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.
⇨ Learn more about we're doing to promote the Working Definition of Anti-Semitism
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Media
Letter From a Forgotten Jew
In a tribute to millenia-old vibrant Jewish Communities across the Middle East, AJC CEO David Harris stresses in The Times of Israel that the issue of Jewish refugees from Arab countries remain unsolved, and too often brushed aside.
Europe Must Double Down on Fighting Antisemitism
Between a recently leaked bombshell EU study confirming anti-Jewish incitement taught in EU-funded Palestinian classrooms, and Jews being intimitated and beaten in the streets across the continent, it’s “open season on Jews,” says AJC Transatlantic Institute’s Deputy Director Michael Sieveking, in a forceful piece for New Europe.
AJC, Alongside Partners, Issues Recommendations to EU on Fighting Antisemitism
2 June 2021, Brussels – The AJC Transatlantic Institute alongside other major international Jewish organizations published a set of recommendations to combat antisemitism and foster Jewish life in Europe....
Remembering the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
On 19 April 1943, the vastly outnumbered and outgunned Jewish members of the Warsaw Ghetto underground rose up against the German Nazi occupiers. The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising was the single largest act of Jewish resistance during the Holocaust. Marking 78 years since the courageous uprising, Dr. Sebastian Rejak, Acting Director of AJC Central Europe, hosted Marian Turski, a 94-year-old Auschwitz death camp survivor, for a special conversation commemorating this heroic chapter in Jewish history and its enduring legacy.
Kuwait Airways Denies Boarding to Israeli in Germany
Five years ago, Kuwait Airways denied boarding to a student living in Germany because of his Israeli citizenship. The state-owned airline cited the country's own antisemitic 1964 boycott law. AJC Berlin Senior Associate Annina Fichtner argues in Jüdische Allgemeine that Berlin must urgently take decisive action to end this anti-Jewish discrimination on German soil: “If the fight against antisemitism is not to be simply lip service, and as long as Kuwait Airways is not prepared to make any changes, Germany should resort to suspending the airline's take-off and landing rights.”
Launch of AJC-Inspired “Community of Conscience” Coalition
Twelve prominent Polish community leaders launched the AJC-inspired “Community of Conscience – A Coalition of Mutual Respect,” an interfaith group that aims to fight discrimination against religious, ethnic, and cultural minorities. At the virtual launch ceremony, AJC Central Europe Acting Director Sebastian Rejak, who last year initiated the process to establish the group, said: “Truth and righteousness are like a symphony: many voices, many experiences together form a new whole – a harmony that we hope will transform people’s minds and hearts.”
International Holocaust Remembrance Day
The AJC Transatlantic Institute partnered with the Mission of Israel to the EU and NATO and the European office of the Konrad Adenaeur Stiftung (KAS) on an online ceremony to mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Marking 76 years since the liberation of Auschwitz, European Commission Vice President Margaritis Schinas delivered a powerful address, underscoring the need for Europe to not only remember the horrors of the Shoah but also address all forms of antisemitism. Concluding the moving speech, the Vice President lit a personal memorial candle with the name of one of the six million Jews murdered in the Holocaust.
AJC Welcomes EC Handbook for Antisemitism Working Definition
Paris -- January 08, 2021 - AJC Europe welcomes the European Commission’s publication of the Handbook for the Practical Use of the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism. This new publication offers clear guidance and examples of how the definition is already being used throughout Europe by ...
AJC Condemns EU Court Ruling on Religious Slaughter
Brussels, 17 December 2020 - The AJC Transatlantic Institute condemned today’s decision by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) to effectively ban ritual and kosher slaughter.
“We are shocked by the EU Court of Justice decision, which is nothing less than a frontal...
Press Release: AJC Welcomes EU Council Declaration on Fighting Antisemitism
Brussels, 3 December 2020 – The AJC Transatlantic Institute welcomes the European Union’s decision to extend the fight against antisemitism across all of the EU’s policy areas. The bloc renews its 2018 call on all member states to adopt and implement the Working Definition of Antisemitism of...