"Anti-Semitism is a cancer that, left unchecked, will metastasize and threaten to destroy the democratic and pluralistic nature of Europe," American Jewish Committee (AJC) Executive Director David Harris said Tuesday during a conference in Brussels.
Titled ‘’A Defining Moment for Europe", the gathering was attended by EU officials and diplomats.
‘’Unlike 15 years ago, when European governments would too frequently dismiss AJC's oft-voiced concerns about attacks on Jews and refuse to identify their sources, the recent tragic events in Belgium, France, and Denmark have led some leaders to begin addressing the threats head-on,’’ he added.
In their keynote addresses to the conference, Belgium's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Security and the Interior, Jan Jambon, and Vera Jourova, European Commissioner for Justice, Consumers, and Gender Equality, recognized that the surge of anti-Semitic incidents poses a fundamental threat to individual European countries and, more generally, to the European Union.
Jambon said the Belgian government is committed "to improve the level of security to the fullest extent" and to redouble efforts "to uphold and assert our own values and standards."
He reiterated his government's recent announcement that it will provide adequate financial resources for the security of synagogues and other Jewish institutions.
"It is a tragedy, a disgrace for Europe, when Jewish communities feel unsafe in places of worship and in their homes," especially 70 years after they faced similar dilemmas on whether to stay or leave,’’ said Czech EU Commissioner Jourova, who has helped spearhead EU efforts to combat anti-Semitism.
During the conference, AJC presented an action plan for European governments to address the intensifying crisis of anti-Semitism. The plan calls on European governments to make the fight against anti-Semitism an ‘’urgent priority’’ for individual countries, and collectively for the entire EU. It specifies steps for governments to assess the severity of the problem: provide for the security of Jewish institutions and communities, invest in education that imparts European values, take on purveyors of anti-Semitism on the Internet and in social media and recognize that vilification of Israel too often is a cover for expressions of anti-Semitism.
The AJC plan "calls on the European Union to promptly organize a high-level governmental conference on the ominous rise of anti-Semitism," and "calls on the political institutions of the EU and its Member States to express at the highest levels a fundamental commitment to fight anti-Semitism."
It also calls on civil society -- including faith leaders and other opinion-shapers -- to carry the message that anti-Semitism is socially, politically, and religiously unacceptable.
"If necessary, and however tragically, the Jews will leave, but where will Europe go?" asked David Harris. "Will Europeans uphold their values or will they succumb?"