn’t demand to know whether he was Israeli or even supported Israel. They demanded to know if he was a Jew. No matter how people felt about, say, Saudi Arabia, if someone was approaching people in the street and demanding to know whether they’re Arab (or Muslim) before attacking them, I wouldn’t hesitate to call it racist. Whatever’s happening in the world, someone organizing to “hunt Arabs” in my city can fuck right off.
Honestly, if you trade out “Jews” with any other group, can you imagine people making excuses* for it? Is there a context in which it’s okay to put out a call to hunt Muslims? Persians? Arabs? Black folks? Women? Any group within the LGBTQ+ community?
*(And, just to be clear, I think you’re explaining that it appears worse/different than what it actually is, not making excuses.)
Hey, I found this article on Lemmy as well with more info. Thought you might be interested in reading it. Have a good one!
https://www.commondreams.org/news/the-amsterdam-pogrom-that-wasn-t-corporate-media-fails-to-tell-the-whole-story
Sorry for the delayed reply here, but thanks for taking what I said as it was meant. Definitely not excusing anyone here just looking for a reason beyond basal hatred.
Some of those details you relayed I was unaware of and they certainly play against these perpetrators to a greater degree. Thanks for including that info. It almost seems like (as expected of any large group) there is a mixture of degrees. The ones specifically hunting jews instead of targeting the problematic israelis are much further away from being just upset. Something worse is troubling those people and they are firmly in the group I’d call racist. Definitely a difficult situation. Upset people are being grouped in with opportunist racists and nothing good comes of any of it.