Melanie Goldberg
Until fairly recently, I spent most of my life assuming that Whoopi Goldberg was Jewish, for good or bad. Born Caryn Johnson, her mother urged the name change on the premise that Hollywood was ‘dominated’ by Jews, and she would therefore garner more success with a Jewish name.
Personal Disappointments
Therein lies my first disappointment in the Sister Act star, who continues to use her stage name, despite the nefarious significance. Especially considering I am myself a ‘Goldberg’, from now, I find it only appropriate to reference her given name.
The catalyst for my second bout of disappointment with Johnson were her recent comments on the Shoah, just days after Holocaust Memorial Day. The actor and host of The View claimed that “the Holocaust was not about race, it was about man’s inhumanity to man.”
Referring to both Nazis and Jews as ‘white’ groups who were simply in conflict with each other, in just a few meagre words, she engaged in Holocaust denial and caused a substantial amount of hurt to Jewish communities. Particularly in the wake of the recent attack on a Texas synagogue, evidently there is still danger in promoting seemingly not-so-harmless rhetoric.
Defining Holocaust Denial
Holocaust denial is not necessarily categorised as solely denial of the occurrence of the Holocaust, but the denial of certain aspects, manipulation of particular facts, and the trivialisation of the impact of the genocides. Holocaust denial is not a preserve of one particular political faction and can be found across the spectrum.
Following an apology, Johnson then made an appearance on the John Colbert show reiterating her original statements about Jews, race, and the Holocaust.
Wider Racial Issues
Johnson’s views are symptomatic of a wider issue in regard to racism against Jews, particularly in the US where definitions of race are more binary than in Europe, the home of eugenics theory. Even before the instigation of eugenics, for thousands of years Jews were considered the ‘other’ in society.
With the official introduction of ‘scientific racial theories’, this only worsened. The Shoah was premised on the theory that not only were Jews a race, but that they were an inferior, sub-human race. Over 6 million, and potentially more, Jews were murdered precisely because they were considered the opposite of white. They were considered enemies of whiteness.
“Jews are not a race, but we are racialised. We are an ethnicity, with shared history, languages, culture, and religion.”
The Difference Between Ethnicity And Race
It is already widely acknowledged that the concept of ‘whiteness’ is not solely about skin colour; it encompasses history, culture and community.
Jews are not ‘white Europeans’, and nor were we ever considered so until now. My family weren’t considered as white Europeans in Spain and Portugal during the Inquisitions, nor were they considered white Europeans during the pogroms in Lithuania, Ukraine and Russia, and they were most definitely not considered white Europeans during the Holocaust.
Because the racialisation of Jews presents differently than the racialisation of people of colour does not, and should not, minimise the long and violent history of slavery and colonialism. Jews are not a race, but we are racialised. We are an ethnicity, with shared history, languages, culture, and religion.
Jews can be atheists and Jews can be agnostic. A Jew is a Jew no matter their religious beliefs. Antisemitism is not a theological critique of Judaism; the Nazis did not enquire as to levels of religious adherence and those who were forcible converted in Spain and Portugal were still not to be trusted.
“After millennia in the diaspora, Jews have no doubt had to sacrifice aspects of our identity to survive”
The Dangers Of Present Holocaust Denial
After millennia in the diaspora, Jews have no doubt had to sacrifice aspects of our identity to survive; the adoption of local surnames and practicing in secret were not ‘privileges’, they were oppressive. Just because some Jews can hide their identity, that is not ‘privilege’.
I hide my Jewish identity for concerns over my safety; I know several Jews who have been physically attacked for their public displays of Jewishness. I was in Brussels only a week before the shooting at the Jewish Museum in 2014, and on my return to the city a year later, I passed a synagogue with armed guards.
Antisemitism, and particularly racial antisemitism, is not a preserve of 20th century fascist Europe. A Holocaust survivor being burnt alive in Paris is not a random aberration, but a culmination of the continued trivialisation of antisemitism. There is a real and present danger in Holocaust denial. This is not merely ‘offensive’, but evidently constitutes potentially violent threats to Jews.
Education Or Reprimand?
Whilst her suspension was a welcome decision, it is not an absolute resolution. Many are calling for education rather than a reprimand. A mixture of both seems like the most conducive decision, however whilst she still refers to herself as a Goldberg and cosplays a Jew, I do not think I will ever truly believe that she will learn her lesson.
Featured image courtesy of Victoria Strukovskaya on Unsplash. No changes were made to this image. The image license can be found here.
