Topic
Antisemitism
Combating Antisemitism and all Forms of Bigotry.
Within living memory of the Holocaust, the remnants of Europe’s Jewish communities have endured a steep rise in anti-Semitism. Since 2012 alone, at least 14 people have been killed in anti-Jewish violence in the EU. The numbers of European Jews emigrating to Israel or the United States has also increased significantly.
AJC Strategy Conference on Combating Anti-Semitism
The AJC Transatlantic Institute, together with AJC offices in Berlin, Paris, Rome and Warsaw, works together with EU officials, policy makers and civil society to expose and combat anti-Semitism. In 2015 the AJC Transatlantic Institute hosted in Brussels the ground-breaking conference “A Defining Moment for Europe,” where it presented an action plan for European governments to address the intensifying crisis of anti-Semitism.
Identifying Anti-Semitism – The Working Definition of Anti-Semitism
In order to effectively confront anti-Semitism, we must first define it. In June 2016, the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), which includes 25 of the EU’s 28 Member States, adopted the so-called Working Definition of Anti-Semitism. That definition crucially encompasses contemporary forms of anti-Semitism, such as the demonization of Israel and holding all Jews responsible for Israel’s actions. The AJC Transatlantic Institute has consistently called for the EU and its Member States to officially adopt this definition as well. In a first step, the European Parliament in May 2017 did so and urged member states to follow suit.
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AJC Europe Managing Director Simone Rodan-Benzaquen on Antisemitism in France
Since the Hamas-instigated war against Israel, France, like many other EU countries, has seen a massive explosion of antisemitic acts. AJC Europe Managing Director Simone Rodan-Benzaquen joined France 24 to discuss how French Jews experience antisemitism in their daily lives and its frightening resurgence across Europe and the U.S.
Can Europe protect Diaspora Jews from Iran's IRGC threats?
While the EU is a leader in the fight against global antisemitism, if it really wants to protect its Jewish communities, expeditiously designating the IRGC as a terrorist entity is the next logical step and a moral imperative. “EU foreign ministers gathering in Luxembourg on April 24 should take action and urgently designate the IRGC as a terrorist entity,” writes AJC’s Michael Sieveking.
AJC CEO Ted Deutch at the UN on the Institution’s Role to Combat Antisemitism
Speaking at a high-level UN side event focused on globalizing efforts to combat antisemitism alongside Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff, the first Jewish spouse of an American president or vice president, AJC CEO Ted Deutch called on UN leaders to do more to counter antisemitism at the world body. The program was co-hosted by the U.S. Mission to the United Nations and the missions of Argentina, Canada, Israel, Mexico, Morocco, and the United Kingdom.
American Jews Shouldn't Be Afraid to Be Jewish
Following the findings of AJC’s State of Antisemitism 2022 Report, making clear that many in the Jewish community now feel uncomfortable and unsafe at work or on campus, AJC CEO Ted Deutch penned in Newsweek what can be done to combat rising Jew-hatred. The report was released at a critical time, just two months after the White House announced the creation of an interfederal agency committee to prepare a nation-wide strategy on combating antisemitism.
When Will The Far Left Stop Instrumentalizing The Palestinian Cause?
Jailed for plotting the murder of the former chief Sephardic rabbi of Israel and for his connections with the EU-listed terrorist organization PFLP, Salah Hamouri, often misrepresented as a “human rights activist,” was warmly welcomed by several far left lawmakers in France last December. In Le Figaro, AJC’s Simone Rodan-Benzaquen calls them out for embracing Palestinian terrorists and stresses their serious responsibility to refrain from glorifying terrorism as elected officials.
AJC Honors UN Special Rapporteur Ahmed Shaheed for Leading UN Action on Combating Global Antisemitism
Dr. Ahmed Shaheed, former UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief, received AJC’s prestigious Jan Karski Award, named after the renowned Polish diplomat who sought to focus world attention on the Nazi Final Solution against the Jewish people. “This is an award that belongs to very few living people who can match the standards of Jan Karski. You are one of them,” said AJC CEO David Harris, who knew Karski well during the last 15 years of his life.
AJC, Lufthansa Announce Joint Initiative to Combat Global Antisemitism
After Orthodox Jewish passengers were barred from a flight this past May, German airline Lufthansa has turned to AJC to train its employees to identify and respond to antisemitism. AJC strongly criticized the incident at the time. At AJC’s urging, the airline has since endorsed the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) Working Definition of Antisemitism.
TFI Statement on Antisemitic Incitement in Textbooks Used by the Palestinian Authority
Brussels, 15 June 2022 - The Transatlantic Friends of Israel (TFI) expresses its profound regret at the failure of the European Commission to adequately respond to ongoing antisemitic incitement in textbooks used by...
AJC is Dismayed that the EU Failed to Act against Antisemitic Incitement in Palestinian Textbooks Supported by EU Funds
The AJC Transatlantic Institute is dismayed that the EU failed to condition at least some of its €214 million annual funding to the Palestinian Authority (PA) on ending incitement in its textbooks.
Antisemitism and Foreign Policy: Amnesty International's Israel Report
By denouncing and attempting to uniquely criminalize Jewish self-determination, Amnesty International’s latest report accusing Israel of apartheid has earned a place of dishonor in the annals of antisemitism. AJC Transatlantic Institute Director Daniel Schwammenthal joined the Hudson Institute's Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East, for a virtual international panel discussion on the document’s objective to delegitimize the lone Jewish-majority state in the world.