Zionism as Racism
DOCUMENT IN CONTEXT
Although the United Nations played a significant role in the creation of Israel through
its 1947 resolution calling for the partition of Palestine, relations between the Jewish
state and the world body rarely have been cordial and often have been downright hos-
tile. This was particularly true during the cold war, when the so-called nonaligned
nations, including most of the Arab world, dominated the UN General Assembly.
With the United States routinely blocking criticism of Israel in the Security Council,
Arab nations often turned to the General Assembly as a venue for denouncing Israeli
actions.
Israel hit a low point in its relations with the United Nations on November 10,
1975, when the General Assembly adopted three resolutions dealing with the Middle
East. The first, Resolution 3375, insisted that the Palestine Liberation Organization
(PLO) be accorded “equal footing” with other parties in any Middle East peace con-
ferences. The second, Resolution 3376, established a committee to examine the “Exer-
cise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People.” The third, Resolution 3379,
declared that “Zionism is a form of racism and racial discrimination.” The General
Assembly adopted Resolution 3379 by a vote of 72 to 35, with 32 abstentions. Flushed
with anger, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, lashed
out at his colleagues, stating, “The United States rises to declare before the General
Assembly of the United Nations, and before the world, that it does not acknowledge,
it will not abide by, it will never acquiesce in, this infamous act.”
To some degree, the General Assembly tarred Israel because of the Jewish state’s
warm relations at the time with the white minority government of South Africa. South
Africa was a significant trading partner for Israel, and it was widely alleged that the
two countries swapped technology for the development of nuclear weapons. The Gen-
eral Assembly in December 1973 had denounced the Israeli–South African relation-
ship as an “unholy alliance,” language it repeated in the Zionism-as-racism resolution.
Resolution 3379 remained on the books for sixteen years, until the administration
of President George H. W. Bush decided, in mid-1991, to press for its repeal. After
an intense diplomatic effort that included Bush himself, the General Assembly voted
on December 16, 1991, to repeal the resolution. The vote this time was 111 in favor
of repeal, 25 opposed, with 13 abstentions. Several major events contributed to the
success of Bush’s effort. After the Madrid peace conference between Arabs and Israelis
in October 1991, Israel had participated with several Arab nations in a series of peace
talks stemming from the defeat of Iraq in the Persian Gulf War. Also, the white minor-
ity government of South Africa in late 1991 was actively negotiating with black lead-
ers, thereby easing the stigma of Israel’s association with that country. The Soviet
Union, which long had supported Arab countries and often had been hostile toward
Israel, was a few days from collapsing when the resolution reached the General Assem-
bly, and its ambassador voted for the repeal (Madrid Conference, p. 138; Persian Gulf
War, p. 455).
116 ARABS AND ISRAELIS