Who holds the banner ‘Never Again’? The effects of protesters’ identity and audiences’ ideology on perceived unfairness of police treatment / ¿Quién sostiene la bandera de ‘Nunca Más’? Los efectos de la identidad de los manifestantes y la ideología del público en la percepción de injusticia del trato policial

Abstract

In response to Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza, demonstrations and solidarity events in support of and opposition to Israel and its military operation took place worldwide. In Western countries, such as the UK and the US, authorities treat pro-Palestine and pro-Israel protesters differently for similar actions. This double standard even extends to Jewish protesters, depending on their stance towards Israel: Jewish individuals who oppose Israel and its genocide face repression for their activism. Do uninvolved citizens also apply double standards when judging the fairness of police treatment towards anti-Israel and pro-Israel Jewish protesters who take the same action with the same slogan in the UK and the US? To answer this question, we conducted two experiments (N_total = 738). Across studies, we found that non-Jewish left-wingers (liberals) perceived police treatment of anti-Israel Jewish protesters as more unfair than that of pro-Israel ones, while the opposite held true for right-wingers (conservatives). These findings highlight polarization in fairness perceptions, driven by differing judgements of anti-Israel Jewish protesters. Theoretical and societal implications are discussed.