European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights releases second landmark survey on antisemitism

The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) has today published ’Experiences and perceptions of antisemitism - Second survey on discrimination and hate crime against Jews in the EU’. This repeats and expands upon the Fundamental Rights Agency’s landmark 2012 survey on how Europe’s Jews, including Britain, experience and perceive antisemitism. It is the largest ever study of its kind worldwide and should, like its predecessor, be a key tool in the understanding of modern antisemitism.

CST is proud to have played a leading role in both surveys, continuing its close relationship with the Fundamental Rights Agency, which is the leading provider of fundamental rights expertise to the EU.

The survey provides sober, independent expert evidence of the growing problem that antisemitism poses for Jews throughout Europe, including Britain.

Overall, 90% of respondents feel that antisemitism is growing in their country. Around 90% also feel it is particularly problematic online, while about 70% cite public spaces, the media and politics as common sources of antisemitism.

Almost 30% of respondents have been harassed, with those visibly Jewish most affected.

Over a third of respondents (38%) have considered emigrating and a similar proportion avoid taking part in Jewish events or visiting Jewish sites because they feel insecure.

The Fundamental Rights Agency states:

“Such results underline the need for Member States to take urgent and immediate action. In doing so they need to work closely together with a broad range of stakeholders, particularly Jewish communities and civil society organisations, to roll out more effective measures to prevent and fight antisemitism.

This includes strengthening Holocaust education and awareness raising activities, keeping Jewish communities and sites safe, and regularly monitoring hate crime towards Jews. Regular victimisation surveys would help assess the effectiveness of laws and policies.

In addition, all Member States should fully and correctly transpose EU laws to protect victims and to counter racism into their national law. This would help ensure victims get the support they deserve and perpetrators are sentenced with effective, proportionate and dissuasive criminal penalties. This would, in turn, encourage victims and witnesses to speak out and report incidents.”

CST will examine and release UK specific findings in the coming days.