Rabbi Shmuly Yanklowitz, an influential Jewish social activist, educator and author of books on Jewish ethics, has spoken out on behalf of refugees and asylum seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border and Afghan refugees.
Now the rabbi has taken up the cause of the cultural genocide of the nearly 12 million predominantly Muslim Uyghurs in China’s far-western Xinjiang region, whose religion, language and customs are being wiped out by Beijing.
Yanklowitz, 42, has written recent opinion pieces in religious journals about the mass detention of an estimated 1.8 million Uyghurs in "re-education" camps where some faced torture, sexual assaults and forced female sterilization. He says the measure is the "largest mass-internment of an ethnic-religious minority since the Holocaust."
Yanklowitz says he was inspired in part by the late Elie Wiesel, a Holocaust survivor and Nobel Peace Prize laureate who fought against hate, persecution and injustice.
RFA Uyghur reporter Kurban Niyaz asked Yanklowitz about his call for action. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.
RFA: Why are you focusing on the Uyghur issue now, and why is it important?
Shmuly Yanklowitz: First, I am inspired by my faith, my religion that says we cannot stand by when people — innocent people — are being oppressed.
Second, I am inspired by the Holocaust memory and understanding with people in my family just how traumatic and how painful this reality is.
Third, as a student of Professor Elie Wiesel, I feel much moved by his commitment to use his global influence to never be silent.
Last, this is the most important issue right now, because the CCP [Chinese Communist Party] is growing in its power and influence. This is the worst genocide which somehow has the least awareness of it. So, I feel compelled to raise that awareness at a crucial time like this.
There are people who have nowhere to go. They are not safe in their native country, and they are fleeing, and they’re not safe to where they’re fleeing also. These are some of the most vulnerable people on the planet — people who are crossing the U.S.-Mexico border [and] people who are fleeing war or genocide.
That’s where I see my biggest moral priority — to get people showers and clothes and food and travel when possible, [no matter] whether the person is Muslim or Christian or atheist. I want to be there to support them. I don’t always know someone’s background because of the language barrier. Whoever is there, we support.
RFA: Why did the historical notion of “never again” fail when it comes to the genocide of Uyghurs in Xinjiang?
Yanklowitz: Great question. I think that we see so much apathy on this Uyghur genocide issue where people are either ignorant about it, they've never even heard of Uyghur people, or they've heard about it but don't really care. Or they're afraid of China, or they are too connected to all the things they buy, which we know are linked to forced labor, and for so many reasons.
It seems we’re not getting movement and traction on this issue. And yet, people say “never again.” The other part is that people are used to talking about genocide where they see mass killings. And here, of course, not only can people not see it because of the crackdown and [lack of] transparency, but also because it’s not mass killings.
It’s a different type of genocide which attempts to wipe out the Uyghur culture and people, but in a very different form from [that of] the Holocaust. So, people are not understanding how serious this is, and people feel powerless to address something like this. But we must say “never again.” We must never stop saying “never again” and build a movement where we can really stop this.
RFA: Several international companies assisted the Nazis in their persecution of the Jewish people, and a similar trend has appeared nowadays, for example, with companies who sell products made with Uyghur forced labor. Is this a sign of history repeating itself?
Yanklowitz: There are real similarities and real differences. The similarities are that, there is just total cruelty, total dehumanization, total lack of moral responsibility, and an attempt to gain power. The Nazis wanted to take over the world. The CCP wants to be the global leader.
And yet, the differences are also so real in today’s realities and with all the new technology and the tools and the transnational repression. So, I do think that history does repeat itself, where we say we're never going to allow these things again, and then we see it once again. We have power. And in America, there’s American government power. There’s American corporate power. And we can do something about this. If there’s a desire, we can wake up the world.
RFA: What’s your message for Uyghurs who have ended up in Chinese concentration camps and prisons?
Yanklowitz: My first message is that you are not alone. We see you, and we hear your cries.
My second message is that we will prevail. We don't know how long it will take, but we will prevail in bringing them their dignity and freedom.
My third message is that we are ready to receive you. Whenever you get free, it’s not just about being free from there. It’s about not losing the Uyghur culture in the diaspora, and that we want to support that Uyghurs in the diaspora because there’s also assimilation of children of Uyghur families. It can be hard to maintain the culture without infrastructure and support.
So, we want to help offer tools because the Jewish people lived in the diaspora for 2,000 years and survived. And we want to share wisdom together around how once the Uyghurs are free from that region, or hopefully, they will have total autonomy there, but if they have to leave to get freedom, then we want to share with someone how to survive culturally.
RFA: How can Uyghurs in the diaspora preserve their identity, language and culture?
Yanklowitz: One of the areas we've been talking about, one of the secrets in American Jewish life right now, is summer camp. The kids go to camp, and they live in their culture.
We think that some kind of program, like for Uyghurs in the diaspora to be a part of a camp, like a Jewish camp where they have their own Uyghur groups, that they can support their culture and the Uyghur children can celebrate Uyghur culture, learn the music and the language and the songs and the dance and the food, and that they can be proud.
That it’s not just to be sad about the current crisis, but also to be proud of the culture.
Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster.