Such an evaluation was presented to the German parliament by a group of experts that were convened to battle the phenomenon of Antisemitism. They estimate that the phenomenon is particularly widespread over the internet.
“The internet plays a particular role in the spreading of antisemitism. Extremists from the right, Holocaust deniers, and radical Islamists naturally use the Internet as a platform for disseminating their propaganda.” was written in the report. According to the expert group that was convened by the Parliament regarding the matter of prejudiced opinions in society and ways to confront them, antisemitism is based on prejudices, clichés or on ignorance with respect to Judaism and Jews.
By way of verifying diverse data based on opinion polls, the experts have agreed that latent antisemitism is shared by 20 percent of the society. According to the document, racism, xenophobia, and antisemitism of the extreme right are prevalent particularly in the sports arenas. “Labeling rival teams ‘Jewish’, or humiliating and insulting professionals and fans of Jewish origin is a routine everyday occurrence in the German football.” – was written.
It was also noted in the report, that against the backdrop of other European countries, antisemitism in Germany is nothing extraordinary.
“It should be underscored, that notwithstanding the never-ending discussion regarding the National-Socialistic (Nazi) past and the turning of the antisemitism question largely into a taboo in the public domain – the Germans have accumulated and registered as their own many characteristics of antisemitism, like in other countries in Western Europe – Italy, Britain, The Netherlands and France.” The experts write.
They also emphasized that many characteristics of antisemitism emerge and appear in Poland, Portugal and Hungary.
- Aycan Demirel, holder of a degree in journalism, political science and history, a founding partner and director of the Kreutzberg Initiative against Antisemitism, Berlin;
- Dr. Olaf Faschid, holder of a degree in Islamic studies, political science, journalism and economics; researcher in the area of Islam and an specialist in the senate administration for internal affairs, Berlin;
- Elke Grylewski, holder of a degree in political science and Latin American studies, fellow in the teaching department of the Wannsee Conference Museum, Berlin;
- Prof. Dr. Johannes Heil, holder of a degree in history of the middle ages and the current era, history of art, philosophy of religion and Jewish studies, director of the College for Jewish Studies, Heidelberg;
- Prof. Dr. Peter Longerich, historian, London University, the Center for History of the Twentieth Century and the Holocaust;
- Prof. Dr. Armin Pfahl-Traughber, sociologist and political science researcher in the Brühl College, and
- Dr. Martin Salm, holder of a degree in history of the pre-Colombian period, ethnology and economic studies, chairman of the “Remembrance, Responsibility, Future” fund (EVZ), Berlin (retired due to health reasons at the end of 2010.);
- Prof. Dr. Julius H. Schoeps, holder of a degree in history, history of ideas, the sciences of politics and theater, professor of modern history and director of the Moses-Mendelssohn Center for European and Jewish Studies in Potsdam University;
- Dr. Wahied Wahdat-Hagh, holder of a degree in political sciences and a sociologist, senior researcher in the ”European Fund for Democracy” in Brussels;
- Dr. Juliane Wetzel, historian, works as a scientific researcher in the Center for Research of antisemitism, TU Berlin.
