by Tony Judt
"Anti-Semitism" today is a genuine problem. It is also an illusory
problem. The distinction between the two is one of those contemporary
issues that most divide Europe from the United States. The
overwhelming majority of Europeans abhors recent attacks on Jews and
Jewish institutions and takes them very seriously. But it is
generally recognized in Europe that these attacks are the product of
local circumstances and are closely tied to contemporary political
developments in Europe and elsewhere. Thus the increase in
anti-Jewish incidents in France or Belgium is correctly attributed to
young people, frequently of Muslim or Arab background, the children
or grandchildren of immigrants. This is a new and disconcerting
social challenge and it is far from clear how it should be addressed,
beyond the provision of increased police protection. But it is not,
as they say, "your grandfather's anti-Semitism."
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