To be shocked that this is happening in the UK in 2026

[Terfymcnamechange]

https://x.com/jeanhatchet/status/2023017313327317331?s=46&t=N3lQrZ7NOBmzt0lfDUYXPA

Jean Hachet posted this today. Men going door to door in Sheffield looking for people who aren't boycotting Israel. The man grabbed one of the women by throat and headbutted her when challenged. Feels like something out of the 1930s

Don't be so deliberately obtuse.

This was not just a 'leaflet drop', as you well know. This was activists - one of whom proudly admitted on camera that he is an anti-semite, let's not forget - ringing people's doorbells and asking them, on their own doorstep, to identify themselves as holding a particular political position on a situation that you know very well has led to Jewish people being harassed and attacked.

With the added threat of names being noted and stored for future reference against addresses.

What are you finding so hard to compute, here?

As I said upthread, it's perfectly legitimate for people to decide that they wish to boycott Israeli goods, and to publicise their decision and reasoning, and also to encourage other like-minded people to join. There are many, many, other platforms they can use to do this - posters, social media, a stall in the local market, etc. What's not legitimate is to chase people down in their own homes and make note of their answers. We don't mark Jewish households as being different, and we don't put Jews on a list, thank-you very much.

Please, please, try to employ some empathy here. I realise I'm asking you to empathise with people who may have a different viewpoint to you, but that just makes it all the more important that you can see them as human. Are you not aware of how vulnerable Jewish people are feeling, and have been feeling, since October 7th?

And FYI, the use of the inflammatory, hyperbolic term 'apartheid' for the situation in Gaza is an extremely partisan one. It is not a common use of the term across society, though it clearly is in the circles you frequent. You may agree with it, but you should be aware that many people do not. Repeating it here in the hope it catches on won't wash with anybody with any knowledge of the area. Ask yourself why there are hardly any Jews in the other Middle Eastern countries?

As for anti-abortion leaflets, I wouldn't want those through my letterbox, and anyone daring to ring my doorbell would be wildly overstepping the mark. And would be told so, in no uncertain terms. The difference, though, would be that women having abortions do not belong to an ethnic group that are regularly targeted for abuse and worse, and have been for millennia.

I cut and pasted exactly as it was written. I didn't capitalise any of it, was already lije that. Hope that helps.

The big and obvious difference, plain to anyone with any empathy, is that Jews are currently feeling very threatened in the UK.

I don't like the idea of anyone feeling unsafe, but people's feelings can't be used as a trump card to shut down any lawful discussion or action related to Israel.

And so if you have someone knocking at your door of your home and writing your name down if you don't agree with their political and contentious views, I would imagine that fear would be increased hugely.

They only record and hold data in one of two scenarios - When a resident signs a pledge, or when they ask specifically if a resident would like to be recorded as not wanting further visits.

There is absolutely zero evidence of anything else being recorded for any other purpose. None. They have gone on record as being GDPR compliant, and would have to be monumentally stupid to assume that wouldn't be tested. They have a policy of not getting into debates or arguments on the doorstep, and I've yet to see evidence of any of their canvassers disregarding it.

They've been reported to multiple police forces across the UK, who have unanimously agreed that they are acting within the law.

I'm not surprised that people are afraid, when they're being told that organisations are 'Jew Hunting', 'aggressively' knocking on their doors to make sure they're not supporting Israel and being added to a list if they do, or they hold the wrong political opinions...despite there being no evidence of this whatsoever.

If any of that changes, or evidence of wrongdoing comes to light, fair enough. But until it does, everyone misrepresenting what's actually going on, willfully or carelessly, shoulders their own responsibility for spreading fear.

And FYI, the use of the inflammatory, hyperbolic term 'apartheid' for the situation in Gaza is an extremely partisan one.

I'm not using the term apartheid for Gaza, it is the West Bank where according to the ICJ Israel are perpetrating apartheid and racial segregation. I don't think it is 'partisan' to listen to the International Court of Justice, its quite a normal thing to do,we have these courts for a reason.

As I said upthread, it's perfectly legitimate for people to decide that they wish to boycott Israeli goods, and to publicise their decision and reasoning, and also to encourage other like-minded people to join. There are many, many, other platforms they can use to do this - posters, social media, a stall in the local market, etc. What's not legitimate is to chase people down in their own homes and make note of their answers. We don't mark Jewish households as being different, and we don't put Jews on a list, thank-you very much.

'Chase people down in their homes' = ring their doorbell and if they don't answer leave a leaflet in the letterbox.

'make note of their answers' = make note of the people who ask not to be inconvinced by further canvassing.

'We don't mark Jewish households as being different' = Treat Jewish households the exact same as every other household who asks not to be inconvienced again.

The dramatic, inflammatory language that you choose to use doesn't help anybody. This whole thread is full of it. It's people ringing doorbells asking people if they want to take part in an anti apartheid boycott. You can close your door on them without saying anything, you can say no thanks and close your door, you can say no thanks, please don't call again. You can say that's interesting tell me more. Nobody except the people dropping the leaflets were being chased. Nobody is being forced to be added to any lists. Nobody is being singled out. Nobody is being forced to engage with these canvassers in any way.

People knock on doors with leaflets to see if others want to be involved in an anti apartheid campaign. That's the story without all of the added drama.

I'm not surprised that people are afraid, when they're being told that organisations are 'Jew Hunting', 'aggressively' knocking on their doors to make sure they're not supporting Israel and being added to a list if they do, or they hold the wrong political opinions...despite there being no evidence of this whatsoever.

This is what is annoying me. Who do people think they are helping with this inflammatory language? They aren't helping Jewish people by screaming that there is a Jew hunt and leading them to believe that people are aggressively demanding that they support their cause or they will be added to a 'list'. This just isn't what is happening so why are people saying that it is, to cause fear and division is the only reason I can think of.

I suppose because this sort of thing has already been happening for either 2.5 years or longer depending on your perspective.

My daughter has been asked to 'pick a side' at school. I have been asked - at work - to sign up to boycott Israeli products and wear a button to show my support. As a British Jewish person, I have been told it's 'fine' to be Jewish 'as long as I'm not one of those Zionist ones' because apparently I have some sort of responsibility for the actions of a foreign government. This sort of conversation is exhausting and endless and my only sense of peace is knowing that I won't be accosted at home - home is safe. If this is also taken away I don't really understand what is left.

I promise you if I answered the doors to these hatemongers and told them that I'm Jewish I'd be putting myself at risk - maybe not immediately, but at some point. And I'd know that I put my children in potential danger as well.

This sort of conversation is exhausting and endless and my only sense of peace is knowing that I won't be accosted at home - home is safe.

Then say no thanks and shut the door the same way you would to an Internet sales guy or whoever. There is no evidence at all that that would lead to anything but the canvassers moving on to the next house. Better yet put a 'no sales people/canvassers' sign on your door.

This is appalling , it directly goes against the UK’s principles, in fact it goes one step further as it isn’t just against free speech it’s against freedoms of thought. We are allowed to have our own views.

I'm so sorry that this is happening in the UK. I'm also sorry about the rise in antisemitism which I think needs priority attention. Sadly, idiots think they are helping people in far off lands by their posturing, they aren't.

Jewish people are telling you that they feel intimidated by this. They are concerned - as are others, like me - about the implications of people being confronted in their own homes about an issue that Jewish people are being attacked over, and their views noted down for future reference.

But this is the thing...there's absolutely no evidence of anyone being 'confronted in their own home' or 'having their views noted down for future reference'. Anyone claiming otherwise should be able to provide their evidence.

The canvassers have a 'no doorstep debates' policy, and a policy of retreating from any confrontation. They ask everyone the same opening question "Can I ask you how you feel about the situation in Gaza?" and if the answer is no or the door gets closed, they leave and nothing is recorded.

Do you think it's ok for Jewish people to be intimidated in their own homes?

I'd completely understand someone being intimidated by a group going door to door, confronting people over a sensitive political issue and keeping a record of their response. But as that doesn't seem to be actually happening, despite some people trying really hard to frame it that way, I don't think it holds much weight.

Are you not worried about the well-documented levels of anti-semitism?

Before you answer - try deploying some empathy and compassion before giving a knee-jerk response - even if it's with people you don't agree with.

Of course, I find all bigotry abhorrent. I find people who misrepresent facts to create further divide equally as grim. They're the only people I disagree with around this issue.

Apologies. I know context is easily lost online, but I think it's usually safe to assume that if someone posts something they don't agree with or endorse, they'd say so.

I promise you if I answered the doors to these hatemongers and told them that I'm Jewish I'd be putting myself at risk - maybe not immediately, but at some point. And I'd know that I put my children in potential danger as well

How do you 'know' this? What are you basing it on?

It's perfectly justified to be worried about the rise in antisemitism, but it's a huge leap to suggest that you and your children would be at risk of actual danger if you'd simply identified yourself as a Jew.

Aside from the fact that they're not recording this information, what danger do you believe you'd be in? I'm not trying to minimize your feelings, I'm genuinely curious.

My then 11 year old daughter was attacked at school by a group of teenage boys waving Palestinian flags and shouting 'free Palestine' in her face. They wouldn't let her leave and she was trapped in the stairwell until some other children came through several minutes later. They waited for her and surrounded her and said they were going to 'find her' after school. We had to get the police involved. We tracked her back and forth to school for months. I wouldn't want them to know where we lived. And I wouldn't want any of the other hate groups to know either. She's doing self-defense classes now.

My father's synagogue had a mass shooting incident. My brother's Jewish school he teaches at has had so many bomb threats they don't even lock down every time anymore. It's not safe to be Jewish and the fewer people who know where we live, the better. If I'm home alone with my children and I know that a group of hateful people know that this is a Jewish home (and the only one for miles, my kids are the only Jewish children at their school) then I will feel less safe. Not like I think we need to hide in an attic unsafe, but more like if the doorbell rings the day after being confronted like this, I wouldn't want to answer it.

I am well aware it's perfectly legal to knock on doors and annoy people but I think it's also important to understand the impact this has on a very tiny minority of people. When people who aren't affected say 'what's the big deal, it's just a group of people sharing their views at your door' and I say 'but that's intimidating and it makes me feel unsafe and like I probably should lie to them or maybe take down my mezuzah' then it would be nice if more people said 'oh, hadn't thought about that. Maybe it's not great and I won't support them setting up shop in my town'.

I feel if you swap "Jews" for "Muslims" your answer in today's modern Britain might be different.

And I disagree. I thought we were against anything that caused "alarm, harassment or distress". Which this behaviour has. Or does that not apply to Jewish people?

I think you need to rethink the type and depth of the media you are consuming if you are asking the question "what danger do you believe you'd be in? I'm not trying to minimize your feelings, I'm genuinely curious."

Can you explain to me your use of the term cuck, what it refers to and how it makes sense here?

You aren't against anything that causes alarm or harassment or distress though? You said yourself that leaflets about immigration that could cause those feelings are 'different'. 'We' just seem to be against anti apartheid leaflets and canvassers who are fully abiding by the law and are being harassed and abused for doing so.

I'm so sorry to hear that about what your family has been through, especially your daughter. It's great that she's taken up self defense, I think all kids should.

I'm not suggesting that the wider issue isn't a big deal, or that Jewish people aren't at risk of violence or intimidation. But I don't accept that asking someone "Can I ask you how you feel about the situation in Gaza?" and walking away if the answer is no, can be regarded as intimidating, especially to the point of convincing someone they'd put their family in danger.

That's a serious statement - It's not that you generally feel unsafe being identified as Jewish, you're suggesting that these people will at some point return to attack or harass you, either themselves or by proxy.

When people who aren't affected say 'what's the big deal, it's just a group of people sharing their views at your door' and I say 'but that's intimidating and it makes me feel unsafe

That's the thing though - they're not sharing their views at anyone's door or recording information about anybody who says no to that first question. They're not getting into debates or arguments. Nobody is being forced to listen to or engage with them. Quite the opposite.

People have misrepresented the facts and created a boogyman to be afraid of, but it doesn't actually exist. I don't think you claiming with such certainty that engaging with them would put your children in danger helps that.

it would be nice if more people said 'oh, hadn't thought about that. Maybe it's not great and I won't support them setting up shop in my town

I accept that you may find even the sight of these people on your street intimidating based on your own experiences. But while I don't necessarily support their cause, I do support the right of people to hold political views and express them lawfully regardless of who they upset.

No I said theres a difference between the importance to British people about something happening to British Jews compared to people who live thousands of miles away in Palestine. I care more about the first and if you are in the UK you probably should too.

You then brought up "immigrants" but that obviously missed the point of this thread.

Have you seen the opening post with the link? People chased these 'canvassers' away. I don't want people approaching my home and asking me opinions on a distance land. They don't knock and ask about Sudan, Ukraine, Lebanon but only Palestine etc etc. Why is that? Why should Jewish people have this crap directed at them? I repeat again its not the fault of Jewish people whats occurring in Gaza.

I feel if you swap "Jews" for "Muslims" your answer in today's modern Britain might be different.

I can't speak for anyone else, but it absolutely would not for me.

And I disagree. I thought we were against anything that caused "alarm, harassment or distress". Which this behaviour has. Or does that not apply to Jewish people?

It's nice to be nice, and in a perfect world nobody would feel harassed or distressed and we'd all get along famously. But it isn't a perfect world.

As as society we have laws that separate unpleasant behavior from unacceptable behavior. We all have our own standards for what might upset or distress us outside of that framework, but we don't get to enforce those personal standards on other people.

Nobody has a right to go through life unchallenged. And they certainly don't have the right to restrict other people's freedoms because they find their views - or how they express them within the law - upsetting.

People who look to weaponize the laws of society to enforce their personal standards on others and shut down views they don't want to hear, are particularly unpleasant.

No, you made it clear that you think it's 'different' if some people feel harassed and distressed than others. It isn't about people feeling harassed and distressed it's about the topic in this case anti apartheid, that makes people feel harassed and distressed.

I'm sure there are British Palestinians with relatives living under apartheid to whom the topic is very important and really quite distressing but they should be quiet because other British people are distressed by hearing about it.

I'm not even sure what the point of this thread is? Mob chases people legally canvassing and dropping leaflets? Mob wants free speech shut down? Free speech is 'distressing' shut up?

I dont really think you're in a position to pretend compassion for " immigrants" when you have none for British Jews? Agree?

As I said earlier in the thread. You just have to chose between British Jews in the Uk and people from far away. Its called living in a civilised society. And chosing foreigners seems odd and would need some underlying prejudice I think.

And why should Jews have to be "challenged" anyway? Are the doorsteppers going around "challenging" people? Going to people's houses with their little notebooks and asking intrusive questions and making little notes. Which is threatening to certain sections of society.

Also I think Muslims now effectively have the right to avoid being distressed by having a Koran burned in front of them (for example) so I think you need to think through your post.

Why? Unless you've got skin in the game, why should you care more about an issue just because the people it's impacting are geographically closer to you thanks to a genetic lottery? We're all human beings.

People's morals, politics, beliefs, religion, upbringing, experiences etc shape what we feel strongly about. I find the suggestion that someone should care more about an issue just because it involves the 'home team' quite sad.