Contemporary Antisemitism in Europe

Antisemitism, often considered one of history’s oldest hatreds, is making headlines across the globe. A 2018 study by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights found that 39 percent of Jews in Europe indicated they have personally experienced antisemitic harassment. In the United States, the number of antisemitic incidents and level of violence has also risen sharply in recent years. Furthermore, antisemitism seems to have entered the mainstream, crossing all political affiliations, nationalities, and religions. Antisemitic ideas are drifting into the mainstream from the extremes of the political right and political left, as well as from Islamists.
Where is this coming from and how can it be stopped?

Dr. Günther Jikeli holds the Erna B. Rosenfeld Professorship at Indiana University’s Institute for the Study of Contemporary Antisemitism at the Borns Jewish Studies Program. He is an associate professor in Germanic Studies and Jewish Studies at Indiana University.