“Combating antisemitism is a task for society as a whole”, stressed the Commissioner of the Hessian State Government for Jewish Life and the Fight against Antisemitism, Uwe Becker, on the occasion of a round-table discussion with the Chairman of the Board of Werteinitiative e.V., Dr Elio Adler (Berlin), and members of the Hessian State Parliament. In view of the alarming findings of the current study by the World Jewish Congress, according to which a quarter of all Germans share antisemitic ideas, the protection of Jewish life and the fight against antisemitic and xenophobic prejudice are among the great challenges facing society. “With antisemitism we are dealing with a 360-degree problem”, Dr Elio Adler explained at the State Chancellery in Wiesbaden. “The opponents of a free, democratic, open and pluralistic society very often have antisemitism as a shared characteristic. WerteInitiative regards antisemitism as a significant indicator that describes the condition of society”, said Adler.
Commitment to strengthening fundamental values
WerteInitiative, he said, is committed to a state capable of acting and to the strengthening of fundamental values. It calls for a review of the legal and educational systems and formulates recommendations for action, both for state institutions and for individual citizens.
“Politics is called upon to shape how we live together in society. But beyond that, each and every one of us can send signals against resentment and prejudice in everyday life, so that there is a Jewish future in Germany”, Adler and Becker emphasised. How do we deal with antisemitism? – in the view of the Hessian Commissioner on Antisemitism, that is the central question in the light of current developments in Germany. “We need impulses in order to set a broad dialogue within our society in motion and to win over multipliers.”
The start of further events
The round-table discussion held by the Commissioner of the Hessian State Government for Jewish Life and the Fight against Antisemitism at the Hessian State Chancellery marked the start of a series of further events intended to initiate a political, social, religious and cultural dialogue on Jewish life and the fight against antisemitism.
