Antisemitism report finds increase in anti-Jewish discrimination
He added that they hoped the recommendations would provide guidance and action.About 1,200 people were killed in a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, while 251 others were taken hostage.The Israeli military launched an ongoing campaign in Gaza in response to the attack. At least 57,823 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.The majority of the recommendations in the report pointed towards antisemitism training in different capacities.One was the creation of an "Antisemitism Training Qualification" for those who carry out training on what it called "contemporary antisemitism". It explained that Jewish communal organisations wanted to increase knowledge on anti-Jewish discrimination, which could be done if there was a standard training given by a "credible provider".On Jewish identity, it said Judaism "should always be seen and understood... as an ethnicity as well as a religion", which the commission said would ensure antisemitism is dealt with appropriately.The report found many Jewish employees within the NHS felt antisemitism was not being addressed in the workplace, as well as some Jewish patients feeling "uneasy about using the service".Among its recommendations are that the NHS should hold a summit to tackle the "specific unaddressed issue of antisemitism" within the health service. It also suggested that antisemitism should be included in all Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) training, which it said would increase the number of people "educated" about it and "confident in tackling it"."No person should face abuse or discrimination whilst going about their business, whether it is pursuing the career of their choice or accessing public services," Dame Penny said.On education, the report claimed to have received evidence of some Christian primary school teachers "inadvertently using antisemitic tropes" in subjects such as religious studies.It said it welcomed an initiative proposed by the Winchester Diocese and the local Jewish community to teach the teachers how to avoid doing so, and recommended that it be evaluated and applied to all faith schools.The Board of Deputies said that while it believed "everyone should have the right to express their opinions and beliefs", those in a role of "welfare, safety or security... have an additional duty to ensure people feel able to ask for their assistance".Other recommendations asked that Jewish members of the arts industry and unions be treated equally.Another key recommendation was on policing and devising a "consistent approach" to dealing with antisemitic crimes.Board of Deputies president Phil Rosenberg said the report could be "summarised as one of a failure to apply the protections rightly afforded to different vulnerable groups equally to Jewish people in the same positions".
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42 minutes ago
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