Antisemitism Today

What is new in present-day antisemitism is not the forms, which remain religion- and race-based and political, but the circumstances, including the aftermath of the breakup of the USSR and new demographic realities, especially the Arab/Muslim presence and propaganda in the West. Summarizes data on recent antisemitic expressions around the world. Surveys Europe, the Arab and Muslim worlds, and the USA (especially the scene on college campuses). At the 2001 Durban Conference, anti-racism was manipulated to serve anti-Zionist and general antisemitic purposes. Further, the events of 9/11 were sometimes interpreted, especially in the Arab/Muslim world, as the result of a Jewish conspiracy. Recommends ways of responding to antisemitism, as adopted by the American Jewish Committee; e.g. focusing on the type of antisemitism and its venue in order to devise counter strategies, including diplomacy and cooperation rather than confrontation. Recommends independent research to determine the effectiveness of strategies and, in view of some studies, questions the long-range usefulness of Holocaust education as a tool for reducing antisemitism.