A
month-long study by a Jewish neighborhood watch has found that the British
ultra-Orthodox Jewish community is subject to “shocking racist abuse
suffered daily.”
The
study by Stamford Hill Shomrim identified 32 antisemitic incidents over the
course of the month (averaging to eight a week), of which 27 involved a
perpetrator who had no prior interaction with the victim.
Among
the more violent incidents were those in which an 8-year-old was physically
assaulted near his home by a man who called him a “stupid Jew”; an
11-year-old boy was surrounded by youths and told he would be beaten if he did
not remove his skullcap; and three women were chased through the street while
perpetrators shouted “the Jewish people are rich, horrible Jewish people,
give us your money.”
In
another incident, a woman was asked while praying whether she covered her hair
because Hitler had shaved it off, after which the perpetrator made a Nazi
salute.
Another
incident saw a man leaving a synagogue having his religious hat snatched off
and thrown to the ground.
The
oldest victim in these incidents was 57, the study found, while the youngest
was eight years old. All were visibly identifiable as Jews, the study said.
Twenty-three
of the perpetrators were reported as adults, with another six described as
being under 18 and another three of unknown age.
As
for perpetrators’ ethnic backgrounds, seven were described as white, eight as
black, 11 as Asian, two as Middle Eastern, one as East Asian, and three of
unknown ethnicity.
Gideon
Falter, Chairman of Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “This meticulous
month-long study by Shomrim shows the shocking extent to which members of the
Jewish Charedi community, including very young children, are being singled out
and targeted for racist assaults and abuse. Under-reporting of antisemitism in
the Charedi community is largely due to the perception that nothing will be
done, and that is why the work of Shomrim is so important, working closely with
victims and the police to ensure that incidents are investigated and
prosecuted.
“Last year, our National Antisemitic Crime
Audit revealed that antisemitic crime reached a record high with a 26% increase
in crime and a 51% leap in antisemitic violence against Jews,” Falter
said. There is no more visible target than the Jewish Charedi community and as
the intensity of antisemitic crime rises, now is the time for decisive action
to strengthen Shomrim and extend their work.”
