According to a troubling new survey, three-quarters of Europe’s Jewish community hide their identities out of fear. The survey, conducted by an EU rights agency, shows that Jews on the continent are in the midst of a “rising tide of anti-Semitism”.
They are concealing their Jewish identity out of fear of being harassed or attacked by anti-Semites, mostly due to increased tensions over the war in Gaza.
Across Europe, 76% said they hid their Jewish identity “at least occasionally” while 34% said they took care to avoid Jewish events or places as they did not feel “safe” there.
In France, 74 per cent said they felt the ongoing Gaza war affected their sense of security.
Overall, 80% said they felt anti-Semitism had worsened in recent years and that negative stereotypes or conspiracy theories about Jews were a growing concern, such as claims they were “holding power and control over finance, media, politics or [the] economy”.
Sirpa Rautio, director of the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), warned that the “spillover effect of the conflict in the Middle East is eroding hard-fought-for progress”.
She added that “Jews are more frightened than ever before” and that growing anti-Semitism was also at risk of disrupting the EU’s first-ever strategy for addressing the issue.
FRA’s consultation with national and European Jewish umbrella organizations in early 2024 shows a dramatic surge [in anti-Semitic attacks],” Ms Rautio said.
The agency’s study, which compiled data from 12 Jewish organizations, found that 96 per cent of European Jews had encountered anti-Semitism in 2023.
1 comment:
When I was young, my father, a"h, told me that if I wanted to wear a kippah in public, better choose a hat. Why put a bullseye on your head?
He was prophetic.
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