In a time when only one in 20 Europeans have even heard of the Holocaust, a new strategy in targeting the rise in antisemitism in Europe was unveiled Tuesday by the European Union, ABC News reports.
Europe’s Fundamental Rights Agency’s data shows that nine out of 10 Jews belive the antisemitism has increased in their country and poses a serious problem with more than one in three Jews considering to emigrate in order to escape the abuse.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a tweet that apart being a threat to Jewish people, antisemitism is also a threat to our democracies & values, adding that the initiative aims to foster Jewish life in the EU and create a network for Holocaust remembrance in addition to strengthening the fight against antisemitism.
Von der Leyen pointed that this is the first-ever strategy created by the EC to combat antisemitism that will be implemented over the next decade.
The strategy is the EU reaction to the persistence and the significant increase of anti-Semitic incidents around the 27-country bloc.
The European bloc has conceived plans to better counter hate crimes and antisemitic hate speech, to raise awareness about Jewish life and to protect places of worship with key actions including combating online antisemitism.
That will be done by working with a Europe-wide network of trusted flaggers and Jewish organisations with funds provided by the EC for the member-countries to develop programs and legislation toward that goal with 24 million euros ($28 million) available already next year.
Along with industry and IT companies, Brussels will also work to prevent the illegal display and sale of Nazi-related symbols, memorabilia and literature online and will take other steps to safeguard Jewish heritage and to raise awareness about Jewish culture, life and traditions.
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