Zio (slur)
Zio (/ˈzaɪoʊ/ ZY-oh) is an antisemitic slur[1] widely condemned by civil rights groups, including but not limited to the World Jewish Committee (WJC),[2] American Jewish Committee (AJC)[3] and the British Labour Party.[4][5]
Origin
[change | change source]The use of "Zio" was first recorded by the 1990 edition of the American Jewish Yearbook as in the term "Zionazi", spray-painted on the campus of SUNY-Binghamton.
The website WikiZio, run by former grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) David Duke used "Zio" to refer to Jews based on the fact that Zionism holds such widespread appeal among Jews that it has become a core part of the modern Jewish identity,[6] especially in the US, where 85% American Jews believed in the importance of the United States supporting Israel,[7] and the United Kingdom, where 80% British Jews identified as Zionist.[8]
Ben Samuels, writing for the progressive newspaper Haaretz, concurred that the slur was invented by David Duke and popularized by antisemitic radical leftists.[9]
Proliferation
[change | change source]In 2016, the British Labour Party released a report, stating that[10]
Epithets such as [...] 'Zio' and others should have no place in Labour party discourse going forward.
In 2017, the organizers of the Chicago Dyke March faced accusations of antisemitism after their use of "Zio tears" on Twitter.[11] In April 2017, Terry Couchman, an election candidate of the British Labour Party, was suspended over his use of "ZioNazi".[5]
Tony Greenstein, another member of the British Labour Party expelled from the party in 2018 for using the term "Zios" among other allegations.[4]
Reception
[change | change source]In July 2024, Meta made the controversial decision to impose restrictions on the use of the term.[12][13] This decision was welcomed by the American Jewish Committee,[14] while 73 self-identified organizations sent a letter to the Meta claiming that such a policy "will also encourage the incorrect and harmful conflation of criticism of the acts of the state of Israel with antisemitism."[15]
Related pages
[change | change source]References
[change | change source]- ↑ ""It's in the Air": Antisemitism and Anti-Israeli Bias at Stanford, and How to Address It
A REPORT FROM THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON ANTISEMITISM AND ANTI-ISRAELI BIAS OF THE JEWISH ADVISORY COMMITTEE AT STANFORD UNIVERSITY" (PDF). May 31, 2024. Retrieved October 23, 2024. - ↑ "Magnifying glass
Debunking Misconceptions About the Definition of Antisemitism". World Jewish Congress. Retrieved October 23, 2024.Those who hate Jews can no longer hide behind empty rhetoric
- ↑ "Zionist / "Zio"". American Jewish Committee. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Tony Greenstein's 'notorious antisemite' libel claim dismissed by court". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1
- "Britain's Labour expels Jewish anti-Zionist activist over 'anti-Semitic' remarks". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
- "Exclusive: Labour candidate suspended over 'ZioNazi storm troopers' posts". Jewish News.
- "Labour Candidate Terry Couchman Reportedly Suspended for Posts Attacking "ZioNazi Final Solution" and "Jewish Organizations"". Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA).
- ↑ "Who're You Calling a "Zio"?". Mosaic Magazine. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
- ↑ "AJC Survey Shows American Jews are Deeply and Increasingly Connected to Israel". American Jewish Committee.
- ↑ "Eight out of ten British Jews identify as Zionist, says new poll". The Jewish Chronicle.
- ↑ Samuels, Ben (18 July 2017). "'Violent History' of 'Zio': How Chicago's Dyke March Adopted an anti-Semitic Slur Dear to White Supremacists". Haaretz. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
- ↑ "Labour antisemitism report tells members to stop using 'Hitler, Nazi and Holocaust metaphors'". The Independent. 30 June 2016. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
- ↑
- Sommer, Allison Kaplan (14 July 2017). "Chicago Dyke March Collective Revels in 'Zio Tears' in Twitter Rant". Haaretz. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
- Stern, Mark Joseph (25 July 2017). "This Is a Safe Space. No Jews Allowed". Slate. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
- "Chicago Dyke March Drops Pretense, Deploys Anti-Semitic Term Popularized by Neo-Nazis". Tablet Magazine. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
- ↑ "In groundbreaking new policy, Facebook says calling someone a 'Zionist pig' is antisemitic". The Forward.
- ↑ "US antisemitism envoy lauds Meta ban on use of 'Zionist' as slur". Jewish News Syndicate.
- ↑ "AJC Welcomes Meta Policy Cracking Down on Antisemitic and Anti-Israeli Hate Speech | AJC". www.ajc.org. 2024-07-09. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
- ↑ Bhuiyan, Johana; Paul, Kari (2024-02-10). "Meta's review of hate speech policy sparks concern of further censorship of pro-Palestinian content". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-10-07.