Communal organisations and rabbis have responded with outrage to recent spoof videos that made fun of the controversy over kashrut prices. A video of Hitler shouting at his generals in the movie Downfall was generated with new subtitles that related to communal unhappiness with the cost of kashrut.
The association made by the video was clear: the chief rabbi was being criticised for being unsympathetic and dictatorial when it came to kashrut fees.
Some have even demanded that the creators of the video be outed and shamed.
The SA Jewish Report ran an article on the controversy headlined: “But is it funny?” Well, the answer is yes, it is.
Sometimes what’s funny doesn’t coincide with what’s politically correct. Sometimes the very controversy of the association (in this case, the dying days of Hitler’s power) is possibly what makes it so funny.
This particular video has been used time and again to protest against things that people are unhappy about, including superficial things like the unavailability of a beloved coffee shop or rugby matches during lockdown. This makes it a meme – which is hard for anyone to define, but it’s definitely not a personal insult.
Similarly, the scene used, in which Hitler shouts and screams at his generals, makes fun of Hitler. Perhaps that’s one of the reasons why it’s OK as a form of protest.
Far be it for anyone, including our learned rabbis, to declare what’s funny and what’s not. The very nature of satire is that it’s controversial, otherwise it’s not satire.
What anyone criticising the outrageousness of daring to compare the chief rabbi with Hitler – and by Jews, no less (shock and horror) – seem to miss is that it’s a way of protesting a situation that some feel to be untenable.
This isn’t to deny that the Holocaust was horrific beyond measure, but the video wasn’t about the Holocaust, it was about the Union of Orthodox Synagogues and kosher prices. Perhaps that, at the heart, is what is shocking our communal leaders so much.
Satire is a form of protest. It’s not about insulting a man who is the spiritual leader of the community, it’s not about making light of the Holocaust, it’s about generating comment regarding an issue that’s important to the community.
We don’t need more censorship. We’ve been down that road again and again. Rather, those insulted and offended by the video should consider why it was made, and respect our constitutionally enshrined freedom of speech.
Maybe they should also just let go a bit and understand that laughter, no matter how it’s generated, is healthy and healing.
