There’s a tendency in the UK to regard ourselves with moral superiority over the way we deal with antisemitism, especially when it comes to our European peers. We think we’re nothing like the French, as Jews are free to practise in London more openly than Paris; we’re nothing like Eastern Europe, with its shameful history of rampaging Cossack pogroms and the Pale of Settlement; and, we think to ourselves, we’re certainly nothing like Germany, with its evil legacy and modern-day neo-Nazi descendants.
But when it comes to keeping our own house in order, this arrogance may be somewhat misplaced, especially when it comes to Germany. While in Berlin this week, I spoke to Dr Felix Klein, the Federal Government Commissioner for Jewish Life in Germany and the Fight against Antisemitism (and contender for holder of the longest job title in Europe). He told me that his priority is tackling a rising tide of antisemitism in Germany’s liberal middle classes, what he termed “the anti-racist antisemites” — the people who consider themselves open-minded, tolerant and welcoming of all. Sound familiar?
Dr Klein told me that he’s concerned about this type of antisemitism, expressed first as anti-Israel sentiment, which then becomes something more virulent and hard to confront. Again, many will recognise this very battle being fought in the UK, where the Jewish community is still accused of trying to silence all criticism of Israel.
When I asked Dr Klein about his most important achievement since taking his post in 2018, he told me it concerned the German state broadcaster ZDF, the equivalent of our BBC. Given the campaigning the JC has done to counter bias at the Beeb, my ears pricked up.
