Jordan Peterson has long been a contentious figure who has been the target of various attempts to silence him. Despite the controversy, not all of it is unfavorable. His opposition to Bill C-16 in Canada, which forbids the use of transgender people’s pronouns in a blatant case of coerced speech, was noble, as were his support for free speech, defense of religious values in public life, and efforts to empower and affirm young men in particular.
But as time has gone on, those ostensible positions for liberty and societal advancement have been overshadowed by the many attempts to persuade Peterson to support particular causes, realizing the value his influence and articulation could bring to their “tribe.” As have libertarians, conservative Christians, and intellectual Muslims made an effort with varying degrees of success.
However, the Zionist movement and supporters of Israel are the group that has completely prevailed and whose success few predicted. There were certainly hints along the way, with Peterson asserting in a speech on the “importance of the Balfour Declaration” four years ago that “you know, maybe even the enemies of the Jews perversely respect them because they’ve done so well in the Middle East that it’s just annoying.”
To suggest, first, that Palestinians and Arab countries are “enemies of the Jews” – as they are supposedly who he meant – and that they have largely opposed Israel for more than seven decades simply because they are allegedly envious of its technological or military achievements is entirely neglecting the ongoing illegal Occupation of Palestinian territories, the blatant human rights violations by Israeli forces, the displacement of natives in their own land, and the enforcement of a literal apartheid system.
Since then, his gradual inclination toward ‘intellectual dark web’ figures who are largely and outspokenly pro-Israel was another red flag, as was the psychologist’s conducting this year of a series of interviews with individuals like the former US ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, and the former Israeli ambassador to the US, Ron Dermer. These facts alone do not qualify Peterson as a Zionist or a supporter of the Occupation, but the fact that he hardly confronted those diplomats about the crimes listed above did not endow him with the status of an objective person.
Relation with Shapiro
Then, a few months ago, he took a trip to Israel and, supported by authorities and Israeli Occupation Forces, “stood up” for Ben Shapiro to “storm” the Al-Aqsa compound, echoing the numerous instances of Jewish settlers storming the compound. This further immersed him in the rabbit hole.
Additionally, it was recently revealed that he and Shapiro had dinner with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, failing once more to bring up the Occupation and its crimes in favor of discussing Netanyahu’s leadership principles, economic policies, and the psychological aspects of Israeli politics. One might liken it to meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and only bringing up factory production while omitting to mention the conflict in Ukraine.
It goes without saying that Shapiro, who supports the construction of a third Jewish temple in Al-Aqsa, is now Peterson’s boss or at the very least a senior colleague as a result of Peterson’s recent hiring by the Daily Wire, a publication that openly supports Israel and its Occupation.
