Repealing the “Zionism is Racism” UN Resolution following the End of the Cold War

ABSTRACT: In 1991 the United Nations General Assembly voted to repeal United Nations Resolution 3379 that equated Zionism with “racism and racial discrimination”. The revocation was described as the beginning of a “new era” and 3379 presented as a final relic of the Cold War. While the anti-Israel resolution had ostensibly been driven by Soviet-led initiatives against America’s allies and thus was no longer relevant in 1991, that assessment overlooked the development of anti-Israel discourse well beyond the former Cold War-defined parameters. This article considers the reasons why the repeal of Res. 3379 ought to be construed primarily as a political breakthrough, rather than a turning point in doctrinal debate. Reframing the post-1991 “new era” in a way that is attuned to broader considerations may provide an explanation for how “Zionism as Racism” resurfaced barely ten years later at the World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance.