Transcripts of the US Helsinki Commission hearings on anti-Semitism held February 7th are available here. Dr. Gregg Rickman, State Department Special Envoy for Monitoring and Combating Anti-Semitism:
“Today’s anti-Semitism is manifested by an increased number of violent attacks against Jews and synagogues in much of the OSCE region and beyond. Traditional anti-Semitic screeds, such as The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion and Mein Kampf, remain commonplace worldwide, and Jews often are blamed for “why things go wrong.” Age-old and new anti-Semitic conspiracy theories and propaganda, such as the assertion that Jews control the United States and are overly influential on the world stage, circulate rapidly via satellite television, radio, and the Internet. Jews continue to be accused of dual loyalty, and the symbols and images associated with classic anti-Semitism, such as the charge of blood libel, endure. Holocaust denial has become one of the most prevalent forms of anti-Semitic discourse. Holocaust denial has even become state policy in Iran. Israeli policy is often compared to that of the Nazis.
And:
“According to reliable NGO reports, in 2006 (the last full set of reportable data) a number of OSCE countries experienced increases in overall anti-Semitic incidents, including non-violent incidents such as graffiti and verbal assaults. Examples include:• Belgium, with 66 reported anti-Semitic incidents (the largest number of acts since 2001, when reporting began);
• The United Kingdom, with 594 reported anti-Semitic incidents (31% over 2005);
• Switzerland, with 140 reported anti-Semitic incidents (73 in the German-speaking region, double the number from the previous year; and 67 in the French-speaking region, a decline from 75 in 2005);
• France, with 371 incidents (24% over 2005, though statistics for the first half of 2007 reveal a decrease);
• And Canada, with 935 reported incidents (a 12.8% increase over the previous year).”
Dr. Rickman points out that we have reliable data for countries such as these that take the problem seriously, but not for many other countries, such as Russia, where such attacks are unlikely to be officially recorded as anti-Semitic.
Ms. Felice D. Gaer, US Commission on International Religious Freedom:
“In addition to describing general trends in anti-Semitic violence in the OSCE region, the Commission has also highlighted concerns about anti-Semitism outside the OSCE region that sometimes influence manifestations inside it. For example, on January 27, 2007, designated by the United Nations as International Holocaust Remembrance Day, the Commission called for a renewed fight against anti-Semitism, noting that “in spite of the lessons of the Holocaust, anti-Semitism continues to be a potent force …Some governments do not do enough to fight anti-Semitism; others even fuel it. In an egregious example, the government of Iran sponsored a conference questioning the legitimacy of well-established facts of the Holocaust. This conference brought President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and other senior Iranian government officials together with numerous Holocaust deniers, racists and anti-Semites from around the world.”
