By Ted Belman
I recently received a submission from Walter E. Block, Ph.D. titled Cancel An Anti-Semitic Book? I have included the full article at the bottom of this post.
The book “Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America” by Ronald Dalton Jr is now in the news. It is viciously and falsely anti-Semitic. At a time when we Jews have been all too often subjected to actual physical attacks, many Jewish groups are calling for a banning of this publication. This is understandable. However, “sticks and stones may break my broken bones but” while words may indeed hurt me, they can never violate my rights. This is true unless they constitute actual threats, such as “Your money or your life” under gunpoint. But it is not even alleged by its most fervent critics that this book even comes close to doing anything like that.
I am not now going to defend this book, of course, but I am going to oppose its banning. There has been far too much cancellation of ideas of late. It is time, it is past time, to oppose such anti-intellectualism. Judge Louis Brandeis said that “Sunlight is the best disinfectant” and no words were truer or more apt for the present situation. I may be accused of anti-Semitism myself for opposing the cancellation of this book, and with it, these ideas. All I can say is that I have a long paper trail of pro-Jewish publications; my most recent book was a very enthusiastic defense of Israel.
He included an email from Willian Narvey to Jeff Bezos in which he implored him to stop marketing the book. I include it below.
I responded as follows:
In the sixties and seventies, freedom of speech was unbridled. Promoters of it relied on the market place of ideas to set the record straight.
Then exceptions made their way into law. e’g. incitement was taboo.
Over the decades I have lost confidence in the marketplace of ideas. It is not effective
We Jews are overwhelmed by a flood of antisemitic attacks. Our attempts to set the record straight don’t stand a chance in doing so.
What say you to this reality?
This may interest you. The ADL is waging war on free speech, not on Trump or Twitter By Jonathan Tobin. It is subtitled, “It’s not protesting misinformation; it doesn’t want a public square where opposing views can be heard, which is bad for democracy and Jewish security.”
Here is the problem. Kanye West’s antisemitic tweet nearly doubled follower growth
The issue is how best to contain antisemitism and not, how to protect free speech.
Cancel An Anti-Semitic Book?
The book “Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America” by Ronald Dalton Jr is now in the news. It is viciously and falsely anti-Semitic. At a time when we Jews have been all too often subjected to actual physical attacks, many Jewish groups are calling for a banning of this publication. This is understandable. However, “sticks and stones may break my broken bones but” while words may indeed hurt me, they can never violate my rights. This is true unless they constitute actual threats, such as “Your money or your life” under gunpoint. But it is not even alleged by its most fervent critics that this book even comes close to doing anything like that.
I am not now going to defend this book, of course, but I am going to oppose its banning. There has been far too much cancellation of ideas of late. It is time, it is past time, to oppose such anti-intellectualism. Judge Louis Brandeis said that “Sunlight is the best disinfectant” and no words were truer or more apt for the present situation. I may be accused of anti-Semitism myself for opposing the cancellation of this book, and with it, these ideas. All I can say is that I have a long paper trail of pro-Jewish publications; my most recent book was a very enthusiastic defense of Israel.
There are two main reasons for opposing the prohibition of “Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America” by Ronald Dalton Jr. First, the deontological. This book violates no one’s rights. These are merely the opinions of its author. Will it lead some criminally minded people to engage in violence against Jews? Let us stipulate that indeed it likely will. If we ban the book on this basis, and want to be logically consistent, we will also have to proscribe soccer games, Super Bowl contests and other such sporting events which result in physical violence and even deaths. Then, there are movies which feature gang activities, which sometime result in the same unfortunate occurrences. No, if criminals attack Jews after being influenced by Mr. Dalton, it will be the fault of the actual perpetrators, not the author of this book.
Second, the pragmatic. We Jews are people of the book. That means, if it means anything at all, that we are oriented toward intellectual matters. We do not run away from them. That would be a Shonda. Surely, a far more practical way of dealing with this book is to challenge Mr. Dalton to a public debate; to organize seminars which spotlight his errors. Shall we also burn copies of Hitler’s Mein Kampf? How about the Protocols of the Elders of Zion? Forbid anyone to read them if we had the power? That is no way for people of the book to act.
One of the calumnies against Jews is that we run things to an unacceptable extent. Well, if our protests end up with the squelching of this book, then, to that extent, our critics will have been proven correct, at least in this one instance. This would be a charge we should avoid, rather than, for far too many Jewish organizations, in effect if not by intention, embrace.
Let me emphasize that my difficulty with the Jewish groups that wish to ban, cancel, boycott, this book is only over means, not ends. We are in full accord on that. These anti-Semitic ideas must be fought.
My suggestion is not to try to convince Ronald Dalton Jr. to change his mind on these matters. Rather, it is to challenge him to a debate. Probably, he would be unwilling to engage in any such enterprise, in which case he would lose many of his followers based on his cowardice.
However, if he were foolish enough to accept this challenge, his views would be so obliterated that, again, he would lose many of his followers.
Trying to silence him just makes us look bad in so many, many ways.
Walter Block is Professor of Economics at Loyola University New Orleans. His most recent book: Block, Walter E. and Alan Futerman. 2021. The Classical Liberal Case for Israel. With commentary by Benjamin Netanyahu. Springer Publishing Company;
Brandeis https://sunlightfoundation.com/2009/05/26/brandeis-and-the-history-of-transparency/
Saul, Derek. 2022. “Sales Spike For Antisemitic Book Touted By Kyrie Irving.” November 4; Forbes Staff
“Jewish Groups Urge Amazon to Remove Antisemitic Film, Book Promoted by Kyrie Irving.” 11-08-2022. CBN News. https://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/entertainment/2022/november/jewish-groups-urge-amazon-to-remove-antisemitic-film-book-promoted-by-kyrie-irving
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Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos: jeff@amazon.com
Amazon public relations: amazon-pr@amazon.com
Bcc. To those I urge to read the following and then to write to Amazon, calling on it to immediately cease selling an antisemitic conspiracy theory book and movie
RE: Mr. Bezos – Please Do The Right Thing and Immediately Direct Amazon to Cease Selling A Bigoted Antisemitic Conspiracy Theory Book and Movie on Your Amazon Website
Dear Mr. Bezos,
I have been made aware of an article that informs readers that Amazon has been selling a virulently dishonest antisemitic conspiracy theory book and movie upon which it is based. That article is: ACT NOW! Demand Amazon Stop Selling Antisemitic Conspiracy Movie https://unitedwithisrael.org/act-now-demand-amazon-stop-selling-antisemitic-conspiracy-movie/
The article notes specifically that Amazon is selling for profit the following identified antisemitic book and movie:
- The 2014 book “Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America” by Ronald Dalton Jr. is currently the number one best seller in three categories on Amazon: “Religious Intolerance & Persecution,” “Black & African American Biographies,” and “People of African Descent & Black Studies.” Amazon promotes this book by awarding it 5 stars:https://www.amazon.ca/Hebrews-Negroes-Wake-Black-America/dp/0986237914 and
- A 2018 documentary called “Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America”, directed by the same Ronald Dalton Jr. Amazon promotes this documentary, by awarding it 4.4 stars https://www.amazon.com/Hebrews-Negroes-Wake-Black-America/dp/B07P5J2RR7
The book and movie are filled with antisemitic Black extremist and supremacist Jew hating demonizing lies such as Holocaust denial and they disgustingly promote the outrageously false antisemitic conspiracy theory that ‘white Jews’ are imposters who hijacked the Black heritage of being the true People of Israel.
Amazon’s sales of this bigoted Jew hating book and movie reportedly skyrocketed when Brooklyn Nets basketball star Kyrie Irving promoted the book.
You and your Amazon executives know that bigoted antisemitism still very much exists in America. You and your Amazon executives also very much know that over the last 5 – 10 years, bigoted Jew-Israel hatred has been steeply rising in America. In the result, Jews are being increasingly intimidated and frightened by sharply increasing bigoted antisemitic attacks against them on social media, verbal and physical attacks on and off campuses and by a stream of the most heinous bigoted hatred against Israel depicting Israel and her Jewish Israeli people as evil and calling for Israel’s destruction and the eradication of Jews.
This rising tide of antisemitism has seen synagogues being vandalized as well as being outright openly attacked. Recall the 2018 murderous attack on the Pittsburgh Tree of Life Synagogue when 11 Jews were murdered and many injured followed in 2019 by a murderous attack against the Poway Chabad synagogue congregants leaving one dead and a number injured. We also have seen the ongoing highly visible via media reports and television videos of the physical beating attacks of Orthodox Jews that continue right to this day.
Knowing all that, it is deeply disturbing that you and your Amazon executives have chosen to put their profit motive ahead of decency and honour. To that end, you have directed Amazon to promote the Black extremist and supremacist bigoted antisemitic conspiracy theory that Jews stole the black heritage that blacks are the true children of Israel and which book and movie promote other typical bigoted Jew hating lying tropes and accusations.
Both the book and movie are clearly intended to appeal to, influence and persuade its reading/watching audience to accept their outrageously bigoted Jew hating antisemitic dishonest conspiracy theories, narratives and lies.
Such vicious toxic Jew hating bigotry will no doubt persuade and convince some, if not many of the reading/watching audience enough to hold such toxic closed minded bigoted Jew hating views, if they hadn’t already held such toxic bigoted views.
Worse still, some if not many so persuaded or those having had their pre-existing bigoted Jew hating views heightened, doubtless will potentially be incited to act out their bigoted Jew hatred by seizing or creating any and every opportunity to verbally or even physically attack Jewish people.
To conclude, Mr. Bezos you know full well that Jews the world over including in America are in danger from antisemites including mortal harm.
Mr. Bezos your decision to allow Amazon to sell and distribute this bigoted Jew hating conspiracy theory book and documentary callously ignores those dangers you are helping to expose Jewish people to and that is utterly shameful.
With that, I implore you Mr. Bezos and your Amazon Executives to do the right thing and direct Amazon to immediately cease selling this viciously inciteful antisemitic book and movie.
Bill Narvey, Winnipeg Manitoba
@Jacobite
“Two Hundred Years Together” is a shining example of the crudest antisemitism made to look “objective” by the author’s selection of only those sources that happened to support his views.
The Soviet Jewish dissidents who had supported Solzhenitsyn were stunned when that thing came out.
Why are you so eagerly waiting for it to be published here?
I think there would be much less antisemitism in the world once we defeat the Palestinians. Our conflict with them is fodder for antisemitism and they are behind organizing the world to rail against Jews and Israel. They started Apartheid Week, BDS and many other organizations who are dedicated to blaming the Jews.. It is imperative that we utterly defeat their narrative. We must realize that we must destroy them in order to reduce antisemitism..
Islam is another cause of antisemitism as is the support given to the Palestinian cause by the US and the EU and the UN..
Yes antisemitism existed long before the birth of Israel and will continue to exist after we have ended the conflict…We have to reject the policy of maintaining the status quo in Israel. because the status quo fuels antisemitism..
I’m still waiting for the official English translation of Solzhenitsyn’s “Two Hundred Years Together” to be published. Those poor old KGB guys who tried to deep-six “The Gulag Archipelago” must be eaten up with jealousy when they see what real censorship looks like.
The issue is that antisemitism has nothing to do with free speech.
Another issue is that it cannot be contained or forbidden.
I think trying to forbid the antisemitic expression is like sweeping the problem under the rug because we need to know the extent of the danger we are facing to be able to get out in time.
Those who think that we may be able to defeat the antisemites in the Diaspora are DELUSIONAL AND SUICIDAL.
Actually, he should have cited the Monsey and Jersey City killings because they were motivated by this particular black supremacist ideology whereas the Tree of Life massacre was carried out by a white supremacist.