A new European Jewish Association study polled 16,000 Europeans from 16 countries whose responses show that anti-Semitism is on the rise around the globe. Twenty percent of respondents expressed a belief that “Jews exploit Holocaust victimhood for their own needs.” Also, 20% believed that a secret Jewish society influences global political and economic affairs.
Other findings – which surveyed people in countries such as Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Poland – were just as damning:
* A quarter of respondents agreed with the statement that Israel’s policies make them understand why some people hate Jews.
* More than a quarter concurred with the statement that “Israel is engaged in legitimate self defense against its enemies.” A quarter of respondents disagreed and 46% did not express a position.
* More than a third agreed with the assertion that “During World War II, people from our nation suffered as much as Jews.”
Need more proof? In Spain, participants in a carnival dressed in Nazi uniforms and Jewish concentration camp prisoners danced next to a float evoking crematoria. Behind them was a float shaped like a train with two large chimneys.
In Belgium, carnival participants dressed up like Orthodox-Jews-as-ants, wore hooked noses to propel Jewish stereotypes, wore Nazi uniforms, and carried sign that warned readers “not to tell the truth about the Jew.” Last year, they had a float with effigies of smiling Jews holding bags of money and one with a rat on its shoulders.
Nothing good that can come of this. The remnants of evil anti-Semitism have never been wiped out, and the virus is growing stronger by the day.
Hat Tip: JTA