I’m not a very emotional person. I am generally pretty even keeled and pride myself on my ability to analyze issues and situations dispassionately. But as I sit here writing this, I struggle to restrain myself from reducing my laptop to spare parts. Blind, seething rage is the only way I can think to describe how I feel. There are not many things that can irk me as much as Holocaust denial; it fills me with rage normally, but now Iran has taken it to a new level.
The Islamic Republic announced that it is holding a cartoon contest aimed at creating caricatures denying the Holocaust. Apparently this is the second time the contest is taking place. The first one was organized by the Iranian newspaper Hamshahri in 2006 and offered a grand prize of $12,000. This upcoming contest differs from the original in that it is sponsored by Iranian government officials, has a more international emphasis, and offers a grand prize of $50,000. Although this is the contest’s second occurrence, it is the first I have heard of it, and I’m guessing it is the first you have heard of it too. Evidently, this type of thing doesn’t warrant extensive media attention. Why would it? Anti-Semitism discourse is par for the course in the Middle East.
For many reasons, I believe this contest is actually worse than some of the “normal” anti-Semitic rhetoric that comes from the region. It is easy for a Middle Eastern leader to make Judeophobic remarks in a political speech -- it costs nothing and takes very little effort. Just ask former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, he did it all the time. In contrast, this contest requires time, energy, and resources to put together. It is a much more active and substantive manifestation of anti-Semitism. Additionally, the contest’s international focus encourages the rest of the world to participate in the Jew-hatred as well. There is enough anti-Semitism to go around, don’t worry.
Further, this isn’t just a Holocaust denial contest, it is Holocaust denial cartoon contest! You know those animated, little pictures you see in the newspaper? That is the means Iran is using to simultaneously mock and deny the murder of 6,000,000 Jews and 4,000,000 "flawed" others. Unlike many previous anti-Semites, the Iranians are not even pretending to explore the topic. Perhaps because that would imply that the reality of the Holocaust is up for debate. They may just want the world to think that belief in the Holocaust is so ridiculous, that the idea of it should be lampooned. To be fair to Iran though, it seems that not all of the cartoons in the contest overtly deny the holocaust; some just make fun of it or co-opt its imagery to ridicule Israel.
The supposed goal of the contest, as articulated by one its organizers, is to "highlight the West’s double standard concerning freedom of expression in which disrespect for Islam is allowed and tolerated while other subjects, such as the Holocaust, are made taboo.” The organizer referred to the Charlie Hebdo cartoon featuring Mohammed; a depiction that prompted Islamic extremists to attack Charlie Hebdo’s headquarters. To be honest, I could not care less what Iran’s justification for hosting this event is because there is no way to justify it. This contest is pure, unadulterated anti-Semitism and the world needs to know about it. It is a strong reminder of how morally depraved the Iranian regime really is.
If we do not identify and stand up to evil -- like the kind exhibited by the Ayatollah and his ilk -- we will end up passively abetting and ultimately being consumed by it. The only way to prevent that is to get people to notice the evil in our midst and to fearlessly confront it. I'm not going to pretend I know how to stop this hate-mongering in Iran, but I can tell you that if enough people hear about this and feel as indignant as I do, we will find a way. We must find a way.
