Project Esther: A Trump-inspired plan to stifle opposition to colonialism
The Joe Biden administration’s disingenuous denial of American involvement in Zionist genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity was replaced with an unreserved acceptance of all of these acts upon Donald Trump’s reelection as president of the United States.
Not only will Trump’s return to the White House expose Washington’s backing for Israel’s excesses, crimes, and violations, but it will also exacerbate and make even more obvious the persecution of everyone who dared to oppose white supremacy and its Zionist manifestation.
Under Biden, anyone who opposed Zionist genocide that was funded and facilitated by the United States—from civil servants and university students to racial justice activists and writers—was already subject to police harassment, threats from politicians, false accusations of anti-Semitism in the media, and constant intimidation from far-right Zionist “self-defense” groups, employers, and university administrators.
Nevertheless, Trump claims that Biden has been “weak” in his efforts to quell “Hamas radicals” and that, as president, he would go much farther to crush anticolonial defiance. In an indication that he plans to follow through on his pledges to crack down on anti-Zionist activists, he appointed pro-Israel hawks to important intelligence and security positions in his government after calling for the deportation of foreigners who aid Palestinian resistance during the campaign. For instance, to “ensure the security of God’s chosen people,” Trump appointed Kristi Noem, the governor of South Dakota, as his secretary of homeland security. Noem had previously supported a law that cracked down on criticism of Israel.
A plan to “fight anti-Semitism” called “Project Esther,” which was created by the well-known conservative think tank that supports Trump, the Heritage Foundation, is another sign that Trump’s second term would be characterized by a fresh onslaught on anticolonial and antiracist struggle.
The Heritage Foundation has made no secret of its plan to turn “Project Esther” into official policy in the event of another Trump administration. The strategy plan itself says that it expects “Project Esther” will offer “an opportunity for public-private partnership when a willing administration occupies the White House.” It was released on October 7, the first anniversary of the Hamas attacks on Israel.
Project Esther, which was created by the same people who brought us the authoritarian, Christian nationalist “Project 2025,” combines the story of Queen Esther, the Jewish heroine who was celebrated on Purim for rescuing the Jews of ancient Persia from the annihilation at the hands of Vizier Haman, with contemporary Zionist narratives of victimization and defense to portray her as a defender of Jews against academics, activists, and progressive members of Congress in the US who oppose racism, apartheid, and genocide. Claiming to be “a blueprint to counter anti-Semitism in the United States,” the strategy document incorporates a number of core elements of fascist ideology and behavior as described by Umberto Eco, including anti-intellectualism, xenophobia, syncretic culture, and a cult of heroism.
Targeted individuals, such as Senators Bernie Sanders and Chuck Schumer, as well as many other Black, Brown, and Jewish elected officials who have expressed any criticism of Israel, are collectively misrepresented as belonging to “Hamas Support Organizations (HSO)” or a “Hamas Support Network” and are compared to Purim’s antagonist, Haman. With this narrative, the campaign portrays progressive Democratic Party representatives and well-known social justice activists as enemies of the Jewish people, citing Queen Esther’s mythology to support their persecution and repression.
Project Esther openly declares its intention to eradicate anticolonial viewpoints from the US educational system, restrict the spread of relevant knowledge, and deny proponents access to American Congress, the economy, and society. It aims to put “HSO” members on trial for supposed legal and criminal infractions, interfere with their communications, impose restrictions on protests, and mobilize the American public, Jewish community, and supporters against anticolonial resistance organizations.
“Project Esther” institutionalizes repression of dissent within a false, fascist theoretical framework, using fear-mongering rhetoric cloaked in patriotism and “American values” and the latest Zionist spin on rebranding offensive aggression as “defence.” It portrays itself as the last line of defense against an imaginary threat of “foreign influence” and a brave guardian of citizens from brown-skinned heathen hordes who have allegedly promised to infect white American open society with an anticapitalist agenda. Like the Ku Klux Klan’s notorious portrayal in Birth of a Nation, “Project Esther” ideologues typically view themselves as heroes who are valiantly fighting a holy war.
“Project Esther” uses xenophobic trends bolstered by the incoming Trump administration to weaponize anticolonial movements that assiduously oppose Zionism and white supremacy alike. It calls on “the silent majority” to “break its silence and speak” in order to “recover its voice and convert its words into actions to render impotent an illegitimate, hateful minority that threatens America’s soul” by, among other charges, “corrupting our education system.”.
Under the guise of combating hate and appealing to a supposedly terrorized and humiliated underclass, “Project Esther” seeks to frame antiracist opposition to Zionist apartheid and genocide as inherently anti-Semitic. However, this exposes Zionism itself as white supremacy and a modern embodiment of anti-Semitic ideology, much like Haman in the myth of Queen Esther, actively targeting Jewish organizations such as Jewish Voice for Peace and the Reformed Jewish movement.
“Project Esther” criticizes what it sees as “complacency” within the American Jewish community, invoking the Zionist-manufactured anti-Semitic ideal of a “new Jew” who rejects traditional beliefs that interpret oppression and hardship as divine punishment for sins. This vision disparages traditional reliance on defense as passive and weak, promoting instead an assertive, offensive approach to resistance. In line with this view, Zionists adopt the anti-Semitic notion that Jews have been responsible for their own suffering, advocating for segregation and land acquisition in a new homeland as the ultimate solution.
It is noteworthy that Zionists have long employed fear mongering to promote Jewish immigration to Israel, preferably white, in order to replenish the Israeli military and counter the Palestinian “demographic threat.” “Project Esther” poses a significant threat to nationwide anticolonial and justice-oriented intersectional movements, as well as minorities, including Jews, by intensifying the alliance between Zionist expansionism and US white supremacy.
Through academic and financial audits, “name and shame” campaigns, and “lawfare,” “Project Esther” aims to further accelerate the mobilization of Zionists and right-wing anti-Semites, who are now emboldened by Trump’s victory, to crush opposition to their racist agendas. Riddled with false information about “anti-Israel and anti-Zionist Jew-haters attempting to lay siege to our education system, political processes, and government,” the document supports Zionist policies and aligns with US white supremacy while bolstering the incoming Trump administration and Zionist vigilante groups like the “Jewish Defense League” and their natural allies, American neo-Nazis, to suppress free speech and dissent.
The public is ultimately duped into accepting Palestinian solidarity, even when it is expressed by Jews as anti-Semitic by initiatives such as “Project Esther,” which exploit Jewish historical suffering to advance white supremacy and stifle anticolonial, antiracist movements. In addition to suppressing opposition to right-wing aims, this alignment upholds a fascist narrative that incites violence against oppressors by portraying them as an existential threat. This Zionist-white supremacist alliance directly challenges justice movements and humanity at large by undermining attempts at true solidarity and liberation through violence, propaganda, and terror.