This article examines the sense of Jewish vulnerability and exclusion in Europe that has resulted from manifestations, and Jewish perceptions, of the "new anti-Semitism," and the role of Islamic ...communities in Europe in propagating this form of hatred of Jews. First emerging in 2000 with the outbreak of the second Palestinian Intifada, and tied in with the Middle East conflict, anger at Israel is directed at Diaspora Jewish communities. This "new anti-Semitism" targets the Jewish collective with the characteristics of anti-Semitism previously aimed at individual Jews. The article focuses on the wave of anti-Semitism that erupted as a result of the 2014 Israeli-Hamas War. Based on an analysis of European Jewish communities, it considers the active part played by European Muslim communities in perpetrating the new anti-Semitism. Using an analysis of survey data, emigration statistics and newspaper opinion articles by leading European Jewish intellectuals, the article considers how the new anti-Semitism is adversely affecting Jewish-Muslim relations and the concomitant sense of "belonging" of European Jewry. The article considers what is required to overcome the new anti-Semitism propagated by Muslim communities to restore a greater sense of Jewish belonging to, and identification with, Europe.
How persistent are cultural traits? Using data on anti-Semitism in Germany, we find local continuity over 600 years. Jews were often blamed when the Black Death killed at least a third of Europe's ...population during 1348—50. We use plague-era pogroms as an indicator for medieval antiSemitism. They reliably predict violence against Jews in the 1920s, votes for the Nazi Party, deportations after 1933, attacks on synagogues, and letters to Der Stürmer. We also identify areas where persistence was lower: cities with high levels of trade or immigration. Finally, we show that our results are not driven by political extremism or by different attitudes toward violence.
Do financial crises radicalize voters? We study Germany's 1931 banking crisis, collecting new data on bank branches and firm-bank connections. Exploiting cross-sectional variation in precrisis ...exposure to the bank at the center of the crisis, we show that Nazi votes surged in locations more affected by its failure. Radicalization in response to the shock was exacerbated in cities with a history of anti-Semitism. After the Nazis seized power, both pogroms and deportations were more frequent in places affected by the banking crisis. Our results suggest an important synergy between financial distress and cultural predispositions, with far-reaching consequences.
Shakespeare's work is seen by a growing number of “woke” teachers as problematic and outdated, with his work accused of promoting “misogyny, racism, homophobia, classism, anti-Semitism". ...Shakespeare’s relevance to today’s students is discussed, and it is noted that more and more teachers believe it is time for Shakespeare to be set aside to make way for modern, diverse and inclusive voices. From this perspective, our paper aims to analyze current trends of cultural “reconciliation” of the past with the present, which censors writers whose perspective, language or other details would be considered unacceptable today. We also try to answer the question: Is Shakespeare’s work problematic and outdated? We believe that although history is often painful, it does not become more beautiful through ignorance or the “restoration” of the past.
Anti-Semitism and Xenophobia Kogan, Ilany
The American journal of psychoanalysis,
12/2017, Volume:
77, Issue:
4
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
This paper explores the link between anti-Semitism and xenophobia from a psychoanalytic prism. The author claims that anti-Semitism is a particular form of xenophobia directed against Jews, with some ...unique characteristics. She first introduces some basic notions about xenophobia, and then discusses the origins of anti-Semitism as they are viewed in early psychoanalytic thinking and in contemporary psychoanalysis. The article explores the nature of anti-Semitism in society today, and presents some reflections on the interplay between anti-Semitism and other kinds of xenophobia.
Antisemitism has returned as a major issue across the Western world. But while concern about antisemitism is growing, agreement on what constitutes antisemitism is shrinking. Nowadays, charges of ...antisemitism are hotly disputed, often accompanied by accusations of bad faith, particularly when they concern criticisms of Israel or anti-Zionism. This article contends that one reason why antisemitism has become increasingly contested is because there are different ways of thinking about antisemitism and identifying it. We examine four common and contrasting approaches to identifying antisemitism, highlighting the challenges each presents when it comes to identifying antisemitism in practice. Since these alternative approaches yield different answers about whether something is antisemitic or not, disagreement and debate over allegations of antisemitism is unavoidable. Hence, we conclude by offering suggestions for how antisemitism claims should be addressed in a way that minimizes conflict and promotes greater awareness about the various ways that antisemitism can operate.
We study the role of economic incentives in shaping the coexistence of Jews, Catholics, and Protestants, using novel data from Germany for 1,000+ cities. The Catholic usury ban and higher literacy ...rates gave Jews a specific advantage in the moneylending sector. Following the Protestant Reformation (1517), the Jews lost these advantages in regions that became Protestant. We show (i) a change in the geography of anti-Semitism with persecutions of Jews and anti-Jewish publications becoming more common in Protestant areas relative to Catholic areas; (ii) a more pronounced change in cities where Jews had already established themselves as moneylenders. These findings are consistent with the interpretation that, following the Protestant Reformation, Jews living in Protestant regions were exposed to competition with the Christian majority, especially in moneylending, leading to an increase in anti-Semitism.
This book presents a new approach to how culture works in contemporary societies. Exposing our everyday myths and narratives in a series of empirical studies that range from Watergate to the ...Holocaust, it shows how these unseen yet potent cultural structures translate into concrete actions and institutions. Only when these deep patterns of meaning are revealed, it argues, can we understand the stubborn staying power of violence and degradation, but also the steady persistence of hope. By understanding the darker structures that restrict our imagination, we can seek to transform them. By recognizing the culture structures that sustain hope, we can allow our idealistic imaginations to gain more traction in the world.
The Dynamics of Right-Wing Extremism within German Society explores the prevalence of right-wing extremist attitudes in Germany. The book provides a thorough psychosocial and sociological theory of ...general authoritarian dynamics to explain broader societal attitudes, particularly focusing on right-wing extremism. It provides a uniquely long-term perspective on the different dimensions of right-wing extremism—the affinity for dictatorial forms of government, chauvinist attitudes, the trivialisation or justification of National Socialism, anti-Semitism, xenophobia, and social Darwinism. The first chapter delineates the theoretical framework of authoritarian dynamics, while subsequent chapters provide an in-depth analysis of empirical findings and distinguish authoritarian and democratic typologies. The authors focus on recognition of authoritarian statehood and anti-Semitism; the relationship between religion and right-wing extremism; and support for the radical-right populist party, Alternative für Deutschland (AfD). The innovative theoretical approach of this book scrutinizes the theory of authoritarianism in the contemporary world. This book provides unique empirical data and will be of interest to scholars of German politics, anti-democratic attitudes and prejudices, sociology, political science, and social psychology.
Graduate of Harvard Medical School, president of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, founding national chair of the Black Psychiatrists of America: the list of Chester Pierce's ...accomplishments alone cement him as a luminary in the field-and that is before one considers how foundational his theories about racism as an environmental pollutant are to modern mental health. Reprinted with a new introduction, this collection of interactive conversations between Ezra Griffith and Pierce sheds light on the man behind the impressive titles and oft-cited theories.
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