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I'VE BEEN TEACHING THE Holocaust for the better part of my career at university and beyond. It seems to me that in all of the chaos of this Trump administration, their most consistent policy thus far, maybe even their single most consistent policy, has been to foment antisemitism.
Though they say that they are seeking to combat antisemitism, I want to invite you to think along with me about whether this is true. I think all the evidence suggests the opposite view, namely that this administration is seeking to spread antisemitism.
Please consider these five factors: the instigators, the target, the history, the provocation, and the conspiracy theory.
First, the instigators.
Who are the people behind this policy? And do we have good reason to believe that when these people go after American universities, they're really concerned with antisemitism?
Consider the two most important people in the federal government, Donald Trump and Elon Musk. Donald Trump has claimed that if he loses a presidential election, Jews will have to pay a special price. He has said that he wants his money handled by Jews. He has said that during the Nazi rallies at Charlottesville, there were good people on both sides. Donald Trump has had dinner with avowed fascists.
Consider Elon Musk. He is the first person in a major role in American public life to have carried out a Hitler salute. He opened his social media platform, X, to fascist and antisemitic views.
These are the instigators. These are the people behind the policies. I think we can presume that this policy is not one which is meant to be friendly to the Jews.
Second, consider the target.