Opinion

As annual antisemitic incidents goes over 2,000 – should we be concerned?

OPINION PIECE BY DR DAVE RICH, DIRECTOR OF POLICY AT THE COMMUNITY SECURITY TRUST

The record total of 2,255 anti-Jewish hate incidents reported to CST last year is a shocking number. It is the first time we have ever seen over 2,000 incidents in a single year and a massive increase from the year before.

However, it would be a mistake to just look at the numbers. Every antisemitic incident is an attack on a Jewish person, or on our whole Jewish community. Every day, CST’s incidents team takes calls from people who have been abused, threatened or traumatised, often by random strangers or sometimes by people they know, just because they are Jewish.

It might be Jewish schoolchildren picked on by their classmates because they are Jewish; or Jewish students singled out and held responsible for whatever it is that Israel is accused of doing that week. Perhaps it is someone who has seen antisemitic graffiti near to their home and is left wondering whether one of their neighbours is responsible.

The record total includes ordinary Jewish people targeted with abuse by people who cannot stand the idea of a community that looks, dresses and prays differently from themselves; and it includes conspiracy theories that circulate on social media about Jews being responsible for Covid-19.

All these people, and more, come to CST for help. Our incidents team has specialist victim support training and helps people report antisemitic hate crimes to the police. We advise about giving police statements, liaise with the police to keep track of their investigations, and accompany witnesses to court.

Our 24/7 emergency number means we can take calls at all hours of day and night, and our national security control centre provides CCTV evidence from Jewish locations across the country. We also have a full-time campus team who go around the country ensuring Jewish students have the support they need when facing antisemitism.

Some people who come to CST need help with an employer, a trade union, a housing association or some other third party. They might want to put their story to the media to raise awareness of antisemitism in Britain today. Whatever victims of antisemitism want, we will help them reach the best solution for them so that they can put their experience of antisemitism behind them.

Sometimes, though, when people call CST to report an antisemitic incident they don’t want to involve anyone else. They just want to tell their story to a friendly voice, someone from the community who understands what they are saying and how it feels. And if they need additional specialised support, we have a team of experienced professionals who provide psychological and emotional support on a voluntary basis for anyone who is suffering additional trauma as a result of an antisemitic incident.

This work can put tremendous strain on CST’s incidents team. During the conflict in Israel and Gaza last May, we had to draft in extra staff to cope with the huge rise in calls and reports of incidents. But it is at the core of CST’s mission: not just to fight antisemitism, but to ensure that our Jewish community has the right to life a full, safe and confident Jewish life.

The record total includes ordinary Jewish people targeted with abuse by people who cannot stand the idea of a community that looks, dresses and prays differently from themselves. Why the constant apologies?

OPINION PIECE BY ROBERT FESTENSTEIN

Just over a week ago Amnesty International released a report entitled ‘Israel’s apartheid against Palestinians’ with a sub heading of ‘Cruel system of domination and crime against humanity’. The one-sided nature of the 280 page document leaps from the pages. The allegation of apartheid not only is demonstrably false, it undermines the true nature of the South African regime in the years before Nelson Mandela became president.

This report is not about human rights, nor about injustice concerning Palestinians. It is an all too obvious attack on the very existence of Israel. Often in life, the measure of an individual or organisation is how they respond to events, whether they be tragic or joyous.

The responses from various Jewish organisations in the UK demonstrate that the concept of Jewish Guilt has now expanded to include Israel. It would be reasonable to expect most groups to issue straightforward and robust rejections of the report. Those on the left claiming to be progressive and representative predictably continue to issue their shrill criticism of Israel. This to some extent was to be expected.

What was not expected was the joint statement from the Board of Deputies and Jewish Leadership Council. Their condemnation of the report was well articulated and made sense. What did not make sense was why it was felt necessary to make a concession which largely looks and feels like an apology. The report is yet another example of the demonisation of the Jewish state.

Why then include the sentence: ‘Regrettably, inequality and discrimination exist in all democracies, and that includes in Israel. We support all sincere efforts to address such disparities’. By using this sentence the teeth of the condemnation are blunted and the message is clearly sent that the BoD/JLC have their own problems with Israel.

Then, to make matters worse, further down in the statement it states: ‘The quicker serious Israeli-Palestinian negotiations are resumed, the sooner a lasting peace can be achieved’. What negotiations? There have been no negotiations for years and despite obvious attempts by Israel to re-ignite them the Palestinian Authority and Hamas have refused to come to the table. It is certain that the BoD/JLC are fully aware of this, so why insert a phrase which implies that to some extent Israel is responsible for the lack of peace talks?

The answer is simple. It’s all about the audience. There is still a view that it is important to woo the left in the wider community, hence the concession and the reference to peace talks. The idea seems to be that if we apologise for Israel’s conduct and pledge allegiance to the Two State Solution, the hatred of Israel from the left will melt away and all will be well. Only it won’t. The words will be used against us and the statement’s aim of responding to Amnesty International will be compromised.

There is a time and a place to make concessions and refer to the peace process, an open and frank discussion with Muslim leaders in the UK perhaps. When an organisation with the reach of Amnesty International produces a document intent on undermining the legitimacy of the only Jewish state in the world, the response should have been direct and unequivocal. Anything less is not only weak, but plays into the hands of our enemies. The Jewish community deserves better.

The idea seems to be that if we apologise for Israel’s conduct and pledge allegiance to the Two State Solution, the hatred of Israel from the left will melt away and all will be well.

Robert Festenstein is a practising solicitor and has been the principal of his Salford based firm for over 20 years. He has fought BDS motions to the Court of Appeal and is President of the Zionist Central Council in Manchester which serves to protect and defend the democratic State of Israel.