“The Rising Anti-Semitism in Scottish Education” - discuss?

[Dunderheided]

This reads slightly as if written by AI - ‘a part of Scotland called Edinburgh’ and ‘verbal assailment’ - but it’s an interesting perspective on an aspect of Scottish education. I did smile at the description of the Fettes headmistress as ‘obviously leftwing’ (!) but the final two paragraphs are really quite damning, and I’d be interested to hear if anyone agreed with them. (The Times of Israel seems to have a large international audience, but it sounds like the author is still just a young person finding their feet in the world, and this is just a blog.)

https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/the-rising-antisemitism-in-scottish-education/

You’re ‘anti-Israel’? Lovely!

A lot of people think they’re not anti-Semitic but that zionists (ie people who support the Jewish state) are fair game, which is obviously a problem for Jewish people who have to prove they are the right type of Jew (non- or anti-Zionist) to avoid being subjected to abuse.

John Swinney is welcoming all migrants. There is a huge difference between welcoming genuine asylm seekers and ensuring we have the resources for these people and our own to opening our doors fully.

The government could do more to stop the influx of boats but dont. The boats are not being turned around at all. They are paying millions to the French government to help with this crisis so I would hope a processing centre is in France.

The RNLI are largely funded by donations. These donations are going down because of this situation. They should never be placed in a position like that because if donations carry on going down they will cease to exist.

May isnt long away so we will see if the polls are correct or not.

For the primary school instances, yes. I have no idea if the police got in touch with the teenagers.

I overheard some teenagers a few months ago. One of them was saying that no Jewish people were decent people and the other were agreeing. I was horrified. I wasn’t really in a position to challenge them on their anti semitism unfortunately.

John Swinney is welcoming all migrants. There is a huge difference between welcoming genuine asylm seekers and ensuring we have the resources for these people and our own to opening our doors fully.

Our doors are not "open fully", and why is welcoming all migrants an issue for you? Do you think we should be handing out work visas because we're desperate for trained workers, but then boot them up the arse when they get off the plane and make it clear they are only here in sufferance?

The boats are not being turned around at all

Err... yes they are. As already explained, this is precisely what happens to every single boat intercepted. In French waters they are returned to French ports, in UK waters, UK ports.

They are paying millions to the French government to help with this crisis so I would hope a processing centre is in France

Again, France proposed this precise solution and the UK government said no.

The RNLI are largely funded by donations. These donations are going down because of this situation. They should never be placed in a position like that because if donations carry on going down they will cease to exist

The RNLI should never be placed in the situation whereby it has to do precisely what it's there to do? This is rather odd. Why would people stop funding it for the crime of fulfilling it's main role - protecting life in UK territorial waters? It's almost as if they people choosing not to continue donating would rather those lives aren't saved, which comes across as a tiny bit racist to be honest.

I think it’s fair enough if donors to the RNLI are concerned about their money being used to go to the aid of unsafe vessels launched by people smugglers. Obviously the RNLI are in a difficult position but you can’t deny that it’s a problem. It’s just like if every winter a huge number of foreign tourists went up Ben Nevis in flip flops and had to be saved by mountain rescue - British people might justifiably no longer want to make donations to mountain rescue.

Why would you not be concerned about a large migrant influx when we dont have the housing, service's or infrastructure? We cannot welcome people then give thm a tent to live in because we dont have enough home for them nor can we welcome them and not be able to provide medical care, support or anything else they may need. I think long term anyone who comes to this country to live should be contributing positively towards its economy and integrating (and many do).

The numbers arriving suggest lots of boats are not getting turned around. The processing centre offer should have been taken up but Westminster are fairly incompetent so I am not surprised this has been declined.

Unfortunately the RNLI funding has taken a reduction in donations as result of helping migrants to cross safely. I personally have a huge amount of respect for the RNLI but people can choose to donate or not donate to any charity or organisation they wish to. If the RNLI is loosing funding because of this situation the government should be helping financially those branches who may struggle because of the loss of donations.

So an organisation doing precisely what it's funded to do, in both instances here - saving the lives of those in peril, is understandable grounds for the people funding it withdrawing their donations because they don't like the circumstances of the people being saved?

When the alternative is the service stopping and therefore people dying, I don't think it's "fair enough" really. You don't donate to the RNLI and stipulate your donation can only be used to rescue people from an approved list. If people don't want to donate because their money might be used to save the lives of people crossing the Channel in vessels launched by people smugglers, then that is of course their prerogative, but let's be honest for a moment and call it out for what it is, i.e. a decision that the lives of these people aren't worth saving.

Why would you not be concerned about a large migrant influx when we dont have the housing, service's or infrastructure?

Because the alternative is worse, namely the complete collapse of the care industry and NHS.

We cannot welcome people then give thm a tent to live in because we dont have enough home for them nor can we welcome them and not be able to provide medical care, support or anything else they may need. I think long term anyone who comes to this country to live should be contributing positively towards its economy and integrating (and many do)

Just as well then that the research proves migrants are net contributors to the economy, moreso than the indigenous population on a per head basis. If you want to solve the financial aspect of the housing shortage and declining care standards, you should be clamouring for more migrants, not fewer.

The numbers arriving suggest lots of boats are not getting turned around

Yes, because any boat that makes it to UK waters either makes it ashore, or is intercepted by the RN, Coast Guard, UK Border Force and escorted to a UK port in accordance with international law. There is no basis whatsoever for the UK "turning around" boats intercepted in UK waters because not only would that be in contravention of international law, it's impossible to say from precisely where the boats originated and therefore where they should be "turned around" to, the UK can not carry out the duties of other states vessels in other states territorial waters, and "turning around" boats would constitute an unconscionable risk to the wellbeing of those onboard.

So again, what precisely do you want done with small boats given the strictures of international and maritime law?

I feel like some of the posts here have drifted a long way from the original question about anti-semitism in schools.

But for the record I started donating to the RNLI when the ‘controversy’ about them rescuing migrants hit the news!

Like @Callisto1 I am against the actions of the current Israeli administration - and hasn’t Netanyahu been in power in one way or another as long as Putin now? - and I don’t think that’s an anti-semitic position.

Solving the financial crisis does not change the fact we have a national housing shortage. They are not building enough housing for the current population let alone migrants.

I am very aware of the positive things migrant care workers offer to our country and appreciate how hard all care workers work for very poor money. It doesnt change the fact that as country we have a housing shortage. Where are people living if we dont build enough houses for Scottish people let alone migrants?

There has to be a better and safer way for migrants to arrive in the UK than risk there lives crossing the channel. People smuggling gangs need stopped. UK laws need tightened up that if a foreign person commits a crime in the UK they are returned to there own country. Unfortunately we are stuck with UK criminals but as a country we need to find a better balance between encouraging positive net contribution migrants and safeguarding our the people including migrants who live in this country already.

They told me they had done it when my child was the victim of a hate crime. Its maybe worth asking. Has the bullying stopped now?

Solving the financial crisis does not change the fact we have a national housing shortage. They are not building enough housing for the current population let alone migrants.

So we build more housing then with the extra revenue generated by all those economically vibrant migrants.

Where are people living if we dont build enough houses for Scottish people let alone migrants?

In precisely the same housing stock as the indigenous population. Shortage of homes is a problem that predates post-Brexit migration, so it has certainly not been caused by migrants, and since we are totally dependent upon migrant workers to come here on work visas, deliver our public services, and pay taxes while they are doing so, they can't be considered a net-contributor to the problem either because they are holding up their obligations re social contract. So basically the shortage of homes in Scotland is a long-term failure on the part of government both in Scotland and Westminster, it's been a persistent issue since the advent of the calamitous Right to Buy scheme, so there is no basis to the claims made by racists like Farage, Lowe, and their "patriotic" supporters that this housing shortage is about "migrants" denying homes to the indigenous population, because the problem predates the driver behind the recent rise in economic migration, which was the Brexit that these very same people and their short-sighted, moronic supporters agitated for.

I never suggested the shortage of homes was because of the migrants. I am well aware this mainly a result of years of chronic under building of houses particularly affordable family homes.

In my area its also a partly a result of a huge amount of Air B&Bs which is something that the council are looking into stopping.

However where do the migrants live in the meantime given we have a chronic housing shortage? I appreciate this maybe regional but in my region i see posts daily from locals and migrants desperate to secure rental properties. They are not able to because there is barely any available. I feel incredibly sorry for all them as everyone deserves a roof over there head.

Thats a really badly written article. Although its a blog, not an article, which means it has different publishing criteria. Not sure it tells me anything about antisemitism in Scottish schools. @PurpleThistle7's posts are more informative.

Ronen is a boys name for the person wondering.

I’m not sure about antisemitism and education (and very sorry to hear of your troubles OP) but othering people and condemning is 100% from the SNPs playbook. After a nasty and divisive Indy ref in 2014 (‘civic and joyous’ my arse!) they just wouldn’t let it lie. Everything is ‘Westminster’s’ fault, they don’t confront blatant lies such as Westminster is stealing Scotland’s money. Instead of healing wounds after the Indy ref the SNP were determined to keep them festering. They thrive on making people think ‘it’s them or us’ rather than accepting people have a range of views on a number of topics and we should all try to get along. See the GRC debate. All dissenting voices from women’s rights organisations silenced. Now look at the mess they’re in. They’re scumbags.

@Dunderheidedtbf that’s not what Callisto1 said. They said ‘Israel’
Just wonder if there are any other countries people would go on a forum when the discussion is antisemitism just to point out you don’t agree with it? In what way? How benevolent of them not to treat a Jewish child differently than any other :/

That's actually super concerning. I wonder if our kids are at school together! Would be rather horrifying to know that an adult had considered if my child was personally responsible for Netanyahu's actions before deciding to treat him as if he was a normal kid (or whatever that meant!).

And no, it hasn't stopped exactly. My daughter has pushed back, and challenged, and refused to engage but something happens every few months and it's not always about Israel, it's a lot deeper than current events.

So you don't think there's antisemitism in Scottish schools?

@Branleuse in the same way that people think they are being clever by saying…. No I am would never be antisemitic I am just antizionist. Most people can’t even explain what that means and very often the mask slips.
There is antisemitism in schools, with students, against teachers. Unions who preach love, understanding and anti ‘far right’ whilst spouting the most awful antisemitism.

It is not up to others to explain why or how something is not antisemitic. And that wouldn’t happen anywhere else, to anyone else. It is socially acceptable to say and do the most vile things at the moment.

Perhaps they've just not spoken to you about it

Like others on here, @PurpleThistle7 I am shocked at the experience of your daughter. She must be very distressed. This coincided with the terrible events of Oct 7th? It's almost as if certain people felt emboldened to target Jews. These children are learning hate from somewhere. 💐

Quite a few friends ie 10-15 or more on the school run are pro-Palestinian & attend legal marches. Def anti-Israeli not anti-Jewish.

Also very pro-Indy as an aside.

(Forres).

Well I hope they appreciate the nuance of being ‘anti Israeli government’s current actions’ as opposed to ‘anti Israeli people’ as that’s mostly where the problems start. Of course everyone has the right to peaceful protest, but no one has the right to yell pro-Palestinian slogans in my daughter’s face at school.