Volume 4 No 1 - Journal for the Study of Antisemitism

10 JOURNAL FOR THE STUDY OF ANTISEMITISM [ VOL. 4:9
is not just an act of hatred. It’s an act of violence against Jews,” said mayor Dan
Levy of the village of Saddle Rock. “It’s a symbol of many years of torture, killing,
of eradication of the human race, and it goes beyond the violation of the car.”
Police say they believe the two swastikas were scratched into the car sometime
between 4:30 p.m. Friday and 11:00 a.m. Saturday. “It’s horrible. It’s horrible,”
said village resident Gloria Guerra. “Whoever did it should be disciplined.”
According to detectives, a 39-year-old male victim left the car parked last night
before attending services; his 16-year-old son made the discovery. Rabbi Nir Shalom
says the owner is unnerved, as is his congregation. “He’s very religious and it
hurts him,” he said. “Sometimes people, they harm other people and they don’t
know who they are. They think they are an enemy.” “We remain strong and that
our community can grow as a result of this and become even stronger,” said village
resident Nathan Yadgar. Detectives are urging anyone with any information on this
to call police.
Rome, January 9: Police in Turin are investigating a high school teacher who
threatened in a Facebook post to massacre Jews and go “target shooting” against
African immigrants. Police searched the home of Renato Pallavidini January 6 and
seized computers, a flash drive, and CDs; he could be charged with racial hatred.
Five years ago, Pallavidini was penalized for Holocaust denial. The Italian media
last week reported that on December 29, Pallavidini posted a picture of Adolf
Hitler and Italian fascist dictator Benito Mussolini shaking hands, with a post reading
“Warning to dirty bastard Jews who control us from the land of s— and fags
called California. If you remove this picture, I will go to the synagogue very near to
my house, with my pistol, and gun down some parasite Jews.” He also reportedly
published a post on December 23 asking who would join him in “target shooting”
against African immigrant street vendors near his home.
Budapest, January 9: According to a recent survey, antisemitism is on the rise, and,
as a result of “Jobbik’s influence,” antisemitic rhetoric has become more and more
legitimate in public discourse. This is understandable, as without brainwashing no
political support is possible. Andras Kovács, a sociologist in Central European University,
systematically studies the rise and consolidation of anti-Jewish prejudice in
Hungary. The Jewish-Hungarian magazine Szombat had featured his recent survey,
from November 2011, on the front page. Based on a sample of 1,200 individuals,
24% of all adult Hungarians find Jewish people repugnant, despite the fact that
between 1993 and 2006 this number ranged between 10 to 14 percent. The relative
rate of antisemitic prejudices had lowered somewhat during that period, compared
to last year, though, according to Kovács, this may have been affected by a large
number of incidental daily events. “The number of Hungarians who find Jews
repugnant had significantly increased prior to the election years, a fact indicating
that political endeavors augment anti-Jewish sentiment—namely, that the ‘Jewish
Question,’ becomes a regular component of some political campaigns,” says
Kovács.
New Jersey, January 9: Rabbi Nosson Schuman suffered minor burns in an incident
at Beth El Synagogue in Rutherford. It was the fourth antisemitic incident in the
past month in Bergen County. On January 4, a Paramus synagogue was hit by an