Antisemitism

Antisemitism is defined as hostility and prejudice toward Jews as well as taking discriminatory action towards Jewish people. Some consider antisemitism to be a form of racism.

The word antisemitism finds its roots in the German word antisemitisch, first used in 1860 by Austrian Jewish scholar  Moritz Steinschneider, in his work regarding false ideas of "Semitic races" in comparison to "Aryan races." However, the discriminatory ideas and actions towards Jews have existed since long before the term was coined.

Early incidents of antisemitism and anti-Jewish persecution include the Edict of Expulsion from England in 1290, the persecution of Jews across Europe during the Black Death from 2348 - 1351, and the Spanish Inquisition and expulsion from Spain in 1492.

The 20th century saw both the Holocaust, the genocide of European Jews, and the expulsion of Jews from countries across the Middle East, leading to the displacement of approximately 850,000 Mizrahi Jews.

In recent years both Europe and the US have seen a steady increase in antisemitic incidents, and 90% of Jews in the European Union have said that they feel this is a serious problem.

Don't rehire antisemitic, pro-Nasrallah doctor, over 1000 doctors urge Brown University

Medical professionals call for Brown University not to rehire a known Hezbollah supporter for an assistant professor position at the Ivy League school.

 A sign is pictured as demonstrators gather in support of Dr. Rasha Alawieh, a kidney specialist and assistant professor at Brown University who was refused re-entry to the United States despite holding an H1-B visa, at the State House in Providence, Rhode Island, U.S., March 17, 2025.
 An illustrative image of a man holding an Israeli flag.

Brick by brick: The power of one in today’s fight for Jewish resilience - opinion

 Sam King crosses the street after affixing an Israeli flag to a street light near the scene of an attack that injured multiple people, in Boulder, Colorado, US June 1, 2025.

'We will not desist’: Boulder Jewish Festival takes place despite last week's attack

Auschwitz-Birkenau

'Go to Auschwitz': Former German Jewish student president sent antisemitic death threats


Former Austrian president’s UN envoy nomination sparks controversy over Israel remarks - analysis

Fischer’s nomination as special envoy was announced amid controversy over his accusations that Israel’s Gaza campaign fuels antisemitism and exploits the Holocaust.

 Heinz Fischer, former president of Austria, speaks during the state commemoration ceremony in memory of former German President Horst Koehler, who died on February 1, 2025, at Berlin Cathedral in Berlin, Germany February 18, 2025.

Nitzavim: The campus revolution of next-generation Jewish leaders

Each project is tailor-made to the campus it serves, with strategies ranging from combating antisemitism to providing Jewish programming and education about Israel.

 Rabbi Adi Isaacs (bottom L) poses with his Nitzavim Class of 2025.

Pride or prejudice? Anti-Zionism and antisemitism in queer spaces - opinion

Social justice spaces have been infiltrated with antisemitism for years, under the sanitized term of “anti-Zionism.”

Israeli drag queens and go-go dancers dance on a truck during the annual gay pride parade in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv on June 13, 2014.

Why American support for Israel remains strong despite campus antisemitism - opinion

Only a statistically insignificant number of university student presidents, valedictorians, and student-selected speakers become American leaders.

 DEMONSTRATORS TAKE part in an Emergency Rally: Stand with Palestinians Under Siege in Gaza at Harvard University in 2023.

Building Jewish resilience: A three-year journey with Jewish Federations of North America – opinion

After three years at the helm of the Jewish Federations of North America, the writer reflects on serving Jewish communities worldwide.

JFNA Board of Trustees Chair Julie Platt recieved the Israeli Presidential Medal of Honor at the beginning of January.

A name and a place: After 83 years, 52 descendants honor Holocaust victims in Antwerp

'Growing up, it was clear to me that I would live in Israel – it felt like the most fitting response to what my grandparents endured.'

 SONNY BAURNFREUND speaks outside the home of the grandparents he never met.

Elderly Jewish man assaulted in NYC while hanging hostage posters

For Amnon Shemi and his wife, Diane, the Gaza hostages are a more personal issue because a member of their extended family was kidnapped.

 POSTERS BEARING the photos of Israelis being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza are seen on a street in Port Washington, NY

When fact becomes fiction: How Israeli victims became aggressors as antisemitism rises - opinion

Australia report reveals antisemitism has reached an unacceptable level throughout the world.

 PRO-PALESTINIAN banner hangs in the forecourt of the Australian Parliament House in Canberra, July 2024.

Antisemitic blood libels are threatening the lives of Diaspora Jews – opinion

After centuries of blood libel cases, history is repeating itself with recent attacks in Washington DC and Boulder.

 SIMON OF TRENT blood libel: Illustration in Hartmann Schedel’s ‘Weltchronik,’ 1493.

French rabbi tells of two attacks in one week as hate crimes rise

Friday's incident follows another in the town of Deauville in Normandy last week, when Elie Lemmel said he was punched in the stomach by an unknown assailant.

 French CRS police stand guard in front of the church a day after a hostage-taking in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray near Rouen in Normandy, France, where French priest, Father Jacques Hamel, was killed with a knife and another hostage seriously wounded in an attack on the church that was carried out by a

FBI, Homeland Security Dept. issue PSA to stress elevated threat to Israeli, Jewish communities

The PSA referenced the Boulder, Colorado, Molotov cocktail attack on pro-Israel advocates on June 1 and the murder of two Israeli Embassy staff at the Capital Jewish Museum in late May. 

 A man, with an Israeli flag with a cross in the center, kneels next to emergency personnel working at the site where, according to the U.S. Homeland Security Secretary, two Israeli embassy staff were shot dead near the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., US May 21, 2025.