Thought for the Week

Dear Members and Friends,

On December 8^th, thousands marched through central London against antisemitism from the Royal Courts of Justice to Westminster under the banner ‘Act against hate before it’s too late’ (read about the event here).

I deeply understand and feel the need to take a stand against antisemitism; however, I think that the way it was conducted has the potential to set us back and make the situation worse rather than better.
 
Let me explain. The rise of antisemitism in the UK is undeniable and should be taken very seriously. According to a recent CST report, university-related antisemitic incidents increased by 117% from the 150 incidents recorded in 2020-2022. Other numbers on the CST website are similarly alarming. It follows, therefore, that a march against antisemitism was the right thing to organise. I hope it will bring this issue further into the public eye and people will take its message very seriously.
 
However, I think the organisers of the march made a mistake in allowing Israeli flags to be present at the event. The Jewish community have spent decades trying to fight the antisemitic trope that all diaspora Jews should be held responsible for the actions of Israel.
 
For example, On 11 January 2015, the BBC's Tim Willcox interrupted the daughter of a Holocaust survivor discussing antisemitism in France by saying: "Many critics, though, of Israel's policy would suggest that the Palestinians suffer hugely at Jewish hands as well" (read more about it here). After widespread criticism from the Jewish community for appearing to assume responsibility for Israel's actions to all Jews as a whole and to justify the antisemitic massacre, Willcox apologised.
 
According to Dr Jonathan Boyd’s report produced by the Institute of Jewish Policy Research on 5 October 2024, nearly four in five British Jews say that they often feel that they are being held responsible by non-Jews for the actions of Israel’s government (read the full report here). Irrespective of their personal opinions, British Jews have no control over the decisions or actions of the Israeli government. Therefore, this report is a striking example of deep misunderstanding and antisemitic tropes within British society. Israel and British Jewry is not the same. Of course, some British Jews have family, friends and business connections in Israel, but it does not make British Jews responsible for Israeli actions.
 
There is nothing wrong in organising a demonstration to support Israel. I am sure many people, including LJS members, would attend such an event. Equally, it is important and right to organise a march to raise awareness about the growing number of anti-Jewish hate crimes in our country. But to conflate these two is dangerous. It sends the wrong message and could be misconstrued as suggesting that British Jews perceive any criticism of the Israeli government as antisemitism.
 
There are many British Jews who hold deeply critical positions with regard to the Israeli government. There are also British Jews who identify as anti-Zionist, and yet they too can be a victim of antisemitism. Waving Israeli flags at the march against antisemitism sends a wrong message and excludes a large number of British Jews. It also makes it harder for non-Jewish allies to stand alongside us without feeling they are making a one-sided statement about the current conflict. Having such a march was very important and timely, but Israeli flags should not have been allowed there.
 
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Igor