Michael Salberg is the Director of International Affairs for the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), the world’s leading center for the eradication of anti-Semitism.
Brown Political Review: How should Europe respond to rising anti-Semitism?
Michael Salberg: There has been a resurgence of anti-Semitism throughout Europe. Since 1980 in France, around 17 French Jews have been murdered by terrorists, most recently in a kosher supermarket following the Charlie Hebdo terrorist attack…We expect the government to protect all of us in a democracy. It’s very easy to say it, but it’s much more difficult to do it. Anti-Semitic attitudes extend to more than a third of the general public [in France]. The government needs to [ensure that] French Jews have a sense of safety and security. In the days following the attacks, the Prime Minister of France, Manuel Valls, delivered a speech in the National Assembly that was incredibly powerful and passionate. He expressed his sense of deep regret that Jews in France are subject to these kinds of violent acts. He pointed out to Parliament, and to the French people, that the French Jewish community expects more of France — more outrage, more action. That’s the speech we want to hear from leaders all across Europe. Now the question is: Will there be the resolve to take the actions that are necessary? Today, the French Jewish community is protected by the military so that their kids can go to school. French Jewish parents have to decide between keeping their kids in a Jewish day school and sending them to public school because the kids are subjected to anti-Semitic bullying. The other choices are to lose one’s Jewish identity or to leave the country. That reality is heartbreaking, something that American Jews cannot imagine.
BPR: Is anti-Zionism the same as anti-Semitism? Is it possible to hold one without the other?
MS: I think it’s nearly impossible. Look at behaviors, not necessarily concepts. People have an absolute right to take to the streets to blog, tweet and post about their dislike for what the government of Israel does and how it does it. But when you go to the streets to protest those policies and actions, and then you look for somebody wearing a kippah and punch them in the face, or you go to a synagogue and graffiti “Free Gaza” on it, that’s an attack on Jews. It has nothing to do with being against Zionism. If you are against Zionism, the nationalist aspiration of the Jewish people for a homeland, what other nationalist aspirations do you oppose? If you are opposed to all nationalist movements, then I would say, perhaps it isn’t [anti-Semitism]. But when you single out Zionism, then I don’t think it’s that difficult to say there is an anti-Jewish element.
BPR: How do you reconcile that viewpoint with the perspectives of people who self-identify both as Jewish and as anti-Zionist? Some may support a bi-national state including both Jews and Palestinians.
MS: The natural result of that would be that the Jewish character of Israel would disappear, which would require Israel to forsake its Jewish nationalism and identity along with its status as a refuge for Jews fleeing persecution and to no longer be the Jewish homeland. One has to look at and consider whether that outcome is what the people of Israel want. [American Jews] don’t get to vote there. I would suspect that most of the people who hold the view that you just described aren’t prepared to emigrate so that they can have a real impact on the outcome.
BPR: How has the ADL acted on its survey of global anti-Semitism?
MS: The major conclusion we have reached is that somewhere around 26 percent [of adults in the world] harbor strong anti-Semitic views. Our index consists of 11 statements that represent anti-Semitic stereotypes. If individuals answer “probably true” to six or more statements we classify those respondents as having firmly held anti-Semitic attitudes. The region that has the highest level of anti-Semitism is the Middle East and North Africa, at about 74 percent of the population. The lowest levels are in the English-speaking countries — the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand — at around 13 percent. But the attitudes reflected in our polling are just one piece of the puzzle. You have to look at specific incidents — the public discourse, rhetoric and societal responses…When we first started polling in the United States [in 1964], levels of anti-Semitism were north of 30 percent. In the most recent poll we did, the United States was at 10 percent. Progress can be made, but it doesn’t happen overnight.
BPR: How do you respond to the success of radical fascist parties, like Golden Dawn in Greece?
MS: [These parties] are dangerous, and it isn’t just in Greece. In Hungary, another anti-Semitic, neo-Nazi, ultra-right-wing, neo-fascist political party called Jobbik has 17 percent [of the seats] in the parliament. In France, the National Front has cleaned up its image, but the founder expresses anti-Semitic views on a regular basis…The leaders of Golden Dawn are in jail awaiting murder charges, and they still did well in elections! There is a serious problem with anti-Semitism in Greek society. But there has not been a real opportunity to address it because the economic circumstance in Greece fuels a sense of desperation…When people feel desperate, they don’t ask, “What did we do wrong?” They ask, “Why are they doing this to us?” It’s very difficult to begin to chip away at the ingrained tendency to look for scapegoats.
BPR: Recently, ADL commented on the controversy over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s scheduled address to the US Congress. Why did ADL choose to do so?
MS: One of the hallmarks of US support for Israel, over 67 years, has been its unified bipartisanship. At ADL, we feel this should be preserved and enhanced. What we saw in the invitation and in the reaction was partisan politics. That’s why we thought [the speech] was ill-advised — it was divisive. But even more importantly, we felt that the Prime Minister has a critically important message regarding the existential threat that Israel feels, which was being drowned out by the controversy and the politicization of the invitation.