For its own remarkably rewarding, deeply dignifying and exponentially expansive sake…
For the sake of anchoring Jewish self-identity and a sense of Jewish “peoplehood…
For the sake of the ancestors who preceded us and of the progeny who will follow us….
For the sake of the suffering world…
Jewish education is vital for our children, our families, us and the world.
This is and has been GAJE’s animating credo since we began our efforts, almost ten years ago, to help make Jewish education affordable.
Since October 7, we have added:
For the sake of enabling our children to be and to “do” Jewish, to boost them in standing strong and firm against the bullying aggressions of the haters of Jews and of Israel…Jewish education is vital. In light of a report published this week by the ADL, the need for the ability to stand against the antisemites – and thus for affordable access to Jewish education – has become urgent.
The Times of Israel this week published the findings of an ADL survey that “nearly half of all adults worldwide (some 46%) hold significant antisemitic views and younger people are more likely to discriminate against Jews.”
“The global survey asked 58,000 respondents in 103 counties and territories if they agreed with 11 antisemitic tropes, such as “Jews’ loyalty is only to Israel” and “Jews have too much power in the business world. If respondents believed that more than half of the statements were true, they were categorized as having “significant antisemitic beliefs.”
The head of the ADL, Jonathan Greenblatt, called the situation a “global emergency”.
Attitudes matter, of course, because as Greenblatt explained: “[A]ttitudes lead to action. When antisemitic views are normalized, when anti-Jewish bigotry takes root, it creates an environment where Jews become more vulnerable.”
The level of antisemitism varied widely by country and region. The Middle East and North Africa had the highest levels, with around three-quarters of respondents endorsing a majority of the antisemitic statements. Western Europe was the least antisemitic region, at 17%, followed by the Americas at 24%; Oceania, 20%; sub-Saharan Africa, 45%; Eastern Europe, 49%; Asia, 51%, and the Middle East and North Africa, 76%.
Half of the respondents under 35 held antisemitic views. This was 13 percent higher than among respondents over 50. Only 39% of adults aged 18-34 attested to the truth of the historical depiction of the Holocaust. The rest of the 18-34-year-olds believe the number of deaths was exaggerated, that the Holocaust was a myth, or that they had never heard of it. For the general population, 48% endorsed the historical record; 20% said they had “not heard about the Holocaust.”
Greenblatt proposed the adoption of a systematic policy response – on an urgent basis – for governments and organizations as a way to combat antisemitism.
GAJE’s proposal for combating antisemitism is more modest, yet more personally empowering and no less urgent: wherever possible, we must enable our children to enjoy a comprehensive Jewish education so that, as adults and even before, they can confidently be and “do” Jewish.
(As a related matter, it was surprising to read, given the experiences of our own community since “October 7”, that Canada was among the countries – along with Sweden, Norway and the Netherlands – where antisemitic attitudes in the general population were the lowest, registering at 8% or lower.)
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The Time of Israel article is available at: https://www.timesofisrael.com/global-emergency-nearly-half-the-worlds-adults-hold-antisemitic-views-adl-survey/
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If you wish to contribute to GAJE’s lawsuit for fairness in educational funding in Ontario, please click here. Charitable receipts for donations for income tax purposes will be issued by Mizrachi Canada. Your donations will be used for the sole purpose of underwriting the costs of the lawsuit. For further information, please contact Israel Mida at: imida1818@gmail.com
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Shabbat shalom
Am Yisrael Chai
Grassroots for Affordable Jewish Education (GAJE)
January 17, 2025
Grassroots for Affordable Jewish Education 