Antisemitism

In this 2015 video from Echoes & Reflections, produced by Yad Vashem, students learn about antisemitism, how it started, and how it has evolved all over the world since the 19th century.

Throughout history, antisemitism has been rooted in repeating elements: links with the devil, blood libel, treason and treachery, demonic force, focus on money, and a conspiracy plot to take over the world. In Germany in the 1930s, some of these stereotypes against Jews and other minorities were the foundation of Nazi ideology. The Nazis published antisemitic propaganda that infiltrated German media, culture, and education. The more places where lies and stereotypes were distributed, the more people started believing them as facts which fueled widespread antisemitism.

Unfortunately, antisemitism has continued over time, but Jews and other groups have taken a stand against it. The video features the antisemitic acts that took place in Billings, Montana, and how other ethnic groups displayed their alliance by hosting human rights activities, painting over graffiti, and posting menorahs in their windows. Similar actions where ethnic groups countered antisemitism in large, public ways also took place in England, Denmark, and Norway.