The American Jewish Committee (AJC) has launched a program to combat online antisemitism in Poland making use of social media platforms.
American Jewish Committee Central Europe has spearheaded the initiative titled “Don’t Talk Like An Antisemite,” which uses popular social media sites such as Facebook and Instagram to target online antisemitism in Poland through videos.
It consists of short videos on Facebook and Instagram over the next four weeks that raise awareness of words and terms that may not be recognized as furthering hate towards Jews.
“Antisemitism starts with hurtful words and prejudices, but it never stops there,” said Sebastian Rejak, director of the Shapiro Silverberg AJC Central Europe Office.
“Using the word ‘Jew’ to offend people must end. Antisemitic words never should be ignored. Physical violence always starts with words. Hate speech may affect real people and their lives – we have seen that not only decades ago, but also recently, in Europe and beyond. Today, Jews are safer in Poland than in many western European countries, but that does not mean we can turn a blind eye to antisemitic words used in public debates and casual conversations in Polish society.”
The AJC videos explain that “many Jews are harmed daily by the use of antisemitic words.”
“Those who use words like ‘count like Jews’ or ‘greedy Jews’ in conversations, in online postings, for example, may not recognize their inherent prejudices,” AJC pointed out.
“‘Choose words consciously,’ state the videos, noting that some people may speak like antisemites even if they are not. The AJC campaign emphasizes that antisemitism in everyday speech must be confronted, that people should understand that words hurt if they single out and target a group perceived through the prism of negative stereotypes.”