Until recently, the idea that widespread hatred toward the Jewish diaspora could manifest itself again would be largely unthinkable after the abject terror of the Holocaust.
However, in 2018, the Community Security Trust (CST), a British charity working to protect the Jewish community, recorded a 16% increase in antisemitic incidents in the UK — an all-time high for the third year in a row.
One Jewish MP, Luciana Berger, left the British Labour Party two weeks ago after sustained antisemitic abuse from within the party, she claims. Eight others joined her in departing, partly due to perceived endemic antisemitism in the party.
This rising tide of intolerance has had psychological effects on the British Jewish communities, according to the CST. “In 2012, less than half of British Jews considered antisemitism a ‘very big’ or ‘fairly big’ problem, but in 2018 this had risen to 75%,” a CST spokesman told Crikey.
French authorities, meanwhile, reported there was a 74% increase in registered incidents of antisemitism in 2018.
A recent CNN poll conducted in Europe also revealed that one in four respondents believed that Jews have too much influence in world finance and too much influence in armed conflicts around the globe.
Australia is free of the historical chains of Jewish intolerance that encompass Europe and has largely avoided the populist wave that many European countries are surfing, which often draws on ethnic intolerance to galvanise voters. However, a report by the Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) found that recorded antisemitic incidents in Australia had increased by 59% in 2018, stating that “this is an unprecedented percentage increase”.
The increased focus by these type of groups toward the Jewish community is a part of a natural progression, according to the ECAJ.
While from 2015 to 2017 neo-Nazis primarily targeted Muslims throughout a period of global terrorist activities by ISIS, and ISIS inspired cells, however now these groups are focused on the Jewish diaspora as examples of global antisemitism are increasingly shown in the media.
In fact, the number of incidents in Australia last year as a proportion of population was more than double that of France.
ECAJ research director Julie Nathan said you only had to look at the need for armed security at synagogues to see the extent of the problem.
“The Jewish community is the only community within Australia whose places of worship, schools, communal organisations and community centres need, for security reasons, to operate under the protection of high fences, armed guards, metal detectors, CCTV cameras and the like,” she told Crikey.
“It is a sad commentary on our society that Australian Jews have had to accept these security measures as a fact of daily life.”
Nathan said one of the reasons for the dramatic increase in incidents can be pinned on the emergence of far-right groups.
Antipodean Resistance, whose logo features a swastika, were responsible for a spate of posters, stickers and graffiti calling for the “legalisation of the execution of Jews” in Melbourne last year.
The ECAJ also said it was becoming commonplace for far-right groups to organise anti-Jewish rallies to coincide with the anniversary of events in relation to the Holocaust.
It’s taken only 74 years for the scourge of antisemitism to materially return — just one life span.
It seems to me the author has joined the pack conflating anti-Semitism with anti-Zionism.
Macron specifically, and deliberately, did the same recently.
The 80 “Labour Friends of Israel” in the parliamentary Labour Party in England have been doing the same for yonks, in their relentless Blair inspired “Get Corbyn” campaign.
This effort also seems to have gained more legs in recent days, right after the Israel A-G announced he intended to indict Netanyahoo on corruption charges, and the UN Human Rights commission finding that Israel should be referred to the ICC for likely committing war crimes against the citizens of Gaza (with specific reference to the disabled, journalists and emergency responders, and for deliberately aiming exploding bullets at body parts of the unarmed to ensure even more people are disabled).
And, Jeremy Corbyn has now called on the UK to suspend arms sales to Israel, because of the UNHRC commission’s findings.
Cue another ramp-up of the “Get Corbyn” campaign.
Criticizing Israel for their deplorable domestic human rights abuses and foreign policies is NOT anti-semitism.
Nor is criticizing zionism anti-semitism . When the UN criticises and attempts to reprimand Israel for ignoring international law , does that make the UN anti-semitic?? … no it does not.
The recent undercover documentary made by Al Jazeera exposing Israeli lobby groups in both the UK and the US is a must see . The documentary exposes everything the Zionist regime want kept secret at all costs .
The dirty tricks , media manipulation and targeted attacks on elected figures and media figures Israel deems as a threat to its interests . The constant faux victimisation is on show time and time again leading to a weaponization of anti-semitism.
Anti -semitism has no place here in Australia and rightfully should be called out when it occurs.
Equally faux anti-semitism has no place here in Australia and must be dealt with once its exposed for what it is.
IMHO the various Jewish groups around the world are suffering discrimination, NOT because of who they are, but because they mostly support Israel and its diabolical attacks on the Palestinian people…and others.
It is also interesting to note that Jews are not the only semitic race of people…the Kurds, Turks and various other ‘Arab’ groups come under that heading as well. We don’t hear of the term ‘anti-semitism’ being applied to discrimination against Arab/Moslem people. The Jewish race (wrongly) have hijacked the term for their own use, it seems.
I think DT above is correct…we should be calling it anti-Zionism…a very different kettle of fish, and wholly justified by the actions of the Israelis over many decades.
* Re the cause of increased discrimination against Jews, you are entitled to your HO, but if you follow the link in the article to the ECAJ report you will find that criticism of Israel is specifically excluded as a criterion to be used in deciding what is and is not an anti-semitic incident – that is, the incidents which, the report conclude, jumped by 59% in 2018.
* “The Jewish race (wrongly) have hijacked the term [anti-semitism] for their own use, it seems.”
The term “anti-semitism” meaning “anti-jewishness” was coined by Wilhelm Marr, 19th century German anti-jewish agitator. Jews are not responsible for its invention or widespread use in later years.
*It is not usual these days, and has never been accurate, to refer to Jews as a “race”.
Maybe they are not a race, but they speak of themselves as one.
Care to cite your authority for this assertion? Here is the first Jewish reference to the Jews and “race” from a google search
https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/498027/jewish/Are-Jews-a-Race.htm
“While the Jewish people began with the descendents of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, many people have converted to become Jews over the millennia—beginning with the “mixed multitude” that came with us out of Egypt. Today there are African Jews, Japanese Jews, even Eskimo Jews. It seems difficult to call such a mixture a “race”.
(Incidently, there is really no such thing as a “race.” The term “race” implies to most people that there are different categories of human beings based on their genetic makeup. The fact is that there is no basis in genetics for these distinctions. For example, an African from one family may have more in common genetically with a Swede than with another African.)
What could be said is that we are a “family”.”
Do you understand the term ‘sophistry’?
AR, yes I do, but not your application of it.
Anti-semitism and anti-zionism have become so confused that they can be used as a stick to beat Jews or as a way of excusing bad Israeli behaviour. It won’t surprise me if Netanyahu declares that those who accuse him of illegal activities are anti-semites.
It’s long surprised me how little anti Semitism there is despite Israel’s ceaseless efforts to advance it. The main reason there’s not more is the corrupt connivance of Palestinian dictators and that most people are smart enough not to judge Israelis by the actions of their government.
The recent tactics of equating anti Semitism with anti Zionism and legal actions to prevent criticism of Israel has created a backlash. Citizens of free countries are accustomed to criticizing governments as they see fit and don’t take kindly to bullying from foreigners. People who were once sympathetic to or neutral about Jews and Israel are now becoming less sympathetic. This is most undesirable but unfortunately predictable.
The way they can just throw the Jewish diaspora under a bus is pretty damn gross. UK politics has been jaw-dropping lately as well because they’re now at a stage where supposed Not Racists publicly say things like ‘anti-capitalism is anti-semitism’. Why yes, let’s tell Europeans that Jews are the cause of all their woes, to defeat the scourge of anti-semitism.
The people making such arguments and running interference for the Netanyahu administration aren’t the ones that will be the victims of any hate crimes that result from people taking them at their word, so what do they care? Astonishingly cynical.