Anti-Semitism, Anti-Islam, and Darfur: Deepening Roots of Hatred

The world is full of many things that I simply cannot wrap my head around, and chief among them is the depths to which people can hold hatred. Few seem to be as intensely and consistently targeted by such vitriolic condemnation as the world's Jewish population.

Case in point: Last week, Muammar Gaddafi, President (Dictator) of Libya and Chairman of the African Union, accused Israel of fueling the conflict in Darfur. An article in the Tripoli Post boasts that Gaddafi provided "hard evidence" to back up these claims. What evidence, you ask? Well, the leader of a Darfuri rebel faction met with Israeli government officials a few weeks ago, and the government is Israel is working to grant asylum and work permits to some 600 Darfuri refugees. (Jerks.)

Yup, definitely clear evidence of an international conspiracy. Totally watertight case.

I found two other bits from the article particularly disturbing. First, the caption of the photo reads:

"Shadowy killers like the ones in this picture are supported by Israel to commit crimes against humanity the way the Zionist state is doing in Gaza."

Sets a new standard of "fair and balanced" for Fox News to live up to, doesn't it?

And second, a commenter wrote:

"This is so true and there is no doubt, however Africa is powerless and all evidence is considered conspiracy and hearsay. The ICC should incriminate the Israelis for their involvement and Adbelwahid should be dealt with accordingly. why did he not join his brothers in Doha? Africa must unite and save Sudan, a country capable of feeding the world!"

Ok...two points:

1. The Darfuri rebel leader in question was not invited to Doha --- the Justice and Equality Movement was the only rebel group invited to participate in peace talks with the government of Sudan.
2. Capable of feeding the world? Hard to imagine, when the government is enacting a scortched earth policy in order to destroy any and all threats to its power.

The anti-Semitic views of the government of Sudan and its supporters are nothing short of nauseating, but it doesn't end there --- anti-Islam and anti-Muslim sentiment also runs disturbingly deep, especially in this country. While researching for this post, I came across blogs so appalling that I can't even link to them as an example, and I've had to delete several comments from my own blog because of their racist anti-Muslim espousings. (And you can email me and whine about the suppression of free speech all you want --- this site will not become a platform for the proliferation of hatred.)

We need to separate the words and actions of individuals from the populations they claim to represent. Gaddafi's comments deserve condemnation, of him and his supporters, but they are NOT evidence of a moral failing of the Muslim population as a whole, nor are they any indication that the followers of Islam are any less human than anyone else. Those who adhere to such a view, and make such sweeping generalizations, are really no better than Gaddafi himself --- or Bashir, or Hitler, for that matter.

We must be careful: What starts with name calling can end in genocide.

[Photo: People protest anti-Semitism outside the UN's local office in Caracas, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2009. An armed group vandalized Caracas' oldest synagogue on Saturday, shattering religious objects and spray-painting walls amid Venezuela's diplomatic spat with Israel over its military offensive last month in the Gaza Strip. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) [