Global Antisemitism: a Crisis of Modernity
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Anti-Semitism: a History
ANTI-SEMITISM: A HISTORY 1 www.counterextremism.com | @FightExtremism ANTI-SEMITISM: A HISTORY Key Points Historic anti-Semitism has primarily been a response to exaggerated fears of Jewish power and influence manipulating key events. Anti-Semitic passages and decrees in early Christianity and Islam informed centuries of Jewish persecution. Historic professional, societal, and political restrictions on Jews helped give rise to some of the most enduring conspiracies about Jewish influence. 2 Table of Contents Religion and Anti-Semitism .................................................................................................... 5 The Origins and Inspirations of Christian Anti-Semitism ................................................. 6 The Origins and Inspirations of Islamic Anti-Semitism .................................................. 11 Anti-Semitism Throughout History ...................................................................................... 17 First Century through Eleventh Century: Rome and the Rise of Christianity ................. 18 Sixth Century through Eighth Century: The Khazars and the Birth of an Enduring Conspiracy Theory AttacKing Jewish Identity ................................................................. 19 Tenth Century through Twelfth Century: Continued Conquests and the Crusades ...... 20 Twelfth Century: Proliferation of the Blood Libel, Increasing Restrictions, the Talmud on Trial .............................................................................................................................. -
The Edict of Expulsion of 1290, Expelling the Jews from England
On 18 July 1290 every professing Jew in England was ordered out of the Realm, for ever, by King Edward I. Between sixteen and seventeen thousand Jews had to flee, and none dared return until four hundred years later The Edict of Expulsion of 1290 A catalogue of recorded history surrounding Jewry under Angevin Kings of England, leading up to the Edict of Expulsion by King Edward I Geoffrey H. Smith and Arnold S. Leese 1 The Settlement of Jews in England Geoffrey H. Smith There is little evidence to suggest that Jews settled in England in any large numbers until after the Norman Conquest. It was in Normandy, at Rouen, that a large Jewish community had existed since the Gallo-Roman era (see Gesta Regum Anglorum ii, 371n). William of Malmesbury stated that the Conqueror brought the Jews of London from Rouen. Thus it was armed might, not democracy, which led to England being occupied by Jews. However, Jews soon became indebted to the Norman Exchequer. An example of Jewish indebtedness is that King Richard I (who reigned 1189-1199) instructed Isaac, son of a rabbi, to pay 1,000 marks to Henry de Gray, keeper of the Jews in Normandy. (For references to Henry de Gray see Morant, History of Essex i. 95 and Landon, Itinerary of Richard I no. 451.) The first Jews to settle in England, then, were undoubtedly Jews from Normandy and in England they multiplied their number and their coins, until their expulsion in 1290. The Jews of England flourished, travelled many miles around Europe and profited through their usurious proclivities and mercantile pursuits. -
The Digital Experience of Jewish Lawmakers
Online Hate Index Report: The Digital Experience of Jewish Lawmakers Sections 1 Executive Summary 4 Methodology 2 Introduction 5 Recommendations 3 Findings 6 Endnotes 7 Donor Acknowledgment EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In late 2018, Pew Research Center reported that social media sites had surpassed print newspapers as a news source for Americans, when one in five U.S. adults reported that they often got news via social media.i By the following year, that 1 / 49 figure had increased to 28% and the trend is only risingii. Combine that with a deeply divided polity headed into a bitterly divisive 2020 U.S. presidential election season and it becomes crucial to understand the information that Americans are exposed to online about political candidates and the topics they are discussing. It is equally important to explore how online discourse might be used to intentionally distort information and create and exploit misgivings about particular identity groups based on religion, race or other characteristics. In this report, we are bringing together the topic of online attempts to sow divisiveness and misinformation around elections on the one hand, and antisemitism on the other, in order to take a look at the type of antisemitic tropes and misinformation used to attack incumbent Jewish members of the U.S Congress who are running for re-election. This analysis was aided by the Online Hate Index (OHI), a tool currently in development within the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Center for Technology and Society (CTS) that is being designed to automate the process of detecting hate speech on online platforms. Applied to Twitter in this case study, OHI provided a score for each tweet which denote the confidence (in percentage terms) in classifying the subject tweet as antisemitic. -
Hosting the 'Holohoax': a Snapshot of Holocaust Denial Across Social Media
COVID-19 disinformation briefingISD Briefing No.2 HostingFar-right the m ‘Holohoax’obilisation 10th9th August April 2020 2020 COVIDHosting-19 the disinformation ‘Holohoax’: A Snapshotbriefing of Holocaust no. 2 Denial Across Social Media Far-rightJakob Guhl mobilisation & Jacob Davey This is the second in a series of briefings from ISD’s Digital Research Unit on the information ecosystem around coronavirus (COVID-19). These briefings expose how Executivetechnology platformsSummary are being used to promote disinformation, hate, extremism and authoritarianism in the context of COVID-19. It is based on ISD’s mixture of natural Overviewlanguage processing, network analysis and ethnographic online research. This briefing Holocaustfocuses denialon the has way long far-right been one groups of the most and insidious individuals conspiracy are mobilising theories targeting around Jewish COVID-19 in communities,the with US. its The extremist first proponents briefing drawnin the from series across can the be ideological found on spectrum, ISD’s website. from extreme right-wing to hard left to Islamist. Research has shown that digital platforms have only served to amplify and mainstream this warped strain of thinking inTop recent Lines years.1 Far-rightThis briefing groups paper andprovides individuals a snapshot are of Holocaust denialAntisemitic content acrossspeech major and social ideas media are beingplatforms. opportunisticallyBy analysing the term using ‘holohoax’, the ongoingwhich is commonly usedadapted by Holocaust to incorporate deniers, -
Antisemitism in the United States Report of an Expert Consultation
Antisemitism in the United States Report of an Expert Consultation Organized by AJC’s Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights in Cooperation with UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief, Dr. Ahmed Shaheed 10-11 April 2019, New York City Introduction On March 5, 2019, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Dr. Ahmed Shaheed, announced that he was preparing a thematic report on global antisemitism to be presented to the UN General Assembly in New York in the fall of 2019. The Special Rapporteur requested that the Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights (JBI) organize a consultation that would provide him with information about antisemitism in the United States as he carried out his broader research. In response, JBI organized a two-day expert consultation on Wednesday, April 10 and Thursday, April 11, 2019 at AJC’s Headquarters in New York. Participants discussed how antisemitism is manifested in the U.S., statistics and trends concerning antisemitic hate crimes, and government and civil society responses to the problem. This event followed an earlier consultation in Geneva, Switzerland convened by JBI for Dr. Shaheed in June 2018 on global efforts to monitor and combat antisemitism and engaging the United Nations human rights system to address this problem.1 I. Event on April 10, 2019: Antisemitism in the United States: An Overview On April 10, several distinguished historians and experts offered their perspectives on antisemitism in the United States. In addition to the Special Rapporteur, Professor Deborah Lipstadt (Emory University), Professor Jonathan Sarna (Brandeis University), Professor Rebecca Kobrin (Columbia University), Rabbi David Saperstein (former U.S. -
The Resurgence of Antisemitic Discourse in Poland Rafał Pankowski
Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs, 2018 https://doi.org/10.1080/23739770.2018.1492781 The Resurgence of Antisemitic Discourse in Poland Rafał Pankowski Rafał Pankowski is an associate professor in sociology at Warsaw’s Collegium Civitas University and a co-founder of the Nigdy Wiecej̨ [Never Again] Association, which monitors and combats antisemitism and xenophobia. His books include The Populist Radical Right in Poland (2010) and the forthcoming Poland: Inventing the Nation. The surge of hostility to Jews and the Jewish State in the Polish media and politics in early 2018 took many observers by surprise. For some, it was shocking to witness a virtual tidal wave of antisemitism in the mainstream discourse of one of the largest member states of the European Union—on territory which, during the German occupation, was the epicenter of the Holocaust. It was also a great shock because for many years, bilateral relations between Poland and Israel had been especially cordial and fruitful. While the history of antisemitism in Poland is relatively well known and has been thoroughly researched, few observers adequately assessed its potential as a tool with which to whip up the masses in contemporary Polish society. As late as Feb- ruary 4, 2018, Jonny Daniels, a controversial Anglo-Israeli public relations specialist frequently quoted in the Polish media on Jewish issues, boldly declared, “There is no such thing as Polish antisemitism.”1 Daniels, who mysteriously sur- faced in Poland after the elections in 2015 that brought the radical, right-wing Prawo i Sprawiedliwosċ́(PiS) party to power, became the Orthodox Jewish poster boy of the Polish right. -
I. Historical Background of Antisemitism
I. Historical Background of Antisemitism What is it? 1. The Importance of a Definition The word antisemitism first originated in the 1870’s. Wilhelm Marr coined the term to distinguish between old time Jew-hatred and more modern, political, ethnic or racial opposition to the Jewish people. By definition, antisemitism represents policies, views or actions that harm or discriminate against the Jewish people. The following are examples of traditional forms of anti-Semitism: - Blood libel claims, still prevalent today in the Arab world (eg. Distributing/citing the Protocols of the Elders of Zion as a legitimate document. - Holocaust denial or relativizing the Holocaust. - Placards equating the Star of David with a Nazi Swastika - Equating Zionism with racism or Nazism, thus denying the Jewish people the right to a national liberation movement by condemning the Zionist movement. - Labeling Israel an apartheid state similar to apartheid South Africa. 2. A Historic Overview of Antisemitism The Jews have felt antisemitism for thousands of years throughout the world. It was present during the Middle Ages throughout Europe as well as during the Roman Empire; a time when being a Jew meant being a dissenter against Christianity. Once again, the Jews found themselves in the position of dissenters during the Islamic conquest of the Middle East and North Africa. Later on, during the Enlightenment, a time when dictating the religion people should follow was no longer seen as appropriate, religious and blatant forms of antisemitism in Europe shifted towards a more subtle, and ‘scientific’ brand of antisemitism, expressed notably as political and economic antisemitism. The Jews continued to be singled out, but the premise became economic and political rhetoric rather than religious. -
KNIGHT Wake Forest University
Forbidden Fruit Civil Savagery in Christian Kracht’s Imperium “Ich war ein guter Gefangener. Ich habe nie Menschenfleisch gegessen.” I was a good prisoner. I never ate human flesh. These final words of Christian Kracht’s second novel, 1979, represent the last shred of dignity retained by the German protagonist, who is starving to death in a Chinese prison camp in the title year. Over and over, Kracht shows us a snapshot of what happens to the over-civilized individual when civilization breaks down. Faserland’s nameless narrator stands at the water’s edge, preparing to drown rather than live with his guilt and frustration; even the portrait of Kracht on the cover of his edited volume Mesopotamia depicts Kracht himself in a darkened wilderness, wearing a polo shirt and carrying an AK-47. In each of these moments, raw nature inspires the human capacity for violence and self-destruction as a sort of ironic antidote to the decadence and vacuity of a society in decline. Kracht’s latest novel, Imperium, further explicates this moment of annihilation. The story follows the fin-de-siècle adventures of real-life eccentric August Engelhardt, a Nuremberger who wears his hair long, promotes nudism, and sets off for the German colony of New Guinea in hopes of founding a cult of sun-worshippers and cocovores (i.e., people who subsist primarily on coconuts). Engelhardt establishes a coconut plantation near the small town of Herbertshöhe, where he attempts to practice his beliefs in the company of a series of companions of varying worth and, finally, in complete solitude. -
Manifestations of Antisemitism in the EU 2002 - 2003
Manifestations of Antisemitism in the EU 2002 - 2003 Based on information by the National Focal Points of the RAXEN Information Network Manifestations of Antisemitism in the EU 2002 – 2003 Based on information by the National Focal Points of the EUMC - RAXEN Information Network EUMC - Manifestations of Antisemitism in the EU 2002 - 2003 2 EUMC – Manifestations of Antisemitism in the EU 2002 – 2003 Foreword Following concerns from many quarters over what seemed to be a serious increase in acts of antisemitism in some parts of Europe, especially in March/April 2002, the EUMC asked the 15 National Focal Points of its Racism and Xenophobia Network (RAXEN) to direct a special focus on antisemitism in its data collection activities. This comprehensive report is one of the outcomes of that initiative. It represents the first time in the EU that data on antisemitism has been collected systematically, using common guidelines for each Member State. The national reports delivered by the RAXEN network provide an overview of incidents of antisemitism, the political, academic and media reactions to it, information from public opinion polls and attitude surveys, and examples of good practice to combat antisemitism, from information available in the years 2002 – 2003. On receipt of these national reports, the EUMC then asked an independent scholar, Dr Alexander Pollak, to make an evaluation of the quality and availability of this data on antisemitism in each country, and identify problem areas and gaps. The country-by-country information provided by the 15 National Focal Points, and the analysis by Dr Pollak, form Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 of this report respectively. -
When Victims Rule
1 24 JEWISH INFLUENCE IN THE MASS MEDIA, Part II In 1985 Laurence Tisch, Chairman of the Board of New York University, former President of the Greater New York United Jewish Appeal, an active supporter of Israel, and a man of many other roles, started buying stock in the CBStelevision network through his company, the Loews Corporation. The Tisch family, worth an estimated 4 billion dollars, has major interests in hotels, an insurance company, Bulova, movie theatres, and Loliards, the nation's fourth largest tobacco company (Kent, Newport, True cigarettes). Brother Andrew Tisch has served as a Vice-President for the UJA-Federation, and as a member of the United Jewish Appeal national youth leadership cabinet, the American Jewish Committee, and the American Israel Political Action Committee, among other Jewish organizations. By September of 1986 Tisch's company owned 25% of the stock of CBS and he became the company's president. And Tisch -- now the most powerful man at CBS -- had strong feelings about television, Jews, and Israel. The CBS news department began to live in fear of being compromised by their boss -- overtly, or, more likely, by intimidation towards self-censorship -- concerning these issues. "There have been rumors in New York for years," says J. J. Goldberg, "that Tisch took over CBS in 1986 at least partly out of a desire to do something about media bias against Israel." [GOLDBERG, p. 297] The powerful President of a major American television network dare not publicize his own active bias in favor of another country, of course. That would look bad, going against the grain of the democratic traditions, free speech, and a presumed "fair" mass media. -
The Legacy of the Inquisition in the Colonization of New Spain and New Mexico C
University of Texas at El Paso DigitalCommons@UTEP Student Papers (History) Department of History 5-11-2012 Lobos y Perros Rabiosos: The Legacy of the Inquisition in the Colonization of New Spain and New Mexico C. Michael Torres [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.utep.edu/hist_honors Comments: Master's Seminar Essay Recommended Citation Torres, C. Michael, "Lobos y Perros Rabiosos: The Legacy of the Inquisition in the Colonization of New Spain and New Mexico" (2012). Student Papers (History). Paper 2. http://digitalcommons.utep.edu/hist_honors/2 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of History at DigitalCommons@UTEP. It has been accepted for inclusion in Student Papers (History) by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UTEP. For more information, please contact [email protected]. LOBOS Y PERROS RABIOSOS: The Legacy of the Inquisition in the Colonization of New Spain and New Mexico Cheryl Martin, PhD. Master’s Seminar Essay May 11, 2012 C. Michael Torres 1 It is unlikely that any American elementary school student could forget the importance of the year 1492, as it immediately brings to mind explorer Christopher Columbus, his three tiny sailing ships and the daring voyage of discovery to the New World. Of no less importance was what historian Teofilo Ruiz of UCLA has called the Other 1492, the completion of the Reconquista (Reconquest) of the Moorish kingdoms in Iberia, and the expulsion of the Jews from Spain by the Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand II of Aragón, and Queen Isabella of Castile.1 These seemingly unconnected events influenced the history and economy of Spain and Europe, setting in motion the exploration, immigration, and colonization of the Americas which gave rise to Spain‟s Golden Age. -
MODERN ANTISEMITISM in the VISEGRÁD COUNTRIES Edited By: Ildikó Barna and Anikó Félix
MODERN ANTISEMITISM IN THE VISEGRÁD COUNTRIES Edited by: Ildikó Barna and Anikó Félix First published 2017 By the Tom Lantos Institute 1016 Budapest, Bérc utca 13-15. Supported by 2017 Tom Lantos Institute All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. ISBN 978-615-80159-4-3 Peer reviewed by Mark Weitzman Copy edited by Daniel Stephens Printed by Firefly Outdoor Media Kft. The text does not necessarily represent in every detail the collective view of the Tom Lantos Institute. CONTENTS 01 02 Ildikó Barna and Anikó Félix CONTRIBUTORS 6 INTRODUCTION 9 03 Veronika Šternová 04 Ildikó Barna THE CZECH REPUBLIC 19 HUNGARY 47 I. BACKGROUND 20 I. BACKGROUND 48 II. ANTISEMITISM: II. ANTISEMITISM: ACTORS AND MANIFESTATIONS 27 ACTORS AND MANIFESTATIONS 57 III. CONCLUSIONS 43 III. CONCLUSIONS 74 05 Rafal Pankowski 06 Grigorij Mesežnikov POLAND 79 SLOVAKIA 105 I. BACKGROUND 80 I. BACKGROUND 106 II. ANTISEMITISM: II. ANTISEMITISM: ACTORS AND MANIFESTATIONS 88 ACTORS AND MANIFESTATIONS 111 III. CONCLUSIONS 102 III. CONCLUSIONS 126 The Tom Lantos Institute (TLI) is its transmission to younger gener- an independent human and minori- ations. Working with local commu- ty rights organization with a par- nities to explore and educate Jewish ticular focus on Jewish and Roma histories contributes to countering communities, Hungarian minori- antisemitism. The research of con- ties, and other ethnic or national, temporary forms of antisemitism is linguistic and religious minori- a flagship project of the Institute.