This is a domestic issue that cannot be fixed with a magic wand, and blaming the victims of hate crime is an unacceptable solution.
Illustration: Anti-Semitic graffiti. Photo by AP
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Growing
up as an active Jew in London I always hated when Americans or Israelis
would comment on anti-Semitism in Europe. Always hyperbolic and often
boarding on racism, their declarations of doom and destruction of the
Jewish community of Europe was as unwelcome as it was uneducated.
Yet
looking at the events of the past few years, and from my new home in
North America, I can say that Europe has a serious anti-Semitism
problem. With the recent advice that it is no longer safe for Jews to openly walk around Copenhagen,
the number of safe European capital cities has shrunk to a tiny number.
London and Berlin are some of the last holdouts for Jews to feel safe
walking around with a kippa on. Europe is definitely going backward.
This is not just the vain imagination of the Jewish community. A few weeks ago, the Economist ran a story about the ingrained nature of Hanukkah in U.S. culture,
leading it with, “On the London Underground or the Paris Metro, only a
brave passenger would dress as a Jewish version of Santa Claus. Such an
outfit would risk stares, grumbles about Israeli policies, or worse.”
This is not news to the Jews of Europe. Indeed, the new chief
rabbi-designate of Britain, Ephraim Mirvis, has recognized this as a
growing issue that will be on his agenda.
The Community Security Trust, a British Jewish communal group, has set
best practice on the reporting and prevention of anti-Semitism across
Europe, often being highlighted by the U.K. government as a glowing
example of how communities can work with local law enforcement.
Yet
to the governments of Europe, at a local, regional, national and
pan-European level, this issue is not being taken seriously enough.
European decision makers often have two reactions when the subject of
anti-Semitism is raised.
The
first reaction is to section anti-Semitism off as a problem only of the
far right. There is a growing problem with far right extremism on the
rise in Hungry and Austria alongside nationalists in many European
countries remembering their Jew hatred of the past. Today, however, the
solutions to anti-Semitism cannot be found by only using the familiar
coalitions against the far right.
The
second reaction is one of abdication of responsibility. They see
anti-Semitism as directly tied to foreign policy and thus blame others
for the lack of safety of their own citizens. This is appalling.
Regardless of one's feelings for the Middle East, hateful and violent
demonstrations against Jews and Jewish property is never justifiable.
European
anti-Semitism is a domestic public policy problem that cannot be fixed
with a magic wand, and blaming the victims of hate crime - something
that the Mayor of Malmo does often - is an unacceptable solution.
As
Europe's demography changes, governments have to start systemically
educating their citizens that hating Jews is not ok, and that it is
unjustifiable. This means going beyond Holocaust education and getting
into touchy, hard topics such as Israel and Palestine. If the hate, fear
and loathing come from today’s political situation, states have the
obligation to make sure their citizens are not being brought up on a
diet of racism. That starts with educating each and every child.
Jews not living in Europe have a role to play as well. In America,supporting the office of the special envoy to monitor and combat anti-Semitism is
a good start. Jews in Europe need the United States and Canada to lobby
their own governments to put pressure on the European Union to take the
issue seriously. European Jews do not need Israelis or North American
Jews to tell them about their own problem, but to support them in
helping to make sure that their governments take it seriously.
Lastly
and importantly, the global Jewish world must allow European Jews and
their agencies, such as the Community Security Trust, to define what
constitutes anti-Semitism. The Jews of Europe know their societies,
their nuances and cultures better than anyone else. The Jewish world has
an obligation to support the Europeans in this existential fight, but
they must let the Europeans lead if we are to have any hope of victory.
Joel Braunold is a Bnei Akiva alumnus and a former staff member of OneVoice Europe who is currently living in Brooklyn.
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