Lawmakers and leaders react to the "appalling" findings of the CNN poll on anti-Semitism


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Felix Klein, appointed commissioner of the German federal government to Jewish life in April, said that even though he was upset by the survey results, they had not surprised him.

According to the survey, more than a quarter of Europeans surveyed believe that Jews have too much influence in business and finance. Nearly one in four said that Jews had too much influence in conflicts and wars around the world.

Meanwhile, a third of Europeans surveyed said they knew nothing about the Holocaust, the collective murder of about six million Jews on land controlled by the Nazi regime of Adolf Hitler. in the years 1930-1940.

In a statement sent to CNN, Klein said: "To fight against anti-Semitism, it is fundamental to keep the memory of the Holocaust alive and to nurture a culture of living memory.

Felix Klein urged more European countries to adopt the anti-Semitic definition of IHRA.

"At European level, I will encourage other states to create national functions similar to mine.We have already started to fight against anti-Semitism at the level of the European Union, for example by asking the Member States to adopt the definition of "anti-Semitism according to which (International Alliance for the Memory of the Holocaust) formulated.

"The German Bundestag and the German Government have adopted this definition in 2017. However, our biggest challenge will be to change people's views on Jews.This is a task that concerns us all and relates to society as a whole – because anti-Semitism is a threat to any democratic and open society. "

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"Not surprising"

The CNN / ComRes survey surveyed more than 7,000 people in Europe, including more than 1,000 in Austria, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, Poland and Sweden.
American historian Deborah Lipstadt, author of the forthcoming book "Antisemitism: Here and Now," said the poll revealed in "frightening details, the persistence of traditional anti-Semitic grounds in Europe".
Deborah Lipstadt is one of the world's leading Holocaust historians.

"Although, given the recent developments, this is not totally surprising, it is discouraging," she said about the results.

"By moving away from the specific conclusions of the study, it is imperative to note that anti-Semitism is a conspiracy theory, that is, an irrational perspective without evidence, which is incumbent on all. Jews – regardless of their place of residence, status, age, nationality, worldview – same qualities and stereotypes Antisemitism is just as logical as attributing to all leftists or all blondes same attributes and behaviors. "

Lipstadt, one of the world's most prominent Holocaust historians, is also said to be troubled by the ignorance surrounding the systematic murder of the Jewish population of Europe during the Second World War .

"This is not something that should be so easily forgotten, it should be something that Europeans should always be grappling with, not because of the guilt – the Europeans today. They are clearly guilty of nothing – but in terms of the society in which they live. "

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Naftali Bennett

The survey also highlighted a strengthening of mentalities regarding the relationship between the Holocaust, Israel, Jews and anti-Semitism.

A third of respondents believe that criticism of Israel tends to be motivated by anti-Semitism, against only one in five.

However, one-third of CNN respondents surveyed said that Israel was using the Holocaust to justify its actions, with half of respondents in Poland agreeing with this view. Only one in five did not agree.

A third of Europeans said that supporters of Israel were using anti-Semitism accusations to silence their critics, while only one in ten said it was not true.

"We have always known that for many, being anti-Israel is a natural extension of their anti-Semitic beliefs, which has an impact on their attitudes towards history and the present," said the minister. Israeli Education and Minister of Diaspora Affairs. Naftali Bennett, told CNN.

"What is clear is that it is not only important that people know the Holocaust, but also that they understand the lessons of the Holocaust.The same stereotypes and deeply anti-Semitic accusations that we hear today were the same fuel that fueled the death camps. "

"Attacks do not exist in a vacuum"

Moshe Kantor, president of the European Jewish Congress, addressed those who blame the Jewish people for their anti-Semitism, calling this attitude "absolutely intolerable".
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"The results indicate that a significant number of European citizens have dangerous opinions about Jews and corroborate recent figures on antisemitic attacks across the continent, showing that such attacks do not exist in isolation but are the concrete manifestation of long-standing hate attitudes, turning into violence, "said Kantor.

"What is even more problematic is that many Europeans think that Jews are somehow to blame for the hate directed against them, as if the Jews were raising the issue of bad faith," he said. added Kantor. "To legitimize the hatred of the Jews is already serious enough, but to delegitimize the right of the Jews to fight against this oppression is absolutely intolerable."

"Amazing"

A spokesman for CRIF, the umbrella body of the French Jewish community, said the poll revealed that "anti-Semitism" is evolving as a multifaceted disease.
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According to respondents in France, 48% agree that anti-Semitism is a growing problem in the country. Some 29% hardly know the Holocaust or have ever heard of it, while 24% think Jews have too much influence on global finance.

"It is amazing to read that important minorities are accusing Israel or the Jews themselves of anti-Semitism," the spokesman said.

"For CRIF, it's no surprise that we are fighting anti-Semitism on all fronts – whether it comes from the far right, from the hatred of the Jew for what he represents, or from the extreme left, hatred and delegitimization of Israel. "

"Entrenched"

According to the survey, 34% of Europeans surveyed know little or never heard of the Holocaust, while 20% of French people aged 18 to 34 say they have never heard of the Holocaust. Holocaust.

And 31% of Europeans surveyed think that today, the commemoration of the Holocaust distracts other atrocities and injustices.

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"The investigation underscores the troubling fact that many deeply rooted antisemitic tropes persist in European civilization 75 years after the end of the Holocaust," said Avner Shalev, president of Yad Vashem, the World Center for the Red Crescent. commemoration of the holocaust in Jerusalem.

"The results of this survey prove the need to intensify large-scale efforts in the field of education and awareness of the Holocaust, which is essential to fight against the effects of the Holocaust." Semitism. "

Piotr M. A. Cywiński, director of the Auschwitz Memorial, said the poll results underscored the importance of education to combat hate.

"The anti-Semitic or xenophobic ideologies that led in the past to the human catastrophe of Auschwitz do not seem to have been erased from our lives today," he said.

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