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(4,473 posts)The policies of the government of the State of Israel. Apparently Trump sees them as synonymous.
tomhagen
(3,604 posts)Collimator
(1,639 posts)Critiques regarding some form of "dual loyalty". For that matter, many people believed that JFK could not be President because, as a Catholic, his "first loyalty" would be to the Pope.
Many Jewish Americans are choosing to be loyal to their country, America, and register criticism of Israel because of its oppressive treatment of non-Jewish residents. This is not "in spite of" their Jewish faith, but because the moral and ethical standards promoted in their religious communities require such a stand.
This concern for the human rights of all people is supposed to be at the center of American values. By aligning themselves with this belief, many Jewish Americans are demonstrating their love of country and their dedication to their faith. There is no disconnect between the two.
Behind the Aegis
(53,952 posts)And, the charge of dual loyalty comes from all directions. In your second paragraph you state:
Many Jewish Americans are choosing to be loyal to their country, America, and register criticism of Israel because of its oppressive treatment of non-Jewish residents. This is not "in spite of" their Jewish faith, but because the moral and ethical standards promoted in their religious communities require such a stand.
That is also used against us, a watermark of our true loyalty to the US, because if we do not criticize Israel the "correct" way or harsh enough, according to some circles, then it just shows our loyalty is with Israel and not our respective countries. Unlike other minorities, we are also always supposed to have an opinion about Israel, to the point that we aren't considered real liberals or progressives until our positions on Israel are known, no matter what the actual topic of the conversation is.
Dual loyalty is an age old trope. It harkens back to the Roman Empire, but really took hold in the late 19th century; then along comes Israel, and BOOM there is now actual country, not just some nebulous thing or idea (socialism, communism, capitalism), to which we are more loyal.