EJC Executive Vice-President Raya Kalenova took part in a Conference on New Antisemitism at the European Parliament (EP) on 7 December 2017, hosted by MEP Péter Niedermüller, Member of the Delegation for relations with Israel, MEP Fulvio Martusciello, Chair of the Delegation for relations with Israel, and MEP Heinz K. Becker, Chair of the EP Working Group on Antisemitism.
After welcoming remarks by Péter Niedermüller, those present were addressed by Fulvio Martusciello who pointed out that the phenomenon of new antisemitism is often linked to terrorism and the BDS movement.
Heinz K Becker commended the passing of the EP Resolution of 1 June 2017 on Combatting Antisemitism and called upon his colleagues and the EU Member States to work even harder on its implementation.
Addressing a distinguished panel of academics, experts and diplomats, including David Hirsh, Senior Lecturer in sociology at Goldsmith’s College, University of London and Daniel Schwammenthal, Director of the AJC Transatlantic Institute, Raya Kalenova stated: “We must of course remain extremely vigilant when faced with what we call classic or traditional antisemitism, usually expressed by the nationalistic far-right. This form of antisemitism is showing its ugly head in countries like Germany, only 70 years after the Shoah. At the same time, we have witnessed the rise of a new antisemitism, for the most part from the far left, and often disguised as criticism of the State of Israel. The introduction of this new antisemitism on the political arena, and its massive spread on social media is a worrying trend and a huge challenge for the Jewish street”.
Speaking about the consequences of the new antisemitism in the realm of politics, Raya Kalenova emphasised the role that political actors have in combatting this phenomenon:
“Some politicians claim to stand up against antisemitism, but at the same time oppose the IHRA working definition of antisemitism because it includes examples where criticism of Israel is clearly antisemitic. These politicians must understand what antisemitism is and who is affected by it. We as Europeans have to make a stand against this new antisemitism, and this includes the responsibility of political leaders not to engage in antisemitic discourse, not to facilitate it, and to condemn it unconditionally”.
Whereas the twin challenges of a resurgent traditional antisemitism and a rising new antisemitism remain, the year 2017 has also been fruitful in efforts in the fight against all forms of antisemitism, notably the adoption of the EP Resolution on Combatting Antisemitism and subsequent important successes in the implementation thereof, such as the recent adoption of the IHRA working definition of antisemitism by the governments of Germany and Bulgaria.
“The European Parliament has signalled its commitment to fight antisemitism. This issue is being taken seriously, European leaders are listening,” Raya Kalenova said.
The panel was followed by a discussion among young Jewish activists, featuring Alina Bricman, President of the European Union of Jewish Students and leaders of the national Jewish student unions of Germany and France, on the challenges of old and new antisemitism for the new generation.
In his closing remarks, Péter Niedermüller emphasised the need to address the worrying shift of far-right ideology into the mainstream and the issue of antisemitism on the left.