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Robert Brym: Yes, anti-Zionism is antisemitic

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Cite

Special to National Post. (2026, August 26). Robert Brym: Yes, anti-Zionism is antisemitic. National Post. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/robert-brym-yes-anti-zionism-is-antisemitic

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

National Post · collected 2026-08-26 · by Special to National Post analysis

Quick Summary

Jewish Faculty Network members claim in an op-ed that anti-Zionism is not antisemitism, citing a supposed distinction between Jewishness as a religious identity and support for the state of Israel. However, Robert Brym disputes this assertion using data from two surveys: one found 92% of Canadian Jews support a Jewish state, while another found only 5% identify as anti-Zionists. Brym argues that Jewish statehood is a core element of Jewish identity, and erasing its significance can be antisemitic. He also criticizes the JFN for opposing the IHRA's definition of antisemitism.
Written by AI on 2026-08-26, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

A professor named Robert Brym argues that anti-Zionism is a form of antisemitism. He makes this claim based on a 2026 survey of 626 Canadian Jewish adults, which found that 92% of respondents support the existence of a Jewish state in Israel and consider supporting Israel to be an essential part of their Jewish identity. Brym contrasts this with the fact that only 60% of Canadian Jews consider attending synagogue an important or essential part of their Jewish identity. This, he argues, shows that Jewishness is not just a religious identity but also tied to the concept of a Jewish state.

Written for “Anti-Semitism in Anti-Zionism Debate” on 2026-11-01, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Anti-Semitism in Anti-Zionism Debate
Politics · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans strongly right and hedges 9% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
National Post
⚖️ Leans strongly right Hedges 5 of 35 claims Outlet record 60/100
“Article A discusses a survey of Canadian Jewish adults, while Article B reports on the release of a government report about antisemitism on campuses”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
23
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
9%
2 of 23 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
Leans strongly right
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
Publisher signals
60/100
National Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-08-26 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

National Post · 1242 article(s) · 2 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 2 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Special to National Post
104 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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Topics

Canadian Israel JFN Jewish Jews

Subjects

Jewish NORP · 19× Jews NORP · 9× JFN ORG · 6× Israel GPE · 5× Canadian NORP · 4× Canada GPE · 3× Canadian Jews NORP · 2× Reform Judaism ORG · 2× Zionist NORP · 2× Globe & Mail ORG · 1×

Narrative

In a recent Globe & Mail op-ed, members of the Jewish Faculty Network (JFN) assert that anti-Zionism is not antisemitism, that Jewishness is an exclusively religious identity that has nothing to do with statehood and that the debate between Zionist and anti-Zionist Jews has been going strong for 100 years.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-08-26
🔮 It includes non-legally binding illustrative examples of what might constitute antisemitism, including, “Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination.”
2026-08-26 · National Post
Robert Brym: Yes, anti-Zionism is antisemitic · assertive framing

Claims (23 extracted, 2 hedged)

In a recent Globe & Mail op-ed, members of the Jewish Faculty Network (JFN) assert that anti-Zionism is not antisemitism, that Jewishness is an exclusively religious identity that has nothing to do with statehood and that the debate between Zionist and anti-Zionist Jews has been going strong for 100 years. asserted
debate → assert → years
Their assertions are made without the benefit of reference to recent anonymous peer-reviewed survey research or anything more than a distorted understanding of modern Jewish history. asserted
assertions → make → history
A 2026 survey of a representative sample 626 Canadian Jewish adults found that 92 per cent of Canadian Jews support the existence of a Jewish state in Israel. asserted
cent → find → Israel
They therefore fit the standard definition of “Zionist.” asserted
They → fit → Zionist
Eighty-six per cent of Canadian Jews think that supporting Israel is an important or essential part of their Jewish identity. asserted
supporting → think → identity
Jewish statehood is thus a core element of Jewish identity for the overwhelming majority of Jews in Canada — and also, of course, for Jews in Israel (where about one-half of the world’s Jewish population resides) and elsewhere. asserted
half → reside → population
In contrast, just 60 per cent of Canadian Jews consider attending synagogue an important or essential part of Jewish identity; 59 per cent say the same about observing Jewish religious law. asserted
cent → consider → law
Members of the JFN are therefore wrong to claim that being Jewish is only a matter of religion and not a matter of statehood. uncertain
being → claim → statehood
Moreover, just as it is antisemitic to discriminate against Jews based on their religion, I believe it is antisemitic to erase support for the existence of a Jewish state as a core part of Jewish identify. asserted
it → discriminate → identify
They deny the need for the existence of a Jewish state. asserted
They → deny → state
In Canada, a 2025 survey of 332 Jewish Canadians found that 1 per cent of Canadian Jews at the time regarded themselves as anti-Zionists, while the most recent 2026 survey of 625 Canadian Jews cited earlier puts the number at 5 per cent. asserted
survey → find → cent
The proportion of Jews who deny the need for Jewish statehood is thus tiny. asserted
who → deny → statehood
The representatives of the JFN correctly note that Reform Judaism in mid-19th century Germany held that Jewishness is exclusively a religious category. asserted
Jewishness → note → Germany
However, a century later, in the early 1940s, Reform Judaism officially endorsed the need for a Jewish state as the extent of the Holocaust became apparent. asserted
extent → endorse → Holocaust
Similarly, the members of the JFN cite the Jewish Labour Bund of Poland and Lithuania as a large and vigorous opponent of Zionism since its founding in 1897. asserted
members → cite → 1897
Most Bundists were killed in the Holocaust and many of those who survived became Zionists in the face of the Holocaust. asserted
who → kill → Holocaust
In fact, Tel Aviv became one of the centers of Bundism after the Second World War. asserted
Aviv → become → War
It should not surprise us that the JFN has written an op-ed arguing that anti-Zionism isn’t antisemitism. asserted
Zionism → surprise → ed
In the principles section of their website, they state that they oppose the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism which was accepted by Canada in 2019. asserted
which → state → 2019
It includes non-legally binding illustrative examples of what might constitute antisemitism, including, “Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination.” uncertain
what → include → determination
Notably, the JFN’s “principles” page on their website lacks any mention of the horrific attacks on October 7, and their press release page includes only two entries, one opposing the IHRA definition and one about “anti-Palestinian racism.” asserted
page → lack → racism
Many Jewish Zionists, including me, are highly critical of Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians and its conduct in the Israel-Hamas war. asserted
Zionists → include → war
However, for reasons I’ve indicated, I regard the small coterie of Jewish anti-Zionists as misguided. asserted
I → indicate → Zionists
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