According to the World Jewish Congress, anti-Semitism has become even more socially acceptable – and therefore more dangerous. In Germany, every third person under the age of 25 has fundamentally anti-Semitic ideas.
According to the World Jewish Congress (WJC), the corona pandemic has increased anti-Semitism in Germany.
“The pandemic acts like a fire accelerator: people trivialize the Holocaust with vaccinations,” said WJC President Ronald Lauder of the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung”. “Under the cloak of supposed criticism of corona measures, anti-Semitism has become even more socially acceptable and therefore more dangerous,” Lauder criticized.
Ahead of Holocaust Remembrance Day, Lauder expressed concern about a rise in anti-Semitism in Germany. The WJC President referred to a survey conducted by his organization among 5,000 people in Germany in November, the details of which were reported by the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung” and ZDF. Accordingly, according to Lauder, every third person under the age of 25 has fundamentally anti-Semitic ideas, among all adults it is almost every third person. Lauder also complained about declining knowledge about the Holocaust.
Anti-Semitism at an all-time high
“I am very concerned about what is happening in Germany today,” Lauder said on ZDF. The study shows that the level of anti-Semitism in Germany is at an all-time high. The WJC President appealed to politicians to take more active action against anti-Semitism. When asked on ZDF whether politicians were doing, Lauder said: “Some are doing enough, the majority not.” It is the task of the federal government to work with the state governments to stop this. “But unless the federal government takes a strong role, it’s a very dangerous thing,” Lauder said.
On January 27, 1945, Red Army soldiers liberated the survivors of the German concentration camp at Auschwitz in occupied Poland. The Nazis had murdered more than a million people there. Since 1996, the date has been celebrated in Germany as Holocaust Remembrance Day. Holocaust survivor Inge Auerbacher and Israeli Parliament Speaker Mickey Levy will speak at a commemoration ceremony on Thursday in the Bundestag. dpa
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