Beginning of October 2017, the two Presidents of the German and the French Jewish federations published a joint warning about collaboration with far right parties in Germany and France. Their statement in Die Welt and Le Figaro was both, impressive and alarming.
They write: “Let us be perfectly clear: at the moment the AfD is focusing on Muslims. Sooner or later, the same can happen to us Jews. The AfD has already included a ban on ritual slaughtering in its programme. (…) Right-wing populists pretend to be friends of Israel or of Jews because they want to make us believe that Muslims are our common enemies. They come to demonstrations with Israel flags or make public trips to the Jewish state. But these maneuvers with which they try to fish for Jewish voters are easily exposed. Therefore, it is all the more important for us as Jewish umbrella associations to make it very clear: AfD and Front National are no partners for us, but a threat to Jewish life in Germany and France.”
The President of the Zentralrat der Juden, Josef Schuster and Francis Kalifat, President of the CRIF, speak up for democratic values, for protection of minorities and for freedom of religion and belief. They raise their voices against the anti-Muslim rhetoric of the right-wing populists, well aware that antisemitic prejudices are more prevalent among Muslims that within general society. (Antisemitism among Muslims is about twice to three times higher than Western European average).
The Muslims I have met in my work as European Commission Coordinator on combatting Antisemitism that actively fight Antisemitism all have one thing in common: they have a comprehensive knowledge of European history and, in particular, the Holocaust. I am convinced that this is a key to successful integration and participation in our society. People who have learnt about the Holocaust and have tried to understand how it could have come so far, accept the rule of law, they don’t call for Sharia law, and do not question equality between men and women.
In short, they have fully endorsed European – indeed universal – values and embrace the responsibility to stand up against any form of injustice – like the two Presidents of the Jewish umbrella organisations. To say it with the words of the late Elie Wiesel, quoted many times and so true: ‘The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference.’
Overcoming indifference creates a society that can live with differences.
Katharina's blog 