Opinion
Why Anti-Semitic Attacks Are Human Rights Violations - And Should Be Treated That Way
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Too often in the past, anti-Semitism has been viewed as a Jewish problem, one that organizations like the Anti-Defamation League alone were meant to address.
By Michael Posner
The mass murder of 11 Jewish worshippers in a Pittsburgh synagogue has brought home to America the scourge of anti-Semitic violence. For decades, European countries from France to Denmark and from Hungary to Greece have experienced violent extremist attacks on Jews. But now Americans also must come to terms with a rising tide of anti-Semitic rhetoric and action here at home. As the Anti-Defamation League and others have carefully reported, anti-Semitic hate has surged in the United States in recent years, fueled by social media extremism. That hatred spilled over into Saturday’s carnage.
Anti-Semitic actions are violations of core international human rights and should be deplored not just by Jewish organizations but by human rights advocates everywhere. These norms were first articulated by the United Nations 70 years ago when Eleanor Roosevelt led the drafting and adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. She dubbed that document a "Magna Carta for all mankind." A central principle of the Universal Declaration is the right not to be discriminated against on the basis of race, religion, ethnicity, or gender. This emphasis is unsurprising given that the United Nations and its Commission on Human Rights were created in response to World War II and the horrors of the Holocaust.
But too often in the past, anti-Semitism has been viewed as a Jewish problem, one that organizations like the Anti-Defamation League alone were meant to address. While these groups have played a vital role in sounding an alarm, the killings in Pittsburgh underscore the need for a more ecumenical response. In 2002, Human Rights First, an organization I then led, published the first in a series of reports on this issue, entitled "Fire and Broken Glass." It chronicled the rise of anti-Semitism in Europe, documenting attacks against Jews and Jewish institutions, and called on European governments to respond more forcefully. The report concluded: "Anti-Semitism is racism. Anti-Semitic actions need to be confronted more forcefully and treated as serious violations of international human rights."
Read the full Forbes article.
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Michael Posner is a Professor of Business and Society and Director of the NYU Stern Center for Business and Human Rights.
Anti-Semitic actions are violations of core international human rights and should be deplored not just by Jewish organizations but by human rights advocates everywhere. These norms were first articulated by the United Nations 70 years ago when Eleanor Roosevelt led the drafting and adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. She dubbed that document a "Magna Carta for all mankind." A central principle of the Universal Declaration is the right not to be discriminated against on the basis of race, religion, ethnicity, or gender. This emphasis is unsurprising given that the United Nations and its Commission on Human Rights were created in response to World War II and the horrors of the Holocaust.
But too often in the past, anti-Semitism has been viewed as a Jewish problem, one that organizations like the Anti-Defamation League alone were meant to address. While these groups have played a vital role in sounding an alarm, the killings in Pittsburgh underscore the need for a more ecumenical response. In 2002, Human Rights First, an organization I then led, published the first in a series of reports on this issue, entitled "Fire and Broken Glass." It chronicled the rise of anti-Semitism in Europe, documenting attacks against Jews and Jewish institutions, and called on European governments to respond more forcefully. The report concluded: "Anti-Semitism is racism. Anti-Semitic actions need to be confronted more forcefully and treated as serious violations of international human rights."
Read the full Forbes article.
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Michael Posner is a Professor of Business and Society and Director of the NYU Stern Center for Business and Human Rights.