An Oxford University Press (OUP) A-level history textbook has removed a reference to Jewish “money-lending and personal riches” as an explanation for Russian pogroms following complaints from Jewish organisations.
The 2015 edition of the AQA History textbook Tsarist and Communist Russia 1855-1964 by Sally Waller includes a section on the Jewish pogroms of 1881-84.
The textbook cited anger over Jewish wealth as a factor behind the violence, while also stating that antisemitism arose from “the teachings of the Orthodox Church”.
The book went on to suggest that the pogroms’ “immediate cause” was unclear but may have been linked to “business competition” over railway contracts or encouraged by Russian authorities following Alexander II’s assassination.
The original extract stated: 'During Alexander II's reign, anti-Semitism had existed among the poorer elements in society, who not only hated Jews because of the teachings of the Orthodox Church, but also resented their money-lending and personal riches.'
The passage was flagged by parent Jo Sandelson who noticed it while she was helping her son revise for his A-level exams.
“He had been revisising and I was going through helping him before his exams, and he pointed me towards these paragraphs in the textbook. He thought they were clearly antisemitic, and I agreed with him.
“We both said that we must do something about it,” Sandelson explained. She reached out to Dave Rich of the Community Security Trust (CST), who involved the Board of Deputies of British Jews. The BoD lodged a formal complaint with OUP last July.
In response, OUP said they would edit the passage.
The publisher collaborated with University College London’s Centre for Holocaust Education to revise the passage.
The updated edition, published this year, now places antisemitic persecution in its historical context, explaining: “There had been pogroms and persecution of Jewish communities across Europe for many centuries, culminating in Russia in the nineteenth century pogroms. This was partly fuelled by the ‘blood libel’ (fabricated accusations that Jewish people abducted and murdered Christian children as part of a ritual), and partly by the wrongful blaming of Jews for, among other things, the death of Jesus Christ, and the Black Death in the 1300s.”
OUP pledged to inform history teachers at schools and colleges using the textbook about the updates.
Sandelson expressed her satisfaction with the changes and emphasised the need for continued education on anti-Jewish prejudice. She said: “Given that this offending edition has been in print for nine years, one could of course dwell on the tens of thousands of youngsters who have already absorbed these harmful tropes without question.
“Above all, teachers need educating urgently and I’d like to see this as a genuine opportunity for education at the deepest level.”
She called for further efforts to foster understanding: “One of the best ways of fostering a better understanding is when we reach out and engage with other communities.”
Dave Rich welcomed the outcome and praised OUP’s positive response. “Antisemitic language is often a result of ignorance rather than malice and as this example shows, it can be possible to bring about change through constructive engagement,” Rich said.
Responding to the JC, a spokesperson for OUP said: “Our editorial process for the second edition included reviews and updates from a number of subject experts as part of our commitment to the inclusive presentation of diverse histories.”
