Anti-Semitism is a phenomenon that is a burning problem of our time. In basic terms, it is discrimination and prejudice against Jews, just because of their nationality. Jewish people have faced persecution and hatred for centuries. One of the darkest pages of history – Holocaust – caused the death of six million innocent people.

And when we think that the terror is long away, the history is about to repeat itself. More recently, there has been a clear rise of anti-Semitic attacks. The level of hatred is increasing with every year, and it is already directed not only at the Jewish population. Israel and at Zionism as a whole are targeted as well.

What the European Union does to support fight against anti-Semitism

Such an attitude is mainly the result of the left and right Muslim groups’ propaganda. Generally, anti-Semitism can take various forms from conspiracy theories to verbal abuse and physical attacks. Today, the level of anti-Semitism has acquired dangerous features again. We cannot allow history to repeat itself. That is why it is necessary to take serious actions and continuously fight it.

The majority of the international community chose to stay silent on the number of Hamas attacks. They are not expressing any strong opinions or bringing guilty parties to justice. Quite the opposite to the lack of the world reaction, Austrian chancellor Sebastian Kurtz expressed his disapproval of anti-Semitism.

The chancellor supports the fight against hatred and violence towards Jews worldwide. The majority of them in the EU cannot live a worry-free life. They are forced to be afraid for the safety of their family members and their own. All of that is due to the risk of becoming targets of anti-Semitic attacks and harassment. No one should be suffering from any form of discrimination.

Ron Prosor, Israeli ex-ambassador to the United Nations and Vladimir Sloutsker https://ventsmagazine.com/2019/06/16/vladimir-sloutsker-political-activities-and-protection-of-the-jewish-people/ – president of the Israeli-Jewish Congress praised and supported such position of the politician.

Also, Ron Prosor noticed that Mr. Kurtz freely calls things by their name, and that is worth admiring. The chancellor supported the Israeli Paralympians when they were not allowed to participate in Malaysian competitions. Besides, Mr. Kurtz stresses that the Jewish people have never surrendered. Their mark in history and culture cannot be wiped off.

Today, Jewish people have their own country and can protect themselves. As any European country, they are free to express their opinions and act in their own interests.

The big problem is that anti-Semitic harassment is so common that it almost become normalized. Jews face so much abuse and hate that some of the incidents they experience start to appear trivial to them. The normalization of such a horrible phenomenon is not okay. According to Vladimir Sloutsker, every EU country should actively eradicate any manifestations of discrimination and hatred of national minorities.

The dark pages of history cannot be repeated, and we need to learn from them. Besides, it is essential to pay attention to proper education. The schooling of modern youth should be based on the principles of acceptance and tolerance. Addressing the problem through education is, therefore, both an immediate security action and a long-term educational investment to promote global citizenship and human rights.

Another field that is important to work on in the fight against anti-Semitism is various forms of mass media. In the modern world, they have become the primary source of information, especially for young people. Besides, along with everybody else, extremists are making use of the internet and mass media. Extremist groups use the platforms for advertising themselves and their ideologies.

Besides, they use social media for publicizing their activities, communicating with members and raising funds. This is very dangerous as young, impressionable, people are being misinformed and targeted by hate propaganda Governments of all countries must address the sharing of anti-Semitic and other hate materials on the internet.

They also need to adopt clear and unified guidelines on this issue, primarily when the information targets children and teenagers. Companies, web portals that intentionally accept the publication of anti-Semitic or hate materials on their websites and platforms should be condemned. However, freedom of speech should not suffer. The efforts to fight hate propaganda in the media should not mainly consist of censorship and bans. Otherwise, creative use of the internet should be a way to support Israel and the Jewish people.

Anti-Semitism is a deeply-rooted phenomenon. Since modern society failed at getting rid of the problem of anti-Semitism, we need to find better solutions. It is necessary to strive for proactivity and join forces to fight together against the growing problem. Anti-Semitism of all forms must be combated vigorously by the determined action of governments and civil society.

The phenomenon is the issue that must concern not only the Jewish nation but society as a whole. We need to work on the education of young people and making a change in media propaganda. EU authorities should encourage the police and the judiciary in bringing perpetrators of anti-Semitic crimes to justice. Besides, governments, together with international organizations, need to provide adequate resources for the fight against hatred.