Negative perception of Jews in the United Kingdom is greater than generally reported and is especially prevalent on the political left, according to a recently released study.
According to a YouGov poll commissioned by the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) to study British attitudes towards Jews in 2018 and 2019, wide swaths of the British population hold anti-Semitic views. According to the CAA, the survey is also the first to demonstrate that anti-Semitism is more prevalent on the political left in the United Kingdom.
Among the study’s results, for instance, are that among those with far-left views, 42 percent believe that supporters of Israel are damaging British democracy and 60 percent believe that Israel treats the Palestinians like the Nazis treated the Jews. Overall, 75 percent of respondents identifying as “far-left” held at least one anti-Semitic view, while 58 percent held at least two.
Among the general sample, nearly one-third of respondents believed Israel treats the Palestinians like the Nazis treated the Jews.
The survey also found that 67 percent of British adults who strongly favor Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn hold at least one anti-Semitic opinion, while 33 percent hold four or more—figures which far surpass those for any other party leader.
Among other questions, respondents were asked whether “British Jewish people chase money more than other British people” and whether “Jewish people consider themselves to be better than other British people.”
The results were not encouraging.
“Our polling shows that 20% of British people consider that Jews chase after money. Among members of the ‘very right-wing’ boost sample, this rose to 29%,” the organization said in its report on the survey last week.
Only 33 percent of respondents disagreed with the statement that Jews have too much power in the media.
In fact, the study found that those who held no anti-Semitic views were in the minority in Britain.
“Just 44% of respondents did not hold a Judeophobic antisemitic opinion or an anti-Zionist antisemitic opinion,” the report said, referring to the general sample. “In other words, those who do not subscribe to any anti-Semitic views would appear to be in a minority in Britain today,” it concluded.
See the full report here.
This article first appeared in Israel Hayom.
