Diaspora Jews were betrayed by Europe again after antisemitic attacks

European leaders continue to display a disturbing inability to reckon with the lessons of their nation’s bloody past. Rather than confront the resurgence of antisemitism and intolerance, some are bowing to the demands of radical ideologies, avoiding accountability, and mislabeling violent hatred against Jewish communities.

Two events earlier this week underlined this worrying trend. Inside AmsterdamMayor Femke Halsema has backed off her characterization of violent attacks on Israeli football fans as a “pogrom.” He claimed that the term was a propaganda tool used by the Israeli government to discriminate against the city’s Muslim residents. The word “pogrom”, derived from Russian, refers to violent, organized attacks aimed at persecuting and murdering ethnic or religious minorities, particularly Jews in Eastern Europe in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Although Halsema knew that these attacks were a coordinated effort to harm Israeli tourists, he redefined them as mere “hit-and-runs”; It was a strange disdain. His reasoning? Use of the term “pogrom” may alienate Moroccan and Muslim residents.

It’s a familiar pattern: Violence against Jews is ignored, downplayed, or reframed.

Why is antisemitism constantly excused or disguised as something else?

History offers a terrible precedent.

Anti-Israel protesters met with treasures “in solidarity” with Thursday’s Amsterdam pogrom. (credit: Bart Schut)

A lesson from European history

The Spanish Inquisition was rationalized as a defense of Catholic orthodoxy. The Dreyfus Affair was framed as patriotic vigilance against supposed foreign threats. Economic discontent was responsible for the pogroms in Russia. Even Kristallnacht, the planned Nazi attack on Jewish communities, was strangely portrayed as a spontaneous response to the murder of a German diplomat by a Jewish teenager. And Farhud, a massacre of Iraqi Jews, was initially excused as political chaos amid British intervention. Antisemitic violence has been repeatedly repackaged in response to broader grievances, with victims erased or denigrated.

The same deletion was seen days after Halsema’s comments. Germany.

Berlin police chief Barbara Slowik warned Jews and LGBTQ+ individuals to conceal their identities in certain neighborhoods with large Arab populations, and acknowledged the presence of people in these areas who openly support terrorist groups and are hostile to Jews.

Although his concern stems from a desire to protect vulnerable groups, such advice – no matter how well-intentioned – places the onus on victims. It reflects an age-old, irresistible message: Hide who you are, adapt to the hatred, or face the consequences.

How did we get to the point where Jews and LGBTQ+ people in Europe are being told to hide their identities to avoid attack? Why are violent extremists allowed to determine the terms of public life in democratic societies? The brazenness of the attacks in Amsterdam – their open, public nature – reveals a chilling confidence among the perpetrators that they will not face any meaningful repercussions. They are correct. The reluctance of authorities like Halsema to label these events as pogroms signals to attackers that their actions will be excused or ignored.

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It is no wonder that Europe faltered in the face of Nazism. If European leaders cannot stand up to even today’s radicals, how can they claim moral authority over their own history?

German authorities need to focus on ensuring the safety of their citizens rather than warning Jewish and gay citizens to live in fear. This means arresting and prosecuting those who perpetuate violence. A democracy cannot allow hatred and aggression to dictate public behavior. Intolerance must be met with zero tolerance. If some European countries continue to bow to this level of bigotry, what example will this set for the rest of the Western world? How long will it take for this complacency to spread?

Failure to take decisive action today could lead to the darkest pages of history repeating itself. Europe must learn to search antisemitism and fight against intolerance and fight them with the moral courage they have long lacked.

The author is the co-founder and CEO of Social Lite Creative, a digital marketing firm specializing in geopolitics.

A lesson from European history

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