# 182: No Country For Old Mensheviks, with Molly Crabapple Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPeZSkUECbE Recap page: https://rapidrecap.app/video/nPeZSkUECbE Generated: 2026-02-18T01:01:22.248+00:00 --- ## Quick Overview The podcast episode features artist and writer Molly Crabapple discussing her book "Here Where We Live Is Our Country: The Story of the Jewish Bund," detailing the anti-Zionist Jewish socialist revolutionary group, the Bund, which fiercely opposed Zionism from its inception in 1897, viewing it as a nationalist, racist ideology collaborating with imperial powers. **Key Points:** - Molly Crabapple spent seven years researching and writing her book, learning Yiddish because the Bund viewed the language as central to working-class Jewish cultural pride. - The Bund and political Zionism were founded in the same year, 1897, with the Bund starting in a Vilnius attic and Zionism launching at a casino in Basel, Switzerland. - The Bund viewed early Zionism as a "crackhead fever dream" and resented its adoption of the same 'oriental alien race' rhetoric used by their oppressors in Tsarist Russia. - Crabapple connects the Bund's ideology to the Black Panther Party, noting their creation of community care structures like free breakfast programs alongside their commitment to elevating Yiddish culture and armed self-defense. - Bund leader Henrik Erlick predicted in 1917 that a Jewish state in Palestine would lead to "eternal fear of the external enemy" and an "untiring struggle for the extermination of the language and culture of the non-Hebraized Jews of Palestine." - The Bund refused to participate in mourning rituals after the 1929 Hebron massacre, holding a 30,000-person rally under the banner "Liquidate Zionism," blaming the violence on Zionism's collaboration with the British occupation. - The hosts and Crabapple conclude that blaming Jewish groups like the Bund for not escaping the Holocaust is an act of profound cruelty, as no Jewish group could have stopped the Nazi war machine, a point underscored by the Armenian Genocide museum experience. **Context:** The hosts of the "Bad Asbara" podcast, Matt Leeb and Daniel Mate, recorded this episode on President's Day, opening with commentary on the holiday before introducing their guest, artist and writer Molly Crabapple. Crabapple discusses her extensive research into the Jewish Bund, a revolutionary socialist organization active in Eastern Europe, whose history and anti-Zionist stance she details in her forthcoming book, "Here Where We Live Is Our Country: The Story of the Jewish Bund." ## Detailed Analysis The discussion centers on the Jewish Bund, a socialist revolutionary movement that opposed Zionism from its foundation in 1897, contrasting their grassroots, Yiddish-centric origins in Vilnius with Zionism's launch by Theodor Herzl in Basel. Crabapple emphasizes that the Bund saw Zionism as a dangerous nationalism that mirrored the racist views of their oppressors, especially after Zionism gained British imperial backing, leading the Bund to label Zionists as collaborators in the oppression of Palestinians through land purchases and evictions. The Bund's slogan, "Here where we live is our country," championed staying and fighting for equal rights within existing societies, unlike Zionism's goal of creating an ethnostate. Crabapple draws parallels between the Bund's community work—including mutual aid and cultural elevation—and that of the Black Panther Party. Furthermore, the hosts examine the prescience of Bund leaders like Henrik Erlick, who foresaw that a Jewish state would lead to perpetual conflict with its neighbors and internal struggle against non-Hebraized Jews. Finally, they address the historical criticism that the Bund was wrong because they remained in Eastern Europe during the Holocaust; Crabapple argues this is a form of self-hatred, asserting that no Jewish group, Zionist or otherwise, could have stopped the Nazi war machine, comparing this misplaced blame to criticizing Armenian ancestors for not fleeing Istanbul before the genocide. ### Podcast Opening and Context - Hosts Matt Leeb and Daniel Mate record on President's Day, expressing general anti-presidency sentiments - They briefly discuss losing actor Robert Duvall and mention Robert Redford's passing - The segment transitions to music tracks featuring the word 'apple,' including A Tribe Called Quest's 'Bonita Applebum' and Fiona Apple. ### Introduction of Molly Crabapple and the Book - Crabapple expresses excitement to be on the podcast she frequently listens to while drawing - She spent seven years writing "Here Where We Live Is Our Country: The Story of the Jewish Bund" and learned Yiddish for the research - Her connection to the subject began through a painting by her great-grandfather, Sam Rothport, titled 'Ita the Bundist.' ### The Bund vs. Zionism Origins - The Bund and political Zionism started in 1897, the former in a Vilnius attic, the latter at a Basel casino - The Bund initially dismissed Zionism as a "crackhead fever dream" and resented Zionists adopting the same 'oriental alien race' framing used by their oppressors - The Bund believed Zionism deflected from labor challenges faced by Jewish workers in Europe. ### Bund Activism and Ideology - The Bund built a counterculture resembling the Black Panther Party, offering mutual aid, clinics, and fighting for birth control - They were devoted to elevating Yiddish culture through theater and publishing - Their slogan, "Here where we live is our country," was an act of defiance backed by armed defense against massive danger in interwar Poland. ### Bund's Stance on Zionism and Violence - The Bund opposed Zionism's nationalism and collaboration with British imperialism, viewing it as stealing Arab land - They refused to mourn the 1929 Hebron massacre casualties in the traditional manner, instead holding a rally to "Liquidate Zionism," arguing that more national hatred would only lead to more clashes. ### Prophetic Warnings of the Bund - Bund leader Henrik Erlick predicted that a Jewish state would result in "eternal fear of the external enemy" (Arabs) and the extermination of non-Hebraized Jewish culture in Palestine - The hosts note the chilling accuracy of this prediction regarding perpetual conflict. ### Addressing the Holocaust Critique - Crabapple refutes the argument that the Bund's ideology failed because they died in the Holocaust - She states that Jews who fled to Palestine were only saved due to historical contingency (British military success) and that no Jewish group could have stopped the Nazis - She cites an Armenian genocide survivor who found it psychotic to criticize ancestors for staying in their homes during mass slaughter.