Zionist Occupation Government
Encyclopedia
Zionist Occupation Government or Zionist Occupied Government (abbreviated as ZOG) is an antisemitic conspiracy theory
which holds that Jews secretly control a given country
, while the formal government is a puppet regime.
The expression is used by antisemitic groups such as white supremacists
in the United States
and Europe
, ultra-nationalists such as Pamyat
in Russia
, and various far-right groups, including some in Poland
.
The word "Zionist" in "Zionist Occupation Government" is derived from the ideology of Zionism
, the movement for support of a Jewish state in the Land of Israel
. As the conspiracy theorists chiefly name countries outside that area, the usage of Zionist in this context is misleading, and intended to portray Jews as conspirators who aim to control the world, as in the forged Protocols of the Elders of Zion
.
about robberies committed in California
and Washington by a white supremacist
group called The Order
. According to the newspaper, the crimes "were conducted to raise money for a war upon the United States Government, which the group calls 'ZOG,' or Zionist Occupation Government."
The Order of the Silent Brotherhood was an offshoot of the Aryan Nations
, an organization founded in the early 1970s by Richard G. Butler; the latter had since the 1950s been associated with another antisemitic group, called the Church of Jesus Christ Christian. Both of these groups trace their origins to antisemitic activists, like Gerald L. K. Smith
, and have interacted with the Ku Klux Klan
.
The name was publicized extensively in Aryan Nations literature. In December 1984 Newsweek
magazine reported that the Aryan Nations had set up a Bulletin Board System
called "Aryan Nation Liberty Net" to offer information such as, for instance, the locations of Communist Party
offices and "ZOG informers".
In 1985, the Oregon-based radical group Posse Comitatus
announced: "Our nation is now completely under the control of the International Invisible government of the World Jewry."
In 1996, the Aryan Nations posted on its website an "Aryan
Declaration of Independence, in which we find that "the history of the present Zionist Occupied Government of the United States of America is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations... [all] having a direct object—the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states." Holding "the eradication of the White race and its culture" as "one of its foremost purposes", the "ZOG" is accused of relinquishing "powers of government to private corporations, White traitors and ruling class
Jewish families."
Since 1996 the name has spread in usage, and is now popular with many other antisemitic organizations. Swedish
Neo-Nazis, for example, say that Jews in what they call the Swedish Zionist Occupied Government are importing immigrants to "dilute the blood of the white race". Websites such as Jew Watch
accuse the entire spectrum of Western nations
and other countries of being ruled by "Zionist Occupation Governments".
Conspiracy theory
A conspiracy theory explains an event as being the result of an alleged plot by a covert group or organization or, more broadly, the idea that important political, social or economic events are the products of secret plots that are largely unknown to the general public.-Usage:The term "conspiracy...
which holds that Jews secretly control a given country
Shadow government (conspiracy)
The term shadow government besides its party political meaning can also refer to what is sometimes called "the secret government" or "the invisible government" , an idea based on the notion that real and actual political power does not reside with publicly elected representatives but with private...
, while the formal government is a puppet regime.
The expression is used by antisemitic groups such as white supremacists
White supremacy
White supremacy is the belief, and promotion of the belief, that white people are superior to people of other racial backgrounds. The term is sometimes used specifically to describe a political ideology that advocates the social and political dominance by whites.White supremacy, as with racial...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, ultra-nationalists such as Pamyat
Pamyat
Pamyat is a Russian nationalist organization identifying itself as the "People's National-patriotic Orthodox Christian movement." The group's stated focus is preserving Russian culture.- History :...
in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, and various far-right groups, including some in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
.
The word "Zionist" in "Zionist Occupation Government" is derived from the ideology of Zionism
Zionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
, the movement for support of a Jewish state in the Land of Israel
Land of Israel
The Land of Israel is the Biblical name for the territory roughly corresponding to the area encompassed by the Southern Levant, also known as Canaan and Palestine, Promised Land and Holy Land. The belief that the area is a God-given homeland of the Jewish people is based on the narrative of the...
. As the conspiracy theorists chiefly name countries outside that area, the usage of Zionist in this context is misleading, and intended to portray Jews as conspirators who aim to control the world, as in the forged Protocols of the Elders of Zion
The Protocols of the Elders of Zion
The Protocols of the Elders of Zion is a fraudulent, antisemitic text purporting to describe a Jewish plan for achieving global domination. It was first published in Russia in 1903, translated into multiple languages, and disseminated internationally in the early part of the twentieth century...
.
History
One early appearance of the term was in 1976 in an article, Welcome to ZOG-World, attributed to an American neo-Nazi Eric Thomson. The term came to the attention of a larger audience in a December 27, 1984 article in The New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
about robberies committed in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and Washington by a white supremacist
White supremacy
White supremacy is the belief, and promotion of the belief, that white people are superior to people of other racial backgrounds. The term is sometimes used specifically to describe a political ideology that advocates the social and political dominance by whites.White supremacy, as with racial...
group called The Order
The Order (group)
The Order, also known as the Brüder Schweigen or Silent Brotherhood, was an organization active in the United States between 1983 and 1984...
. According to the newspaper, the crimes "were conducted to raise money for a war upon the United States Government, which the group calls 'ZOG,' or Zionist Occupation Government."
The Order of the Silent Brotherhood was an offshoot of the Aryan Nations
Aryan Nations
Aryan Nations is a white supremacist religious organization originally based in Hayden Lake, Idaho. Richard Girnt Butler founded the group in the 1970s, as an arm of the Christian Identity organization Church of Jesus Christ–Christian...
, an organization founded in the early 1970s by Richard G. Butler; the latter had since the 1950s been associated with another antisemitic group, called the Church of Jesus Christ Christian. Both of these groups trace their origins to antisemitic activists, like Gerald L. K. Smith
Gerald L. K. Smith
Gerald Lyman Kenneth Smith was an American clergyman and political organizer, who became a leader of the Share Our Wealth movement during the Great Depression and later the Christian Nationalist Crusade...
, and have interacted with the Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
.
The name was publicized extensively in Aryan Nations literature. In December 1984 Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
magazine reported that the Aryan Nations had set up a Bulletin Board System
Bulletin board system
A Bulletin Board System, or BBS, is a computer system running software that allows users to connect and log in to the system using a terminal program. Once logged in, a user can perform functions such as uploading and downloading software and data, reading news and bulletins, and exchanging...
called "Aryan Nation Liberty Net" to offer information such as, for instance, the locations of Communist Party
Communist Party USA
The Communist Party USA is a Marxist political party in the United States, established in 1919. It has a long, complex history that is closely related to the histories of similar communist parties worldwide and the U.S. labor movement....
offices and "ZOG informers".
In 1985, the Oregon-based radical group Posse Comitatus
Posse Comitatus (U.S. movement)
The Posse Comitatus is a loosely organized far right social movement that opposes the United States federal government and believes in localism...
announced: "Our nation is now completely under the control of the International Invisible government of the World Jewry."
In 1996, the Aryan Nations posted on its website an "Aryan
Aryan
Aryan is an English language loanword derived from Sanskrit ārya and denoting variously*In scholarly usage:**Indo-Iranian languages *in dated usage:**the Indo-European languages more generally and their speakers...
Declaration of Independence, in which we find that "the history of the present Zionist Occupied Government of the United States of America is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations... [all] having a direct object—the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states." Holding "the eradication of the White race and its culture" as "one of its foremost purposes", the "ZOG" is accused of relinquishing "powers of government to private corporations, White traitors and ruling class
Ruling class
The term ruling class refers to the social class of a given society that decides upon and sets that society's political policy - assuming there is one such particular class in the given society....
Jewish families."
Since 1996 the name has spread in usage, and is now popular with many other antisemitic organizations. Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Neo-Nazis, for example, say that Jews in what they call the Swedish Zionist Occupied Government are importing immigrants to "dilute the blood of the white race". Websites such as Jew Watch
Jew Watch
Jew Watch is an antisemitic website that promotes Holocaust denial, and makes many negative claims about Jews, which include allegations of a conspiracy that Jews control the media and banking industries, and accusations of Jewish involvement in terrorist groups...
accuse the entire spectrum of Western nations
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
and other countries of being ruled by "Zionist Occupation Governments".
External links
- Poisoning the Web: Hatred Online from the website of the Anti-Defamation LeagueAnti-Defamation LeagueThe Anti-Defamation League is an international non-governmental organization based in the United States. Describing itself as "the nation's premier civil rights/human relations agency", the ADL states that it "fights anti-Semitism and all forms of bigotry, defends democratic ideals and protects...
- Extremists conflicted from the Christian Science Monitor
- Southern Poverty Law Center Website See also: Southern Poverty Law CenterSouthern Poverty Law CenterThe Southern Poverty Law Center is an American nonprofit civil rights organization noted for its legal victories against white supremacist groups; legal representation for victims of hate groups; monitoring of alleged hate groups, militias and extremist organizations; and educational programs that...
- ZOG ate my Brains: Conspiracy theories about Jews abound - by Chip BerletChip BerletJohn Foster "Chip" Berlet is an American investigative journalist, and photojournalist activist specializing in the study of right-wing movements in the United States, particularly the religious right, white supremacists, homophobic groups, and paramilitary organizations...