Project Esther: A Trumpian blueprint to crush anticolonial resistance

Donald Trump’s re-election arsenic president of nan United States marks a displacement successful US argumentation – from nan Joe Biden administration’s hypocritical denial of American complicity in Zionist genocide, warfare crimes and crimes against humanity to an unapologetic endorsement of each these actions.

Besides bringing Washington’s support for each of Israel’s excesses, crimes and violations retired into nan open, Trump’s return to nan White House will besides intensify and make moreover much overt nan persecution of those who situation defy achromatic supremacy and its Zionist incarnation.

Under Biden, those who opposed American-funded and -facilitated Zionist genocide, from assemblage students and civilian servants to group justness activists and authors, already faced threats from politicians, constabulary harassment, baseless accusations of anti-Semitism successful nan media and relentless intimidation from employers, assemblage administrators and far-right-linked Zionist “self-defence” groups.

And yet, Trump says Biden has been “weak” successful countering “Hamas radicals” and he would do moreover much to unopen down anticolonial guidance arsenic president. On nan run trail, he called for nan deportation of overseas nationals who support Palestinian guidance and, since being elected, has nominated pro-Israel hawks to cardinal intelligence and information posts successful his government, signalling he intends to support his promises connected cracking down connected anti-Zionist activists. For example, Trump named Kristi Noem, nan South Dakota politician who erstwhile introduced a measure cracking down connected disapproval of Israel connected nan grounds of “ensuring nan information of God’s chosen people”, arsenic his caput of homeland security.

Another denotation that Trump’s 2nd word will beryllium marked by a caller crackdown connected anticolonial and antiracist guidance came successful nan shape of a strategy to “combat anti-Semitism” titled “Project Esther”, drafted by nan salient Trump-aligned blimpish deliberation tank, nan Heritage Foundation.

The Heritage Foundation has been unfastened astir its volition to toggle shape “Project Esther” into authorities argumentation nether a 2nd Trump administration. It states wrong nan strategy archive itself – which was published connected October 7 to people nan first day of nan Hamas attacks connected Israel – that it hopes “Project Esther” would coming “an opportunity for public-private business erstwhile a consenting management occupies nan White House”.

Created by nan aforesaid minds that brought america nan authoritarian, Christian nationalist “Project 2025”, “Project Esther” syncretises nan communicative of Queen Esther, nan Jewish heroine celebrated during Purim for redeeming Jews of ancient Persia from extermination astatine nan hands of Vizier Haman, pinch modern time Zionist narratives of defence and victimhood to picture her arsenic a defender of Jews against activists, academics and progressive members of Congress successful nan US who reason racism, apartheid and genocide. The strategy paper, supposedly designed to beryllium “a blueprint to antagonistic anti-Semitism successful nan United States”, includes respective basal aspects of fascistic thought and believe arsenic outlined by Umberto Eco, specified arsenic syncretic culture, xenophobia, a cult of heroism and anti-intellectualism.

Targeted individuals – including galore Black, Brown and Jewish elected representatives who voiced immoderate disapproval of Israel, including Senators Bernie Sanders and Chuck Schumer – are collectively mischaracterised arsenic members of “Hamas Support Organisations (HSO)”, portion of a “Hamas Support Network” and equated pinch Purim’s villain, Haman. Through this framing, nan run targets salient societal justness advocates and progressive Democratic Party representatives arsenic enemies of nan Jewish people, utilizing nan mythology of Queen Esther to warrant their persecution and repression.

“Project Esther” shamelessly states its intends to destruct anticolonial perspectives from nan US acquisition system, limit nan dissemination of related accusation and restrict advocates’ entree to American society, nan system and Congress. It seeks to prosecute alleged ineligible and criminal violations by “HSO” members, disrupt their communications, restrict demonstrations and rally nan Jewish community, friends and nan American nationalist against anticolonial guidance movements.

With fearmongering rhetoric draped successful patriotism and “American values” and nan latest Zionist rotation on rebranding violative aggression arsenic “defence”, “Project Esther” institutionalises repression of dissent wrong a fallacious, fascistic theoretical framework, casting itself arsenic nan last bulwark against an imaginary threat of “foreign influence” and valiant protector of citizens from brown-skinned heathen hordes who person supposedly promised to infect achromatic American unfastened nine pinch an anticapitalist agenda. Typically, “Project Esther” ideologues spot themselves arsenic heroes, courageously waging a beatified war, overmuch to nan tune of nan Ku Klux Klan’s infamous portrayal successful Birth of a Nation.

Calling connected “the silent majority” to “break its soundlessness and speak” to “recover its sound and person its words into actions to render impotent an illegitimate, hateful number that threatens America’s soul” by, among different accusations, “corrupting our acquisition system”, “Project Esther” weaponises xenophobic trends bolstered by nan incoming Trump management to frighten and fracture anticolonial movements that conscientiously reason Zionism and achromatic supremacy alike.

Under nan guise of combating dislike and appealing to a supposedly terrorised and humiliated underclass, “Project Esther” seeks to framework antiracist guidance to Zionist apartheid and genocide arsenic inherently anti-Semitic. However, this exposes Zionism itself arsenic achromatic supremacy and a modern embodiment of anti-Semitic ideology, overmuch for illustration Haman successful nan story of Queen Esther, actively targeting Jewish organisations specified arsenic Jewish Voice for Peace and nan Reformed Jewish movement.

“Project Esther” criticises what it sees arsenic “complacency” wrong nan American Jewish community, invoking nan Zionist-manufactured anti-Semitic perfect of a “new Jew” who rejects accepted beliefs that construe oppression and hardship arsenic divine reward for sins. This imagination disparages accepted reliance connected defence arsenic passive and weak, promoting alternatively an assertive, violative attack to resistance. In statement pinch this view, Zionists adopt nan anti-Semitic conception that Jews person been responsible for their ain suffering, advocating for segregation and onshore acquisition successful a caller homeland arsenic nan eventual solution.

Notably, fearmongering has agelong been utilized by Zionists to promote Jewish, preferably white, migration to Israel arsenic a intends to restock nan Israeli subject and combat nan Palestinian “demographic threat”. By amplifying nan business betwixt US achromatic supremacy and Zionist description ism, “Project Esther” presents a superior threat to anticolonial and justice-oriented intersectional movements crossed nan country, connected nan 1 hand, and minorities, including Jews, connected nan other.

“Project Esther” promises to proceed to velocity up nan mobilisation of Zionists and right-wing anti-Semites, now emboldened by Trump’s victory, to dismantle guidance to their racist policies done financial and world audits, “name and shame” campaigns and “lawfare”. While shielding Zionist policies and aligning pinch US achromatic supremacy, nan archive – riddled pinch misinformation astir “anti-Israel and anti-Zionist Jew-haters attempting to laic siege to our acquisition system, governmental processes, and government” – reinforces nan incoming Trump management arsenic good arsenic Zionist vigilante groups for illustration nan “Jewish Defence League” and their earthy allies, American neo-Nazis, to stifle free reside and dissent.

Ultimately, campaigns for illustration “Project Esther” manipulate Jewish humanities trauma to beforehand achromatic supremacy and suppress anticolonial, antiracist movements while gaslighting nan nationalist to judge Palestinian solidarity, moreover erstwhile expressed by Jews, arsenic anti-Semitic. This alignment not only stifles dissent to right-wing agendas, it besides perpetuates a fascist communicative that promotes unit against those who defy oppression, casting them arsenic an existential threat. This Zionist-white supremacist business poses a nonstop situation to justness movements, and humanity arsenic a whole, utilizing fear, propaganda and unit to undermine efforts for genuine solidarity and liberation.

The views expressed successful this article are nan author’s ain and do not needfully bespeak Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.