Tracking antisemitism 2

[EllaDisenchanted]

continuing on from the last thread which morphed from a discussion about antisemitism to tracking it globally.

@comedycook @humdingerydoo@stomachamelon @25milesfromhome @sharonellis @beretinparis @diamond82 @christmasmantlestatue @quantumbutterfly @edithstourton @lucywestenra
@sewingaddict @ErroltheSwampDragon @knitnerd90

I’ve probably missed people out

to start off with something positive - this was a few yeshiva students response to antisemitism ❤️🕎

https://x.com/lily4liberty/status/2001122286204805189?s=46
“Three Jewish college students from NJ were dancing at Denver International Airport. They said they were motivated to do this after the mass shooting in Australia: “We will not be scared or give in to the darkness, we will only add more and more light.” Happy Hanukkah!”

they’re playing my favourite zusha chanuka song, and one of them looks like DHs nephew who lives in America! Had to do a double take and check it wasn’t him!😆

@NicolaMarlowsMerlin in a similar situation with not that many people to speak to but this group has really helped. Did you find anything nice for Rosh Hashanah?

I am a bit stuck. We don’t have a standard family meal for Rosh Hoshanah in the way we do for Seder for example. I usually do some interesting salads and a sefardi style meat dish, but nothing is really inspiring this year, partly because I’m away from home from weds pm to friday around 1500 so will do a lot of the cooking this weekend and freeze. Maybe a brisket with pomegranate? Challah is always the same and I already have the olive oil/fig version made in a circle and frozen. Probably some roasted carrots with harissa. Apple cake. Chicken soup also already in the freezer. If anyone has anything they particularly like let me know!

Has anyone read Simon Sebag-Montefiore’s new book? I’ve read about 100 pages. Really interesting although slightly hard going as so many names that are very similar but not the same so I have to keep flicking back to check who is who. Very well written. Let me know if anyone is up for talking about it.

re not having v many people to talk about, I did discover that one of my very left leaning friends from Uni completely gets the horrible misinformation being spread and has really struggled with feeling super isolated as she can’t bring it up at work or she’ll be cancelled. She’s not Jewish. We had dinner last week and it made such a difference to know that there’s someone super smart and well informed out there who gets it without me having to disabuse them of a pile of crap first. I hope everyone has someone like that in their lives.

Thanks for having me!

That all sounds delicious. I'm only in charge of desert so planning some apple filo cigars and then thinking of something to take into work (an easy way to teach people a bit about Judaism).

Have you read his book, Jerusalem? I struggled to follow the names in that but have been meaning to give it another go. His new book has rave reviews, but figure I should finish Jerusalem first?

That's such a lovely story about your friend. It's amazing how meaningful something like that can be. I've felt much closer to some friends, and so grateful, but really struggled with others.

Yes I think if you are part way through Jerusalem I’d stick with that. I’m finding it best to set a target - the chapters are short so I’m aiming for minimum 2 chapters a day, that’s 20-30 mins which is usually doable!

Shabbat shalom to everyone.

Shabbat Shalom!

Popping up here to say hi and feel part of a safe space. I live in an area where I'm the 'only Jew in the village' type thing & nearest synagogue demographic is very much an aging population so it can feel quite lonely and isolating.
No wider family around due to relocation for work so festivals always make me feel nostalgic from childhood.
We will have some of our children with us for Rosh Hashanah and breaking the fast so that's something to look forward to! Feel horribly disorganised this year as in the haze of kids going back to school and college and working 3 days in London this week, it's sort of crept up on me that I haven't meal planned & what I thought was chicken soup- in the freezer turns out to be leek and potato so can't even defrost that!

Glad you’ve got them coming for the High Holy Days. We are just the 4 of us this year which the kids quite like but I always feel a bit like if I’m doing all this it might as well be for a crowd?

Hoping that the Holy Days pass peacefully although obviously someone somewhere will try and do something horrible or offensive or both.

The holidays scare me a bit nowadays to be honest.

Sorry to hear that. I don’t feel scared most of the time, I feel angry. My kids felt scared when we ended up in the middle of one of those demos by accident back in the autumn of 2023 (we were on our way to a barmitzvah!). My 13yo said - mum, if they knew we were Jewish would they throw things at us? And then asked if my Wikipedia profile said I was Jewish (it does). That made me feel angry.

But I don’t look particularly Jewish and we don’t live in a Jewish community and our synagogue is well protected so we aren’t that likely to be in the midst of the drama. I do wear my Magen David every day now which I didn’t before Oct 7th. It’s awful you feel scared for the High Holy days. I hope they pass safely and meaningfully for us all.

Milliband and Burnham have been upping the anti-Israel rhetoric ahead of sanctions to be announced today, despite warnings that their rhetoric increases the, already high, risk of harm to Jews, especially right before the holidays.

I find it comprehensible that they do not appreciate the fear and anger across the country (not just among Jews) and instead are pandering for votes.

I rotate between anger and sadness and fear. My daughter is 100% angry and slightly aggressive about it.

My dad's synagogue had a mass shooting about 10 years ago - he was actually on his way to services but forgot his tallit at home and turned back so missed it by minutes. That comes back to me each year in the autumn, particularly with everything that's happened over the holidays these last few years.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pittsburgh_synagogue_shooting

I need to find my anger again as right now I'm just rotating between sad and scared!

They don't see that in the eyes of Jew haters they validate their beliefs

Unrest regarding the Israel issue is useful for the UK government so they are very unlikely to do anything to stop that. Way more likely find new ways to provoke unrest whenever the opportunity arises.

I remember that shooting. Horrific.

Reading some of the 9/11 stories that people are revisiting this week has brought home to me how these small choices make fundamental differences to our lives. The guy who changed his flight to get home earlier, the one who decided to take his kids to school that day. I’m so glad your father was ok but oh my goodness I can only imagine the feelings that left behind.

It’s been interesting to me how my kids have changed since 7/10 in their feelings as they’ve got older. At the time DD was just 16 and didn’t want to deal with it. Now she’s about to turn 19 and she’s sad and worried about the world. I’m hoping going to Uni will help her connect with young Jews who are doing something in their communities as I always think that makes you feel less sad - the niece of one of my friends is working for CST for example. Fingers crossed and thank you for sharing that story.

My DD went to uni and got radicalised by the pro-Pally mob. Gutted is not the word. DH and I find it very disturbing. She’s back home now and we just don’t talk about it.
This was someone who spent 9 weeks in Israel as a teen, had amazing time, wore her IDF t shirt on returning etc and now saying she was ‘brainwashed’ (no insight that she was brainwashed by Iranian proxies on campus!).

I’ve been scared and angry so many times the past few years. But now, with the sheer apparent inability of miliband and Burnham to see that their actions potentially give free rein to anti semites to continue with their anti semitism, and the inability of so many to understand why it creates further threat to Jewish people… I’m for the first time truly afraid… existentially afraid.

im also at a loss to comprehend how this government is ignoring the integrally vital relationship we have with Israel re the security and intelligence re threats to the UK and wish to endanger us all through sheer hubris and immature posturing.

They simply don’t care. They’re stuck in their Westminster bubble. They haven’t even clocked that Hamas doesn’t want a two state solution. Ffs.

Have you read Howl by Howard Jacobson? It might be a little too close to the bone, though!

Solidarity, @Nosejobnelly - I have a DD at Bristol ('nuff said 😬).

I haven’t read Howl but I’ll take a look.

Funnily enough my DS went to Bristol and was fine - he didn’t get involved with any politics - one of his housemates was Muslim and there was no issue.

My DD was at Leeds - the one who fell prey to it all. I think you could prob go to any uni and get caught up in it. DD always loves a ‘cause’ - went from the environment in sixth form (great, no issue with that), to BLM in lockdown (and the Uiygurs) to Gaza at uni.

Oh well, we’re all off to shul this morning so a bit of indoctrination for her ! 🤦‍♀️

Shana Tuva to all …

I read Howl. I don’t have a radicalised child so take this with a pinch of salt but it helped. Like reading ‘Knife’ by Salman Rushdie, it’s such a relief to know that you aren’t mad and that other people are angry/struggling too. And both books so well written.

our sermon today was about Isaac and Ishmael. Think our peacenik Rabbi did a good job holding the different worldviews together, gave me something to think about. Hope others have had a meaningful day.

Thanks! I don’t envy rabbis having to take the opinions of all their congregants in to account. I was in shul yesterday but it was a layperson giving the sermon and it was more about the ‘Book of Life’ than current affairs.

I wish we’d had an apolitical sermon. Ours was a very very strong point of view from a visiting rabbi. It made me uncomfortable and also want to leave. I was hoping to find a sense of peace to be honest.

Oh my Gd 😳
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DdSST6Bq3bi/?stkn=MWtoM3kzYmQ3dGw1dg==
nazi protestors with swastikas, free Palestine, anti Jews, and salutes.

That's disgusting and shocking @EllaDisenchanted

Ugh they look so smug don't they. This is the incident it's related to:

https://forward.com/news/850037/jake-lang-nazi-protest-911/

I mean, where does one even begin!?

This story has so many chapters and they’re all horrible. So the protest was against someone who doesn’t identify as being Jewish and certainly hates that part of him but of course Nazis don’t give anyone that choice so the people he is trying to impress hate him?

This happening on the streets of New York without a riot is actually terrifying too. A generation ago there would have been a massive uproar. Now… a few yelling people on the edges and everyone else just walks past and turns their heads.