The New Antisemitism?: Debating Judeophobia in the 21st Century

Those of us who have read the Guardian for decades, or watched the BBC news, know that they have a problem: an obsession with Israel. British attitudes towards the Jews of Israel have had their ups and downs. This book tells us where things now stand. We see that violent antisemitic incidents have gone up somewhat in the past couple of decades. And I noted with interest that such incidents tend to occur at about the same time as anti-Jewish violence in Israel. That is, we're seeing violence that is in sympathy with the terrorist attacks in Israel. Jonathan Sacks makes some excellent points. First that antisemitism exists whenever people simultaneously believe that Jews are so powerful that they are responsible for the evils of the world and that Jews are so weak that they can be attacked with impunity. He dismisses the possibility that such attitudes are caused by Jews, given the extreme antisemitism we see in countries where there are no Jews at all. And he points out how this hatred puts the hater in at least as much risk as the hated. We see a silly essay from Antony Lerman explaining that antizionism is not antisemitism. But surely, the fact that one makes antisemitic remarks is insufficient to prove that one is Not an antisemite! Jonathan Freedland also argues that antizionists may be sincere, consistent, and not antisemites. After all, they say that Israel's existence caused the dispossession of Arabs! But he's wrong. Yes, they say it. But they don't care if they are telling the truth or not. And in fact, what they say is false. Douglas Davis writes an excellent essay exposing outright antisemitism by the BBC. And Winston Pickett examines the use of standard antisemitic "topoi" by some of the British media. My favorite of the articles was by Melanie Phillips, on Christian theology and the new antisemitism. She shows how many so-called liberals, for theological reasons, have decided to support the terrorists and describe the victims as monsters. And that's a problem that I think extends well beyond the fate of the small nation of Israel.

Antisemitism has always been with us - but its current vigour and forms may be expressions of something quite new. This perceptive collection identifies the issues and analyses what is behind this Europe-wide antagonism. A new antisemitism is sweeping Europe, and Britain is not been immune. A rise in 'street-level' violence against Jews and synagogues has allegedly been accompanied by an 'elite', or salon, antisemitism - manifested in the media, university common rooms and the dinner parties of the chattering classes. For some commentators, such contemporary expressions of old hatreds represent a 'new antisemitism'. But is this really a new phenomenon? Is it antisemitism - or something else? How does it compare with earlier incarnations of Jew-hatred? Who are its perpetrators? And to what extent has the situation in the Middle East contributed to the rise in anti-Jewish sentiments and rhetoric? Has demonisation of Israel only inflamed the issue - or are claims of antisemitism being used in an attempt to silence criticism of Israeli policies? This book debates these questions in greater depth than can be found in the print and broadcast media in a collection of essays by leading Jewish intellectuals, including Geoffrey Alderman, Richard Bolchover, Douglas Davis, Ronnie Fraser, Jonathan Freedland, Howard Jacobson, Antony Julius, Edward Kessler, John Levy, Tony Lerman, Melanie Phillips, Winston Pickett, Peter Pulzer, Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, Kate Taylor, Michael Whine and Robert Wistrich. A valuable contribution to analysis of the current surge in anti-Semitism Will stimulate debate in Britain, Europe and the USA Gives an unusually broad range of divergent and contrasting opinion Provides a lively mix of written formats: journalism, scholarship and polemic Written by leading commentators and experts Paul Iganski is Lecturer in Sociology and Criminology, University of Essex, and Civil Society Fellow at the Institute for Jewish Policy Research, London. Professor Barry Kosmin is the Executive Director of the Institute for Jewish Policy Research, London.