NEW YORK (VINnews) — The European Commission (EC) revealed Tuesday a new strategy it has developed in order to combat antisemitism in the wake of a spike in hate crimes and internet slurs against Jews around Europe.
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“There is an increasing, worrying tendency of antisemitic attacks and sentiments across the European Union. Antisemitism continues not only to be a burden of the past, but also a present, dreadful threat in today’s Europe,” Commission Vice-President Margaritis Schinas said.
Schinas added that during coronavirus lockdowns there had been “an explosion of antisemitic content online,” citing an EU study showing a seven-fold increase in online attacks in France and 13-fold in Germany. The EC’s own research “shows even more worrying trends with nine out of 10 Jews considering that antisemitism has increased in their country, and very worryingly, 38 percent of our Jewish compatriots considered emigrating because they do not feel safe,” he said.
In recent years Jewish communal premises have been targeted by terrorists including last years’ attack in Vienna which started near a synagogue, a 2019 attack on a synagogue in Halle, Germany, the 2015 attack on a Jewish store in Paris in which 4 Jews were killed and the attack on the Brussels Jewish museum in 2014.
The 26-page program presented by the EC has three central goals — preventing antisemitism in all its forms, protecting and fostering Jewish life, and promoting Holocaust research, education, and remembrance.
To fight antisemitism, the Commission will lead the creation of a network of organizations across Europe to flag antisemitism content online, and will develop counternarratives. It will also work with tech companies and retailers to prevent the online sale of Nazi-themed merchandise.
https://twitter.com/vonderleyen/status/1445382312775008265
Ursula Von Der Leyen, EC president, presents the organization’s plan to combat antisemitism
For the first time, the EU has allocated 24 million euros ($31 million) in next year’s budget specifically for its battle against antisemitism. Previously the organization had a broader anti-racism strategy which did not single out the issue of anti-semitic hate.
Moshe Kantor, president of the European Jewish Congress, said in a statement he was pleased the EU had acted on the issue.