Antisemitismus in der Migrationsgesellschaft. Theoretische Überlegungen, Empirische Fallbeispiele, Pädagogische Praxis - Nikolaus Hagen and Tobias Neuburger

Abstract

Reviewed by: Antisemitismus in der Migrationsgesellschaft. Theoretische Überlegungen, Empirische Fallbeispiele, Pädagogische Praxis ed. by Nikolaus Hagen and Tobias Neuburger Sina Arnold Antisemitismus in der Migrationsgesellschaft. Theoretische Überlegungen, Empirische Fallbeispiele, Pädagogische Praxis. Edited by Nikolaus Hagen and Tobias Neuburger. Innsbruck: Innsbruck University Press, 2020. 219 pages. Open Access. The German debates about a "new antisemitism" in Europe have focused on anti-Jewish actions and attitudes that have been influenced by migration, most of it from Muslim-majority countries. Some of the antisemitic slogans and violence at recent demonstrations against the latest Israel-Gaza war were created and perpetrated by Arab/Muslim migrants or descendants of migrants. These debates were energized by the 2015–2016 refugee movement from Arab countries and have been particularly prominent in German-speaking countries. Research has shown that while many of the newcomers do harbor antisemitic attitudes, it is not merely an "imported" antisemitism that constitutes the main threat to Jews in Germany. Jews are faced with a dangerous mélange of continuous antisemitism among "old" as well as "new" Germans (see Sina Arnold and Jana König, "'One Million Antisemites?' Attitudes Toward Jews, The Holocaust, and Israel: An Anthropological Study [End Page 441] of Refugees in Contemporary Germany," Antisemitism Studies Vol. 3, no. 1 [2019]: 4–45). Some of these antisemitic attitudes and subsequent actions have rather different sources and motivations, like right-wing extremism, Islamism, and left-wing anti-Zionism. Meanwhile, opinion polls point to continuously high agreements with antisemitic statements amongst the general population (see Oliver Decker and Elmar Brähler, eds., Autoritäre Dynamiken: Alte Ressentiments—neue Radikalität. Leipziger Autoritarismus-Studie 2020 [Gießen: Psychosozial-Verlag, 2020]). Given all of this, some researchers have increasingly focused less on specific immigrant groups and more on Germany as an actual "migration society" (and to a lesser extent, also on Austria). While the country was shaped by labor migration for many decades, it held on to an ethnic völkisch notion of belonging until at least the beginning of the twenty-first century and only recently has acknowledged its own multiculturalism. As the "new antisemitism" debates show, this has not come without difficulties. The volume published by Nikolaus Hagen and Tobias Neuburger, aptly titled "Antisemitism in the Migration Society," is an explicit response to these challenging times. In their introduction, the editors point to the continuation of anti-Jewish violence in Austria and Germany after the Holocaust, calling into question the myth of Western liberal democracies as free of antisemitism. Regarding current examples, they also mention the danger of "externalization," whereby public debates around an "imported antisemitism" from migrants and refugees can have the effect of denying the continuation of antisemitic attitudes in wider parts of the population. A second mechanism they identify is "universalization," whereby antisemitic acts are freed of their specific anti-Jewish content and instead portrayed as an attack "on all of us." In pointing to the recent threat of global right-wing terrorism, Hagen and Neuburger make clear that contemporary antisemitism has many sources: the extreme Right, Islamism, the Left, but also the so-called "middle of society." As the volume's subtitle suggests, the essays look at theoretical considerations and underpinnings, empirical case studies, and the [End Page 442] implications for educational and pedagogical work. The 12 Austrian and German authors—the combination is one the strengths of this anthology—come from various disciplines, among them political science, sociology, cultural science, French studies, and history. Many of them also have practical experience—they work as teachers in schools for vocational training, as political educators for adults and youngsters, or are employees of political think tanks. The essays originate from two conferences for junior scholars at the University of Innsbruck in 2015 and 2016 that focused on antisemitism in contemporary societies. Most contributions address the nexus of antisemitism, migration, and Islam, with references to Austria or Germany and yet provide a wider outlook on the European or global situation. Others tackle progressive or left-wing antisemitism. A third strand is focused on Islamist antisemitism. And intertwining them, a couple of essays look at contemporary alliances between Islamist and Left movements. All contributions thus refer back to the key topics...