As Vice President of The Board of Deputies of British Jews, Marie van der Zyl holds a prominent position in regards to the concerns of the United Kingdom’s Jewish citizens today. The Board of Deputies, according to its website, “has been the voice of British Jewry and the representative of Jewish communal interests to government, media and others for over a quarter of a millennium”. Furthermore, it “remains to this day the only democratically elected voice of British Jewry”, shaping and safeguarding Jewish communal interests through ways including its work in schools and its exposure of antisemitism.
Marie begins our interview positively when I ask what it means to be Jewish in Britain today, though none can doubt from her words that there are clearly difficult issues for the Jewish community in this day and age.
“There is much to celebrate about being Jewish in Britain today,” Marie says. “We have a very vibrant and diverse community, and are integrated into all walks of life. At the same time we are not complacent – as any visitor to a Jewish school will discover, for example (security etc).”
It is hard to deny that Marie’s response has a small tinge of negativity to it, given her reference to “security”. It is unsurprising in a period where there has been rising antisemitism in Europe. In January, The Independent reported that 8,000 Jews left France for Israel in 2015, with the overriding reason cited being “a steady rise in the rate of anti-Semitism over the past 15 years.” Just a few days before, the spokesperson for Hamburg’s Jewish community, Daniel Killy, said that German Jews were “no longer safe” in Germany. What is Marie’s response to the crisis?
“In western Europe we have seen the deeply disturbing rise of attacks on Jews,” she explains. “A number of these attacks have been carried out by Islamists, including fighters returning from Syria. Unfortunately, there is a real issue of extremism which is poisoning community relations in a number of cities and countries. The Board of Deputies responds by advocating for governmental support on the issue, but at the same time we are also proactive. Our programme Nisa-Nashim brings Jewish and Muslim women together on a grassroots level, for example.”
“Malia Bouattia has not responded adequately to questions from Jewish students about her views”
When it comes to university life, Marie notes that there are difficulties specifically faced by Jewish students.
“Jewish students face a number of challenges, chief among them anti-Israel activity on campus which often directly impacts on their sense of wellbeing.”
In April, the National Union of Students elected Malia Bouattia as their president. The election was not without controversy, however. Bouattia attracted allegations of antisemitism, having co-authored a blog post for a Friends of Palestine campaign group in 2011 saying that “the University of Birmingham is something of a Zionist outpost in British Higher Education”. In response, Bouattia defended her claims, explaining in an article for The Guardian: “I want to be clear, again, that for me to take issue with Zionist politics is in no way me taking issue with being Jewish.”
However, Marie is firm in her response to Bouattia’s election when I press her about it: “Malia Bouattia has not responded adequately to questions from Jewish students about her views. She appears to believe she can neatly divorce Jews, Judaism and the State of Israel and that this shouldn’t have an impact on the wellbeing of Jews on campus. She has also made appalling remarks about a Jewish society on campus being one of the ‘challenges’ she faced.”
“The leadership of the Labour Party must take serious action against those accused of anti-Semitism and not give a platform to those who express anti-Semitic views”
lately. Ken Livingstone, Naz Shah and a number of members have all recently been suspended from the party due to allegations of antisemitic remarks. Peers have suggested that antisemitism is a big problem within the party: Lord Levy told BBC Newsnight that it existed across the political divide but seemed “more prominent” within Labour, while cross-bench peer Baroness Neuberger claimed Labour’s antisemitism problem was “attached to Jeremy Corbyn becoming leader”, adding that it was “an issue with the hard left”.
When I ask Marie for her response to cases of antisemitism within Labour, she is clear.
“The Board of Deputies has been very firm and vocal on this issue.
We have called on the leadership of the Labour Party to take serious action against those accused of antisemitism and to not give a platform to those who express anti-Semitic views. We have also called on Jeremy Corbyn to disassociate himself from anti-Semites and terrorist sympathisers. We have also called for a robust and vigorous enquiry by the Labour Party into issues of antisemitism within the Labour Party.”
My conversation with Marie has shown me that, far from being an outdated issue, antisemitism is still a huge problem within our society. Evidently, a concerted effort needs to be made to tackle it to ensure a society in which different beliefs and ideas are wholeheartedly accepted.
Sorry, forgot to add that being anti-zionist, i.e. the belief that the land of Palestine belongs solely to Jews, regardless of thousands of years of occupation by others, or even archealogical evidence, means you are anti-semitic. Oh and by the way Palestinians are semitic. DNA tests would be interesting.
I want to ask a straight question. I know there are nutters on the left and right who are genuineltyanti-semitic. That means loathing Jews bcause they are Jews.
How much of what you label anti-semitism is because a lot of people oppose what Israel is doing in the Gaza Strip?
Do you think if 1.2 MILLION Jews were corralled in a piece of land 40.9 miles square, denied medicines, or medical equipment (because it can be made into bombs), access to university education, clean water, fishing rights, trade rights, internet connection, letters and mail for years on end, adequate food, the right to see their families, and the results were one of the highest infant mortality rates in the world, massive malnutrition, just about the highest unemployment rate in the world, the world would be silent?
Yet this is not daily news or headlines. Because of Hitler and the Holocaust you get a free pass on breaking international laws, violating human rights, and terrorising children and civilians. You talk about ‘rockets’ raaining down on you and terrorising the inhabitants. I have not the slightest doubt it is trie and the fear equally valid.
But these ‘rockets’ are amateur and unguided. Look how many innocent children and civilians the Israeli armed forces have slaughtered. Sorry I apologise. Palestinian children are not children but terrorists under the orders of Hamas. Because if it was not for Hamas these children would have nothing to protest against would they? In fact their lives are so wonderful they should be praising Israel.
Jonathan Sacks recently wrote that anti-semitism constantly renews itself and in its modern form “stems from the Human Rights Movement.” What he means by that is Palestinian Human Rights are not up for discussion. Human Rights are universal. Imagine if Hitler had uttered the sentence that “anit-nazi sentiment is expressed by support for the Human Rights of Jews.”
I listened to Sacks for a decade on Thought For The Day and recall vividly his homily on Yom Kippur. He talked about ‘Atonement’ and what it meant to Jewish faith; somehow, as always, it didn;t include the Palestinians. Because in the entire history of Israel since its foundatiuon it has NEVER broken intermational law, has it? Never committed any crimes? Never violated Human Rights? never taken land illegally? Never denied Palestinians any rights?
I would be absolutely gobsmacked if there is any reply, and if there is it will not respond to a single point.