PUB - Publikationen an der Universität Bielefeld

It is argued that anti-Semitism has to be understood as a myth which legitimizes the devaluation and inequality of Jews. Two core facets of anti-Semitism are identified as traditional and transformed anti-Semitism. Traditional anti-Semitism is an overt devaluation and discrimination, which is more or less outlawed in Germany. However, many traditional myths are Jews and Judaism are transformed and adjusted to fit prejudices against Jews and Judaism that seem to be accepted by the majority. For example, transformed anti-Semitism is expressed by an anti-Semitic criticism on Israeli policies. Several other facets of transformed anti-Semitism are identified, several surveys and polls on anti-Semitism in Germany since the 1990 are reviewed. Additionally, results of the German survey on Group-Focused Enmity are presented. We show that traditional and transformed anti-Semitism are widespread in Germany. Especially male, uneducated, and older respondents seem to be prone to anti-Semitism, but it has to be observed that anti-Semitism is widely shared in the political middle ground. Although there are hints of an increase in transformed anti-Semitism we would question whether this is a new anti-Semitism. We argue that modern forms of transformed anti-Semitism have to be analyzed in the context of populism and propaganda.