The Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights (JBI) has issued a new appeal, Global Leaders, Experts Must Reject Surging Antisemitism Worldwide and Affirm Jews’ Equal Rights, which provides emblematic examples from 25 countries reflecting incidents in which antisemitic hate speech, discrimination, and physical attacks against Jews and Jewish sites have occurred since Hamas’s October 7 attack against Israel.
Observing that Jews worldwide are facing an alarming and unprecedented surge in hatred and threats of violence, it notes that “Silence by international authorities in this context is perceived to reflect ambivalence or uncertainty as to how antisemitism is manifested in contexts involving Israel, and has been deeply alienating for the already traumatized Jews who are its real targets.” It calls on United Nations leaders, experts, and others to reaffirm that international and political developments never justify antisemitism and to clarify that while criticism of Israel is not per se antisemitic, such expression is condemnable when it reflects, fuels, or incites identity-based hatred of or violence or discrimination against Jews.
The appeal also urges leaders and experts to:
- Call on governments to assess Jewish communities’ needs in coordination with them and provide the necessary security assistance they require at this time of crisis.
- Call on governments to ensure that police and law enforcement are aware of the urgent need to protect Jews from threats of violence and ensure police and law enforcement receive training and instruction that Jewish people are not responsible for the words and actions of the Israeli or any other government, and that acts directed against them on this basis are antisemitic.
- Call on social media and technology companies to prohibit antisemitic content on their platforms and services, including misinformation and disinformation that has the effect of conveying antisemitic stereotypes and conspiracies, and take the necessary steps to fully enforce their harmful content and misinformation policies across all languages and dialects.
- Urge university administrators to condemn antisemitic acts and ensure the safety of Jewish students, like all other students.
- Call on other non-state actors, including faith leaders and civil society organizations, to reject and counter antisemitic statements, including those that imply that Jewish people are responsible for the words and actions of the Israeli government.
The full appeal is available here.