CAMPAIGN AGAINST ANTISEMITISM
WHAT IS ANTISEMITISM?
In 2005, the EU Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC), now theEU Agency for Fundamental Rights(FRA), adopted a working definition of antisemitism which has become the standard definition used around the world, including by theEuropean Parliament, theUK College of Policing, theUS Department of State, theUS Senate, and the 31 countries comprising theInternational Holocaust Remembrance Alliance. In 2016, the powerfulHouse of Commons Home Affairs Committeejoined Campaign Against Antisemitisms longstanding call for the British government and its agencies, as we'll as all political parties, to formally adopt the International Definition of Antisemitism, following which theBritish Governmentformally adopted the definition. Campaign Against Antisemitism also uses the International Definition of Antisemitism.
International Definition of Antisemitism
Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.
Manifestations might include the targeting of the State of Israel, conceived as a Jewish collectivity. However, criticism of Israel similar to that levelled against any other country cannot be regarded as antisemitic. Antisemitism frequently charges Jews with conspiring to harm humanity, and it is often used to blame Jews for why things go wrong. It is expressed in speech, writing, visual forms and action, and employs sinister stereotypes and negative character traits.
Contemporary examples of antisemitism in public life, the media, schools, the workplace, and in the religious sphere could, taking into account the overall context, include, but are not limited to:
Expert legal opinion on adopting the definition
In July 2017, Campaign Against Antisemitism published the opinion of expert counsel on the adoption of the International Definition of Antisemitism. David Wolfson QC and Jeremy Brier, who acted for Campaign Against Antisemitismpro bono, drew up the nine-page opinion. The opinion includes a detailed assessment of the definition itself, considers the application of the definition in difficult cases, and contains useful advice for politicians and public bodies (such as universities) which are considering using the definition.
The opinion states that: The Definition is a clear, meaningful and workable definition. The Definition is an important development in terms of identifying and preventing antisemitism, in particular in its modern and non-traditional forms, which often reach beyond simple expressions of hatred for Jews and instead refer to Jewish people and Jewish associations in highly derogatory, veiled terms (e.g. Zio or Rothschilds). Public bodies in the United Kingdom are not at risk in using this Definition. Indeed, this Definition should be used by public bodies on the basis that it will ensure that the identification of antisemitism is clear, fair and accurate. Criticism of Israel, even in robust terms, cannot be regarded as antisemiticper seand such criticism is not captured by the Definition. However, criticisms of Israel in terms which are channels of expression for hatred towards Jewish people (such as by particular invocations of the Holocaust or Nazism) will in all likelihood be antisemitic.
Read the full opinion
Selected organisations which have adopted the definition
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December 19, 2023
Amid the terrifying increase of antisemitic harassment, intimidation, and violence around the world in the wake of the October 7 Hamas terror attack against Israelis, many antisemitic phrases and terminology have been used at protests, on social media accounts, by celebrities, and even government officials, when criticizing Israel.
Addressing this rise in Jew-hatred unseen, American Jewish Committeeadded over a dozen entriestoTranslate Hate, AJCs glossary that concisely explains when, why, and how certain terms, tropes, themes, and memes are antisemitic.
Since Hamas terrorists viciously attacked Israel, we are seeing in real-time new antisemitic terms emerging and old tropes morphing, all to cast blame on the Jewish people and the Jewish state for societys problems.
Here are the top five antisemitic terms and tropes from AJCsTranslate Hatethat have been trending since the October 7 attack.
Definition: The catch-all phrase symbolizing Palestinian control over the entire territory of Israel's borders, from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea.
How its antisemitic: From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will Be Free is a rallying cry for terrorist groups and their sympathizers, from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) to Hamas, which called for Israel's destruction in its original governing charter in 1988 and was responsible for the October 7, 2023 terror attack on Israeli civilians, murdering over 1,200 people in the single deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust.
How its being used: The hateful slogan has frequently appeared onprotest signs nationwide during rallies in support of Palestinians, often used on social media by Palestinian supporters includinggovernment officialsandmembers of Congress, and even onT-shirts for sale on Amazon. It has also become popular among far too common call-to-arms for anti-Israel activists on campuses across the country, including on theEast Campus bridge at Duke University,on lecture slides at the Society for Ethnomusicologys annual meeting, and scores of other academic spaces.
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Definition: A phrase using the Arabic word for uprising or shaking off, whose message encourages resistance, most prominently in the form of violence, against Israel. Calls to globalize contribute to the targeting of Jews, Israelis, and institutions that support Israel around the world.
How its antisemitic: The most prominent expressions of intifada have been through violence so this phrase is often understood by those saying and hearing it as encouraging violence against Israelis, Jews, and institutions supporting Israel. While the intent of the person saying this phrase may be different, the impact on the Jewish community remains the same.
How its being used: Globalize the Intifada is a phrase used by pro-Palestinian activists that calls for aggressive resistance against Israel and those who support Israel.
There are numerous examples such as at a demonstration inTimes Square, in front of theConsulate General of Israelin Manhattan,in central London, atHarvard University, and even onEastern Parkwayin Brooklyn, not far from Crown Heights, a neighborhood with a very large Hasidic Jewish population that is the home of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement.
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Definition: An occupying force that exploits and displaces native populations from their home to settle and form a permanent society.
When its antisemitic: When those who oppose the State of Israel claim that Jews (or Zionists) have no historical connection to the land and instead barged in to take the land from the Palestinian population that lives there. It denies the Jewish people self-determination and ignores the United Nations partition resolution of 1947 that created states for both Jewish and Arab populations living there.
How its being used: On social media, in protests, and oncollege campuses, there has been an effort to undermine Israel's legitimacy by accusing it of being a settler-colonial state. Those spreading this lie argue that Jews have no historical connection to the land of Israel and that Zionists - those who support the right of Jewish self-determination and national homeland in the land of Israel - came to colonize the land, taking it from the Palestinians beginning in the late nineteenth century. However, this claim ignores the thousands of years ofdeep connection between the Jewish people and the Land of Israel.
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Definition: Code words, phrases, and images from Nazi Germany used today by neo-Nazis and white supremacists.
Why its antisemitic: Code words and phrases have been used for decades by different white supremacist hate groups to avoid censorship or censure. The Nazi swastika was the symbol of the Nazi party under Adolf Hitler. It is an inverted version of the swastika symbol that is reversed in many Eastern religions and cultures. Neo-Nazis and white supremacists continue to use it today as a symbol of the pure race.
How its being used: Religious extremists, including Hamas and other terrorist groups, utilize the Nazi swastika to terrorize Jews and Israelis.Anti-Israel protestershave also wielded the Nazi swastika to weaponize the Holocaust against the Jewish community. Some use the symbol to imply that another Shoah is coming for the Jews. Others use the swastika to accuse Jews of hypocrisy and committing genocide of the Palestinian people.
To boot, neo-Nazis have brought their signature symbol to pro-Palestinian protests to show support and cheer on Hamas. In 2021, a Jewish group in Boca Raton expressing solidarity with Israel in the wake of indiscriminate rocket attacks was harassed by a van ofHolocaust deniers waving a Palestinian flag.
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Definition: Refers to United Nations Resolution 3379 in 1975, in which the General Assembly linked Zionism and the State of Israel, to racism and racial discrimination. This was overturned in 1991 making it one of only two resolutions ever revoked by the UN.
Why its antisemitic: Criticizing specific Israeli government policies as discriminatory or racist is not antisemitic. However, saying Zionism is racism, a phrase which itself is a racist and religious distortion, conveys that the Jewish peopleunlike all other people in the worlddo not have a right to self-determination. The phrase also denigrates the Jewish State and belittles the diversity of Jewish life in Israel.
How its being used: Amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas War Jews or Zionists are falsely characterized asNazisand racists. OneNew York Magazinewriter evensuggested that Zionists worked with the Nazis during World War IIand enabled some of the atrocities against Jews during the Holocaust. The allegation that Zionism is racism does a tremendous amount of damage by diminishing the egregious sin of racism and equating Jewish self-determination with prejudice and discrimination against others.