List of combating antisemitism envoys

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As of November 2023, at least 24 countries had envoys to combat antisemitism. [1] In 2019, the Forum of Special Envoys and Coordinators Combating Antisemitism (SECCA), which operates under the auspices of the World Jewish Congress, was founded. [2] [3]

Contents

Canada

In 2020, former attorney-general Irwin Cotler was appointed Canada's first special envoy for Holocaust remembrance and combatting antisemitism. He served until October 2023 and was replaced by diplomat Deborah Lyons. Lyons is to serve a two-year period. [4]

European Union

In October 2015, the European Commission created the new Antisemitism coordinator position in response to rising antisemitism in Europe. [5] As a career EC bureaucrat, German civil servant Katharina von Schnurbein was appointed by then First Vice-president Frans Timmermans for the position in December 2015. [6]

Her key responsibilities are to liaise with European Jewish communities and bodies and to propose and implement policies to address Antisemitism, promote Holocaust education, and foster Jewish life. [5]

Greece

As of September 2022, Ambassador Dimitris Yannakakis was Special Envoy of the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Combating Antisemitism and Promoting Holocaust Remembrance. [7]

Israel

In April 2022, Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid appointed Noa Tishby to the unpaid post of envoy to combat antisemitism within the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Members of the U.S. Congress and Jewish organizations welcomed the appointment. The envoy did not have a staff or budget. [8] Tishby was removed from the position in April 2023 and replaced by human rights lawyer Michal Cotler-Wunsch. Wunsch advocates for the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism. [9]

Romania

Historian Alexandru Muraru was appointed to the new position of the Romanian government's special representative for promoting the policies of memory, combating anti-Semitism, and xenophobia in January 2021. [10] He served in this position until 2023. [11]

United Kingdom

Theresa May created the UK Government Adviser on Antisemitism in 2019. Longstanding Labour MP John Mann was appointed for a 5 year term expiring July 1, 2024. The role is unpaid, but the office receives 100,000 GBP per year to cover travel and expenses. It also receives support from the Antisemitism Policy Trust. During his tenure, Mann produced two landmark reports, including "Anti-Jewish Hatred" and "Understanding Jewish Experience in Higher Education". [12]

United States

The Global Antisemitism Review Act of 2004 established the Office of the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism, headed by the Special Envoy for Monitoring and Combating Antisemitism (SEAS), within the Department of State. The first Special Envoy was sworn in in 2006. [13] The Special Envoy was elevated to the rank of ambassador in 2021. [14]

See also

Related Research Articles

Antisemitism is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. This sentiment is a form of racism, and a person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Primarily, antisemitic tendencies may be motivated by negative sentiment towards Jews as a people or by negative sentiment towards Jews with regard to Judaism. In the former case, usually presented as racial antisemitism, a person's hostility is driven by the belief that Jews constitute a distinct race with inherent traits or characteristics that are repulsive or inferior to the preferred traits or characteristics within that person's society. In the latter case, known as religious antisemitism, a person's hostility is driven by their religion's perception of Jews and Judaism, typically encompassing doctrines of supersession that expect or demand Jews to turn away from Judaism and submit to the religion presenting itself as Judaism's successor faith—this is a common theme within the other Abrahamic religions. The development of racial and religious antisemitism has historically been encouraged by the concept of anti-Judaism, which is distinct from antisemitism itself.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deborah Lipstadt</span> American diplomat and Holocaust historian (born 1947)

Deborah Esther Lipstadt is an American historian and diplomat, best known as author of the books Denying the Holocaust (1993), History on Trial: My Day in Court with a Holocaust Denier (2005), The Eichmann Trial (2011), and Antisemitism: Here and Now (2019). She has served as the United States Special Envoy for Monitoring and Combating Anti-Semitism since May 3, 2022. Since 1993 she has been the Dorot Professor of Modern Jewish History and Holocaust Studies at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, US.

New antisemitism is the concept that a new form of antisemitism developed in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, typically manifesting itself as anti-Zionism. The concept is included in some definitions of antisemitism, such as the working definition of antisemitism and the 3D test of antisemitism. The concept dates to the early 1970s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Noa Tishby</span> Israeli actress (born 1977)

Noa Tohar Tishby is an Israeli activist, actress, model, producer, and writer. As an actress, she appeared in a variety of American television shows and movies, including The Affair, The Island, Nip/Tuck, Big Love, NCIS, and others. She is also the co-executive producer of the HBO series, In Treatment, which is an adaptation of the Israeli series, BeTipul. Her production company, Noa's Arc, was also responsible for selling several other adaptations of Israeli programs to American networks.

Kenneth S. Stern is an American attorney and an author. He is the director of the Bard Center for the Study of Hate, a program of the Human Rights Project at Bard College. From 2014 to 2018 he was the executive director of the Justus & Karin Rosenberg Foundation. From 1989 to 2014 he was the director of antisemitism, hate studies and extremism for the American Jewish Committee. In 2000, Stern was a special advisor to the defense in the David Irving v. Penguin Books and Deborah Lipstadt trial. His 2020 book, The Conflict Over the Conflict: The Israel/Palestine Campus Debate, examines attempts of partisans of each side to censor the other, and the resulting damage to the academy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antisemitism in the United States</span> Hatred towards the Jewish people within the US

Antisemitism has long existed in the United States. Most Jewish community relations agencies in the United States draw distinctions between antisemitism, which is measured in terms of attitudes and behaviors, and the security and status of American Jews, which are both measured by the occurrence of specific incidents.

Antisemitism in Canada is the manifestation of hostility, prejudice or discrimination against the Canadian Jewish people or Judaism as a religious, ethnic or racial group. This form of racism has affected Jews since Canada's Jewish community was established in the 18th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Office of the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism</span> U.S. diplomatic office

The Office of the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism is an office of the Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights at the United States Department of State. The office "advances U.S. foreign policy on antisemitism" by developing and implementing policies and projects to support efforts to combat antisemitism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hannah Rosenthal</span> American diplomat

Hannah Rosenthal is an American Democratic Party political official and Jewish non-profit executive who served as the U.S. Special Envoy for Monitoring and Combating Antisemitism from 2009 until 2012 during the Obama administration.

The Ottawa Protocol on Combating Antisemitism is an action plan which "note and reaffirm the London Declaration on Combating Antisemitism as a template document for the fight against Antisemitism". It was developed during the second annual Conference and Summit of the Inter-parliamentary Coalition for Combating Antisemitism (ICCA) which took place in Ottawa in November, 2010, by Parliamentarians and experts from over 50 countries around the globe. It endorsed the Working Definition of Antisemitism.

The London Declaration on Combating Antisemitism is a declaration which asserts the need for global cooperation in the fight against Antisemitism by drawing "The Democratic world’s attention to the resurgence of Antisemitism as a potent force in politics, international affairs and society". It was signed on February 17, 2009, in Lancaster House, during the Conference and Summit of the Inter-parliamentary Coalition for Combating Antisemitism, by some of the world's leading parliamentarians.

British Jews have experienced antisemitism - discrimination and persecution as Jews - since a Jewish community was first established in England in 1070. They experienced a series of massacres in the Medieval period, which culminated in their expulsion from England in 1290.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elan Carr</span> U.S. lawyer and politician

Elan Sherod Carr is the CEO of the Israeli American Council. Previously, he was an American attorney and politician who served as the Special Envoy for Monitoring and Combating anti-Semitism under President Donald Trump from 2019 to 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Office of the Special Envoy for Holocaust Issues</span> U.S. diplomatic office

The Office of the Special Envoy for Holocaust Issues is an diplomatic office of the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs at the United States Department of State. Established in 1999, the office develops and implements U.S. policy to ensure Holocaust property restitution, secure compensation for Nazi-era wrongs, and promote Holocaust commemoration.

The working definition of antisemitism, also called the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism or IHRA definition, is a non-legally binding statement on what antisemitism is, that reads: "Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities." Accompanying the working definition, but of disputed status, are 11 illustrative examples whose purpose is described as guiding the IHRA in its work, seven of which relate to criticism of the Israeli government. As such, pro-Israeli organizations have been advocates for the worldwide legal adoption of the definition.

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Israeli Students combating antisemitism (ISCA) online has been founded in 2011 and operates with the purpose of fighting the growing antisemitism, xenophobia and Holocaust denial on the internet.

The Nexus Task Force, created in November 2019, analyzes issues at the intersection of Israel and antisemitism. On its website, titled Israel and Antisemitism: Policy at the Nexus of Two Critical Issues, the task force has published the Nexus Document, described as "a resource designed for policymakers and community leaders, aiming to enhance their understanding of the issues that intersect at the nexus of antisemitism, Israel, and Zionism", the Nexus White Paper, titled "Understanding Antisemitism at its Nexus with Israel and Zionism", and the Nexus "Guide to Identifying Antisemitism in Debates about Israel".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gregg Rickman</span> American political official

Gregg J. Rickman is an American Republican Party official and Congressional staffer. During the 1990s, he was the lead staff member of the U.S. Senate's Swiss bank inquiry. During the George W. Bush Administration, Rickman served as the inaugural U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism from 2006 to 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Katharina von Schnurbein</span> German civil servant

Baronesse Katharina von Schnurbein is a German civil servant who has served as the European Commission's coordinator on combating antisemitism and fostering Jewish life since 2015. She is the first person to hold this role, which reports to Vice-President of the European Commission Margaritis Schinas under his portfolio of European Commissioner for Promoting our European Way of Life.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Global Antisemitism Review Act</span> 2004 United States law

Global Antisemitism Review Act, officially the Global Anti-Semitism Review Act of 2004 is a U.S. law passed in 2004 that established the Office of the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism.

References

  1. ↑ Kampeas, Ron (2023-11-07). "Antisemitism envoys from 24 countries call on governments to ensure Jews' safety". Jewish Telegraphic Agency . Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  2. ↑ Klein, Zvika (2023-11-06). "World envoys stand together in condemning antisemitism post-Hamas attack". Jerusalem Post . Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  3. ↑ "A unified stand against online hate: UNESCO hosts International meeting to combat antisemitism". UNESCO. 2023-10-24. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  4. ↑ Kirkup, Kristy (2023-10-16). "Ottawa announces special envoy on antisemitism and pledges new law on online hate". Globe and Mail . Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  5. 1 2 Sirkus, Thomas (27 January 2016). "Q&A: EU Anti-Semitism Envoy Katharina von Schnurbein". Moment. Archived from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  6. ↑ Junger, Rifka (23 December 2018). "Interview with Ms. Katharina von Schnurbein, European Coordinator on Combating Anti-Semitism". Hamodia. Archived from the original on 20 March 2023. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  7. ↑ "Joint statement from special envoys for Holocaust issues on the anniversary of the massacre at Babyn Yar and on Russian actions in Ukraine". German Federal Foreign Office. 2022-09-29. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  8. ↑ Kornbluh, Jacob (2022-04-11). "Noa Tishby, Israel's new envoy, says anti-Zionism is antisemitism "100%"". The Forward . Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  9. ↑ "Israel names Michal Cotler-Wunsh as antisemitism envoy". Jewish News Syndicate . 2023-09-13. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  10. ↑ Mutler, Alison (2021-05-17). "Anti-Semitic Incidents Put Focus On Romania's Dark Role During Holocaust". Radio Free Europe . Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  11. ↑ Bachner, Michael (2023-08-23). "Israeli envoy meets head of Romanian party accused of antisemitism, drawing rebuke". Times of Israel . Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  12. ↑ Riley, Henry (2024-03-06). "Government considering sacking anti-Semitism tsar Lord Mann leaving Jewish community 'concerned'". LBC . Retrieved 28 April 2024.
  13. ↑ Baum, Steven (2016). Antisemitism in North America: New World, Old Hate. Brill. p. 283. ISBN   978-9004307131 . Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  14. ↑ Rosenfeld, Arno (2024-04-02). "Amid budget cuts, Congress boosts funding for antisemitism envoy". The Forward . Retrieved 27 April 2024.
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