February 26, 2015 — Brussels, Belgium
A senior American Jewish Committee (AJC) official urged European lawmakers today to move immediately to develop an action plan to confront the rising tide of antisemitism in their countries – and change the reality of Jews living in fear in Europe.
“What must come first is the will of European leadership to assure the security and the European future of Europe’s Jews, and to defend the values, the security and the future of Europe as a whole,” Jason Isaacson, AJC Associate Executive Director for Policy, told a group of European Parliament (EP) members in Brussels.
Isaacson shared examples of what AJC colleagues and Jews generally are confronting across Europe. “Every day, my colleagues in AJC’s offices here in Brussels and across Europe – and Jews throughout the European Union – are facing a personal quandary and making wrenching personal decisions” about sending children to Jewish day schools, attending services in synagogues and Jewish communal events – indeed, weighing whether to stay or leave their countries of residence.
“It is an abomination that these are the thoughts – the entirely justified worries – of more than a million Jews in Europe, a continent that has been home to Jews and enlivened by Jews for more than two millennia, a continent that was saturated in the blood of Jews seven decades ago,” Isaacson added.
He called for “an action plan to combat antisemitism” to be implemented country by country across Europe. “Heads of state must speak out clearly and sincerely,” said Isaacson, adding that the first step, “already taken by many national leaders, including German Chancellor Merkel and French Prime Minister Valls, is to express at the highest levels that fundamental commitment to fight antisemitism.”
European governments should step up and better organize the collection of data on antisemitic incidents and perpetrators in order “to know as precisely as possible the dimension and the source of the threat we’re facing,” he said.
Isaacson called on the EU and its member states “to formulate and implement broad-ranging counter-radicalization programs, working in partnership with Muslim and other faith and civil society leaders.”
He stressed the need to halt “radical preachings now commonly disseminated in European prisons” and offered several recommendations for improving the teaching of tolerance and democratic values in European schools, adding that “educators must be encouraged to develop accessible new curricula imparting the core message that antisemitism is incompatible with fundamental European values.”
Another critical communications vehicle to confront is social media and the Internet. Isaacson called on European governments to consider modifying existing laws to allow for shutting down websites and social media accounts that promote and share antisemitism.
And, he urged governments to take steps to prevent European jihadists from traveling to and from Middle East conflict zones, substantially bolster security of Jewish communal sites, and institute other safeguards against antisemitic violence.
“Jewish communities and the general public need to hear directly from European leaders that antisemitism violates core European principles and will not be tolerated,” said Isaacson. “Civil society – including faith leaders – must be summoned to carry the message that antisemitism is socially, politically and religiously unacceptable.”
The hearing by the European Parliament Delegation for Relations with Israel was the first time an official body of the current EP dealt with the issue of antisemitism. Isaacson’s testimony is part of AJC’s stepped up efforts to raise consciousness among European leaders about the increasing threats to Jews and European societies – and urge governments to make the fight against antisemitism a high national priority.
