Campaign Against Antisemitism

Campaign Against Antisemitism
Campaign Against Antisemitism logo
Motto Justice, justice you shall pursue
Formation August 2014
Registration no. 1163790
Headquarters London, UK
Region served
United Kingdom
Chairman
 Gideon Falter
Website antisemitism.uk

Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) is a United Kingdom non-governmental organisation established in August 2014 by members of the Anglo-Jewish community.[1][2][3] It was registered as a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO) on 1 October 2015.[4]

History

The CAA was set up in early August 2014, after an increase in antisemitic incidents that accompanied the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict.[5][6]

A grassroots campaign, it grew largely out of social media activity among those who felt more should be done to promote the Jewish community's concerns after a meeting to discuss responses where a campaigner had her concerns dismissed by Board of Deputies president Vivian Wineman.[7]

Publications

Research

CAA publishes primary and secondary research based on polling and freedom of information requests.

Crime and Prosecution

CAA's National Antisemitic Crime Audit collects and analyses antisemitic crime data from all police forces in the UK. CAA uses the report to assess trends in antisemitic crime and to make recommendations to the British government.[8][9]

Rallies and petitions

Their first success was against the Tricycle Theatre in London which, in 2014, had banned the UK Jewish Film Festival due to the situation in Israel/Palestine, and funding from parties involved with the conflict. [10] In May 2015 the Tricycle Theatre's chair, Jonathan Levy, issued an apology in The Jewish Chronicle, saying that the theatre had taken the wrong decision.[11]

In August 2018, CAA organised a demonstration outside Labour's headquarters to protest against the handling of antisemitism in the UK Labour Party, and to condemn Jeremy Corbyn.[12]

Also in August 2018 the organisation launched a change.org petition titled "Jeremy Corbyn is an antisemite and must go",[13] the petition featuring a Labour slogan modified to read "For the many not the Jew", was signed by over 30,000 by 30 August 2018.[14] A counter petition against the CAA with the title "To Get the Charity Commission to Deregister the Zionist Campaign Against Anti-Semitism" was signed by almost 7,500 and sent to the Charity Commission, which said in response that it was "assessing concerns raised about the Campaign Against Antisemitism’s campaigning activities".[15]

Litigation

Judicial review

CAA has used the process of judicial review to scrutinise and reverse decisions made by the British government and authorities. In March 2017, CAA forced the CPS to quash a decision not to prosecute an alleged far-right leader over a speech in which he issued a call to "free England from Jewish control".[16][17][18]

Private prosecutions

CAA brought a successful[19][20] private prosecution against a holocaust denier who released three YouTube videos of self-written antisemitic songs characterising Auschwitz as a "theme park" and the Holocaust as the "Holohoax".[21][22][23][24]

In July 2018, Gilad Atzmon was forced to apologise to Gideon Falter, the chairman of the CAA, over a libel. Atzmon had falsely alleged that Falter had personally profited from fabricating antisemitic incidents. He will be ordered to pay legal costs and damages.[25][26]

In December 2017 the Crown Prosecution Service decided not to prosecute a Islamic Human Rights Commission director who was one of the organisers of a Quds Day rally, who, during the rally, allegedly stated that Zionists were responsible for the Grenfell Tower fire, called for Israel's destruction, and that he was fed up with Zionists, their rabbis, synagogues, and supporters. The CAA attempted to begin a private prosecution for inciting racial or religious hatred, however this was blocked by the CPS, as they had determined there was no "realistic prospect of conviction".[27][28][29]

Reception

The UK Prime Minister, Theresa May, has praised CAA for its work to ensure that the law against antisemitism is enforced with zero tolerance.[30]

Criticisms

In noting the formation of CAA, the All-Party Parliamentary Group against Antisemitism wrote in 2015 that

We were somewhat disappointed to note that not all of the messages from that group have been in line with CST’s stated approach of seeking to avoid undue panic and alarm. We encourage Jewish communal leaders and others when speaking on antisemitism to follow CST’s example and to be reassuring and responsible in their language, taking into account the activity which as we have outlined had been undertaken before the summer and during it. So too, it is important that the leadership do not conflate concerns about activity legitimately protesting Israel’s actions with antisemitism, as we have seen has been the case on some occasions.[31]

In January 2015, the Institute for Jewish Policy Research said that a CAA survey about antisemitism was "littered with flaws", and "may even be rather irresponsible".[32]

After criticism of Baroness Chakrabarti over her report into antisemitism within the Labour Party, a group of British Jews wrote to The Guardian newspaper disassociating themselves from the CAA which were described as "pro-Israel lobbyists".[33]

In February 2017, a letter to The Guardian signed by 250 academics claimed that the CAA cites the Working Definition of Antisemitism in asking its supporters to "record, film, photograph and get witness evidence" about Israeli Apartheid Week events; and the CAA "will help you to take it up with the university, students' union or even the police." The signatories believe "These are outrageous interferences with free expression, and are direct attacks on academic freedom....It is with disbelief that we witness explicit political interference in university affairs in the interests of Israel under the thin disguise of concern about antisemitism".[34]

References

  1. ↑ Sarah K. Cardaun, (19 Jun 2015). Countering Contemporary Antisemitism in Britain: Government and Civil Society Responses between Universalism and Particularism. Brill Publishers. p. 152. ISBN 9789004300880.
  2. ↑ "Hate crimes against Jews up sharply in Britain, audit finds". The Times of Israel. 2016-05-01.
  3. ↑ "Researching antisemitism". Institute for Jewish Policy Research. 2015-01-14.
  4. ↑ Charity Commission. Campaign Against Antisemitism, registered charity no. 1163790.
  5. ↑ Peled, Daniella (15 September 2014). "Shaken by post-Gaza War Hostility, U.K. Jews Push Back". Haaretz. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
  6. ↑ Cardaun, Sarah K. (31 August 2015). Countering Contemporary Antisemitism in Britain. Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-30089-7. |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  7. ↑ Dysch, Marcus (4 September 2014). "How a small band of activists took the lead". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  8. ↑ "National Antisemitic Crime Audit". Campaign Against Antisemitism. 2016-05-01. Retrieved 2017-07-01.
  9. ↑ "UK Watchdog: British Jews 'Denied Justice;' Despite Antisemitism Surge, Hate-Crime Prosecution Drops (INTERVIEW)". Algemeiner Journal. Retrieved 2017-07-01.
  10. ↑ "UK Jewish Film Festival banned from the Tricycle Theatre: But some won't attack boycott".
  11. ↑ "Tricycle theatre: the apology".
  12. ↑ Hundreds protest anti-Semitism outside Labour HQ, Jewish News, 8 August 2018
  13. ↑ "Thousands sign petition seeking Corbyn's ouster over Labour anti-Semitism". Times of Israel. 26 August 2018. Retrieved 31 August 2018.
  14. ↑ 30,000 sign petition calling for Jeremy Corbyn to quit over antisemitism, The Times, Dulcie Lee, 30 August 2018
  15. ↑ Preston, Rob (30 August 2018). "Regulator assessing concerns over Campaign Against Antisemitism petition". Civil Society Media. London. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
  16. ↑ "Anti-Semites are becoming bolder in Britain, and that should worry us all". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2017-07-01.
  17. ↑ "CPS are going to re-examine the case of a prolific anti-Semite who claims the West are "slaves" to the "Zionist agenda"". The Independent. 2017-03-07. Retrieved 2017-07-01.
  18. ↑ Ross, Alice (2017-03-07). "CPS weighs prosecution of far-right activist on eve of legal challenge". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2017-07-01.
  19. ↑ "YouTuber Alison Chabloz guilty over anti-Semitic songs". BBC News. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  20. ↑ "Woman who posted Holocaust denial songs to YouTube convicted". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  21. ↑ Blogger claims "no proof" gas chambers killed Jewish people, BBC News, 7 March 2018
  22. ↑ 'Holocaust revisionist' on trial for anti-Semitic songs, BBC News, 10 January 2018
  23. ↑ Blogger Alison Chabloz sings along to antisemitic song (((Survivors))) in court, The Times, January 10 2018
  24. ↑ Blogger 'mocked Anne Frank and Holocaust survivors', court told, ITV News, January 11 2018
  25. ↑ Welch, Ben (2 July 2018). "Gilad Atzmon is forced to apologise to CAA's Gideon Falter over libel". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 3 July 2018.
  26. ↑ "Antisemitic author and saxophonist Gilad Atzmon capitulates, making humiliating apology and paying substantial damages and costs after just two hours in court against CAA". antisemitism.uk. Campaign Against Antisemitism. Retrieved 3 July 2018.
  27. ↑ CAA takes legal action against the CPS for blocking Al Quds Day march leader prosecution, Jewish Chronicle, 3 September 2018
  28. ↑ No criminal charge for Al Quds rally speaker who blamed ‘Zionists’ for Grenfell disaster, Jewish Chronicle, 13 December 2017
  29. ↑ Prosecution of Al-Quds Day march leader blocked by Crown Prosecution Service, Jewish Chronicle, 5 July 2018
  30. ↑ "Theresa May remarks on rising antisemitism and work of CAA". Campaign Against Antisemitism.
  31. ↑ Report of the All-Party Parliamentary Inquiry into Antisemitism, February 2015.
  32. ↑ "Institute for Jewish Policy Research: News & events". www.jpr.org.uk. Retrieved 2018-08-30.
  33. ↑ "Shami Chakrabarti's honour under scrutiny".
  34. ↑ "Free speech on Israel under attack in universities". The Guardian. 28 Nov 2017.

Further reading

  • "JLC pulls video criticising Campaign Against Antisemitism figures". The Jewish Chronicle. 29 August 2017. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
  • "Video criticising Campaign Against Antisemitism pulled by JLC". Jewish News.
  • "Campaigners against anti-semitism have launched an official complaint against Jeremy Corbyn". The Independent. 23 September 2016.
  • Pfeffer, Anshel (14 November 2017). "U.K. anti-Semitism Report Highlights Disturbing Trend - Among British Jews" – via Haaretz.
  • "Analysis: British Jewry and a feeling of insecurity". The Jerusalem Post.
  • "We must ensure that antisemitism gets no foothold in Britain - Left Foot Forward". Left Foot Forward.
  • "The Jewish Leadership Council and the Board of Deputies of British Jews Response To 'Poll of Jewish Attitudes' - The Jewish Leadership Council". The Jewish Chronicle.
  • "JC poll reveals 88 per cent of British Jews have not considered leaving UK". The Jewish Chronicle. 14 January 2015. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
  • "A better way to report the views of British Jews". The Jewish Chronicle. 14 January 2015. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
  • "Board of Deputies Community Briefing". us5.campaign-archive1.com. Board of Deputies of British Jews.
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